Richard Bryant is a warrior. His battleground is cyberspace, and his weapon of choice is a keyboard.
As KDC’s IT manager, Richard handles all information technology and telecommunications at the company. That includes everything from phone systems and networking to security protocols and software applications. He’s also involved in technology-related training and troubleshooting.
Though I’m working with technology every day, everything I do is driven by the people in the company and their needs. I feel the weight of my responsibility quite keenly. That’s why I must be learning and evolving constantly.
Richard joined KDC in 2017 after more than a dozen years as an automation front-end developer focused on large industrial buildings. When he made the move to KDC, he found that his experience with Building Automation Systems development gave him unique insight into the company’s business of commercial real estate development and property management.
Richard finds KDC’s high-energy environment particularly appealing. “KDC has done an amazing job of bringing on people who really contribute,” he says.
Richard is “crazy” about his job—so much so that it’s also his hobby. “I get lost in learning,” he admits. For example, he routinely reads technical whitepapers, software documentation, user guides, and hardware installation guides in his spare time and falls asleep listening to cybersecurity podcasts.
“IT is a true passion for me,” Richard says. “I’m eager to learn the newest technology because I always want to be on the leading edge.”
One of the more challenging aspects of Richard’s job is setting up IT infrastructure on KDC’s construction sites. That, coupled with cybersecurity, keeps him on his toes. And while KDC has a culture of safety for its construction sites, Richard wants to create a safety-minded culture for the company’s IT environment and its data.
Richard views solving technical problems as an opportunity to advance his skills. He strives to be a critical thinker and is a continual learner of all things technical. He rarely, if ever, answers a tech-related question without being sure that he fully understands the situation.
“I want to be the guy everyone trusts to have the right answers,” Richard notes.
In Richard’s eyes, strong listening skills are one of the most important traits of a successful IT manager. “I try to listen twice as much as I talk to better understand what it is being said,” he explains. “Troubleshooting is always difficult, especially when it comes to technology, and listening helps you better grasp the needs of others.”
