Ep 69: Christine Rice: Journey of a Successful Leader

Diva Tech Talk Podcast

Diva Tech Talk interviewed Christine Rice, formerly President of VisionIT (www.visionit.com), and now CEO/President, of its IT staffing division: VisionPro (http://www.visionproteam.com/). VisionPro has 20 offices throughout the U.S., and is also global with offices in Canada, Mexico and Brazil.

As a child, Christine had not been partial to technology subjects. “I got involved through my siblings,” she said. Both her older brother and sister worked at EDS (Electronic Data Systems). While she was in high school, “hearing my sister talk about IT, and the projects she was working on,” spurred Christine. When she graduated high school, she also worked EDS, while simultaneously attending Wayne County Community College in Detroit (www.wcccd.edu/), and then Central Michigan University in Midland, Michigan (https://www.cmich.edu/) obtaining her B.S. in business management.

Christine’s first EDS position was as an orientation specialist and then she moved into employee relations/human resources. “Our job was to lower the company’s liability in hiring, firing, and disciplining employees.” Over 15 years, she worked her way up to regional HR manager, with a substantial team, collaborating with EDS leaders at every level.

Christine left EDS to join her brother, David Segura (https://www.linkedin.com/in/davidseguravisionit/) after he founded VisionIT in 1997. VisionIT, today, is a global software development company, systems integrator, reseller of key solutions (like SAP), and innovation lab for the development of new applications. But at startup, it was a technology services and Web development venture. As David realized his need for increasing talent “He came to me for help. I didn’t realize helping would quickly turn into a full-time job. What a journey!”

“As a startup company, you really wear multiple hats,” Christine acknowledged. “I started selling and promoting the company.” Due to her strong network of established relationships she cemented large clients quickly, and the customer base multiplied. She concentrated on human resources, hiring/firing, fostering talent at VisionIT. “As we were serving companies, doing application development and a variety of projects, they would come back to us,” and ask for resources to make additional progress. So, Christine decided “why don’t I concentrate on building the staffing side of the business?”

Two of Christine’s strengths are the ability to clearly communicate, and consultative business-building. “I like being in front of the customer,” she stated. “As a company, it is where we get our best ROI, because I truly take an interest in the customer’s problems, and how we can solve them.” She also points to her relentless work ethic: “I was wired to work hard and deliver. And people will focus on that.”

Christine shared lessons for entrepreneurs. “When you are hiring people,” she said, “hire slow, but fire fast.” As a leader she stressed that “integrity is very important,” and any leader needs to “build trust with your organization.” To do that, she deploys consistent transparency. Christine’s personal happiness emanates from caring for her family (two college age sons and her husband) and “corporate success and hitting our goals.” To achieve balance, she stresses time management: carving out time for things that have the most priority and being disciplined in using your time well.

Christine’s guiding principles for aspiring leaders include: surround yourself with other strong leaders; get involved in your community; listen, attentively, and never stop learning. In her philanthropy life, she works with children and young adults of Hispanic origin. “It’s important for inner city kids to see people who look like them be successful,” she said. She speaks frequently to students and gives presentations on behalf of Latina/Latino organizations who concentrate on education and careers.

Her advice, especially for “the young folks” is: “Take that risk. If you’re not making yourself uncomfortable” according to Christine, you are not making progress and “dress for success --- mentally! Focus on the positive.”

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