Mr. Seekri steps down from LRI’s Board of Governors

We’re sorry to see Mr. Seekri go, but recognize that his author schedule and the seasonal pull of his home in Florida doesn’t leave him with as much time to dedicate to LRI year ’round. He’s assured us; however, that he’s only a phone call away and promises to continue his support of LRI.

Earlier this year we asked him a question regarding his time on LRI’s Board of Governors.

Q: As the first and only person to serve on LRI’s Board of Governors, who is not a graduate of the Core Program or College Leadership Rhode Island (LRI changed bylaws to add a seat of this nature), what have you learned from the organization and what impact are you leaving behind?

“As no good deed goes unpunished in life, it was my first book, ‘Organizational Turnarounds with a Human Touch‘ that led to my association with LRI. Six years! Wow! In six years (one year on advisory board and five years on the board of governors), I have witnessed the amazing evolution of this organization from an average lusterless formality to an ambitious and purposeful necessity. Gauging with the yardsticks of relevancy, social impact, and viability, LRI has leapfrogged to levels beyond my own and others’ imaginations. My biggest two learnings from LRI in the six years period are:

1) Purpose is mightier than size: Evolving from formality to a purposeful entity, LRI has created mammoth positive social impact in Rhode Island which large organizations can only dream of. Continually making Rhode Islanders cognizant of their assets and strengths, LRI has singularly spearheaded the transformation of this little state from last to first in using its strengths. This has pleasantly shocked Gallup (the architect of the Strengthsfinder Assessment), as well as myself who turned around struggling organizations around the globe for a living. The amazing speed and quality of this ongoing turnaround is a great lesson for me. This little organization has given true credence to the legendary tale of ‘David and Goliath.’

2) It takes a warrior missionary to uplift the village: What I have learned the most is that in spite of the collective effort of many, the impossible does not become possible without the dedication of a crazy person with assimilated qualities of a warrior and a missionary. The warrior and the missionary live in worlds apart and their mindsets are a stark contradiction. The missionary embraces compassion and despises warrior actions, and for the warrior, it is all about winning. No wonder, the assimilation of these mindsets in a single person is like mixing oil with water. But, strange as it may be, there are few people (very rare) who have a unique ability to compartmentalize and use either of these mindsets in different situations.

LRI is very fortunate to have such a rare person. Mike Ritz, as its executive director, is passionately compassionate in selecting the cause(s) and fervently focused in devising and executing strategies for that cause(s). Having studied Mike Ritz’s mindset for my book ‘Seizing Success,’ I have determined that Mike’s mindset of selfless choices and daredevil actions is conjointly crafted by his mother’s missionary beliefs (goodwill and service), and his father’s warrior mentality (go and get it). Any organization, aspiring to be the best must have a few warrior missionaries like Mike Ritz.

‘Leadership is about making others better as a result of your presence and making sure that your impact lasts in your absence.’ These words of Sheryl Sandberg, COO of Facebook, sum it all up about my impact on LRI.

In a humble and non-threatening way, I have tried to inspire the board and the staff of LRI to leap forward, free of limitations. At times, I became a disrupter when self-validation and congratulatory tendencies started to sink this organization into a comfort zone.With ongoing strings of enviable accomplishments, the biggest threat to LRI’s viability is its affinity for the comfort zone which can only be eradicated by someone with outside perspective built on solid accomplishments.”

Mr. Seekri, I commit to you that we will not become complacent in our accomplishments so far and will continue to push forward, knowing that Rhode Island and the nation benefit when we use our strengths to make people into better leaders and leaders into better people. Thank you for your service. You’ll be missed from routine board meetings, but always called when we have BIG strategic questions.