From Start-up to Scaled Up: A Conversation with Richard Kask

Providing an epic client experience is one of our core values at Nucleus. We are continuously refining our service delivery model to ensure that we are providing value to our clients in the most efficient and creative way possible. As part of this ongoing evolution, Richard Kask was recently promoted to Vice President of Client Experience. We sat down with Richard to learn about the evolution of his career and his dedication to delivering an epic experience in the fast-paced and evolving Managed Services industry.  

How did you end up in the Managed Services industry?  

I started my career with a Managed Service Provider (MSP) in a Procurement role working with larger enterprise Clients, like British Columbia health care and the Alberta government. After a few years, I interviewed at Nucleus for the Support/Service Coordinator role. Through conversations with our then VP of Strategy, Martin DesRosiers and Karl Fulljames, VP of Operations (our current CTO), my role evolved into a hybrid role of Inside Sales/Procurement/Account Manager. That was 11 years ago! There were only 11 employees when I joined.  

At that time Nucleus had a start-up mentality and everyone wore multiple hats. Plus, we had a really cool office in Gastown with a wonderful view. 

I eventually became an Account Executive, primarily working in business development. I did some account management on the side and then moved into the Business Development Manager role. In 2022, I was promoted to the Director of Growth leading business development, then subsequently to the Director of Business Development and took over leadership for all sales and marketing at Nucleus. Last year, we underwent leadership changes, and I was appointed the Director of Client Experience and most recently Vice President of Client Experience. I think I've had seven different roles here! It’s been an incredible journey.  

Can you speak to any overarching strategies that you've applied? 

A lot of how I tackle business (and success) comes down to my sports background. While attending Simon Fraser University for my BA, I also played varsity football on scholarship. Based on my experience in high-performance sports, I understand the importance of strong leadership and a good team mentality.

I've been able to manage and grow our departments like a sports team: everyone is on the same team; we have common goals and there’s no ego-everybody is helping each other. It's a little bit of push and pull with teammates, which helps to strengthen relationships and drive standards forward. It's holding each other accountable and challenging people in the correct way. I’ve embraced a “Win the Week” mentality since Day 1 at Nucleus. Think about the NFL with the goal being to win the Super Bowl. What does the team need to do to achieve that goal?   

For example, our Client Experience team is comprised of the Client Success team and Business Development Team. Client Success needs to deliver Technology Scorecards, handle escalations, own client relationships, strengthen retention, deliver monthly operational meetings, align technology standards, and more. Business Development is laser focused on new logo acquisition and growth. Our teams know what the ‘big goals’ are, but they important part is focusing on what steps they need to take to improve and achieve success on a weekly basis. What tangible deliverables are you hitting that by the time it’s ‘game time’ on Friday (i.e. end of workday Friday), you can look back and know that you’ve won the week and made positive advancements. It’s important to have annual and quarterly goals, but if you're not focusing on winning the week and doing the right things to ultimately be accountable and drive immediate success, you're going to fail. 

The work hard, play hard mentality is alive and well at Nucleus too. 

What's your day-to-day work like at Nucleus? 

No two days are the same in my role. One day I may be primarily focused on team coaching, internal meetings, removing roadblocks and helping team members be successful. I also meet with stakeholders and department leaders to drive strategy and implement new processes. I help our Account Executives prepare for meetings, attend client or prospect meetings, assist with onboarding and escalations. Part of my role is understanding client and prospect needs and peaking under the hood to see where inefficiencies are and how we can further improve their experience. Regardless of what I’m doing, I’m focused on ensuring that the client receives that Epic Client Experience that we can committed to. 

For me, every day and every week can be different. It keeps me motivated as I think I thrive in a work environment where agility is important. 

How do you use to measure success? 

On the growth side, my KPIs are focused on acquiring new business, attending events, and helping our Account Executives be successful. With our Client Success Managers (CSM), I am ensuring that goals are met when it comes to scorecard reviews, monthly meetings, escalations and client satisfaction.  

Success goes beyond KPIs, and it often comes down to relationships and the value that we deliver to clients.   

When I think about measuring success at Nucleus, there’s one interaction I had at Nucleus years ago that has stayed with me. Years ago, when I was an Account Executive, I was working with Saj, our Service Manager at the time, to assist a newly acquired client in the construction vertical work through a variety of challenging IT issues. And at one moment, the Owner and main stakeholder at the client asked Saj and I if we were the owners of Nucleus. We said “no, we're not the owners, we're employees.” They were surprised with our response, but it spoke volumes to the level of service and commitment that they were receiving. It was our attentiveness to the issues and the impact we were able to deliver that led this client to think we were the actual Owners of Nucleus. I’ve reflected on this moment many times during my tenure at Nucleus. I want every single client I talk to, to think that I am the owner of Nucleus because that means that I’m delivering incredible value, providing attentiveness, exceptional service, and great communication.  

What tool could you not live without?  

On the growth side of the business, hands down HubSpot. Currently, we are in the process of maturing our CSM tool stack so that they can be more efficient.  But one tool that’s critical is BrightGauge as this is what we use for client reporting and internal metrics. 

Tell us about YOU! What are you most passionate about when it comes to technology? 

Working with business leaders to get them excited about how Nucleus and how technology can transform their business…that's what gets me up in the morning! 

Who are your mentors? 

My grandfather was my first mentor. He was a City Councillor in Kamloops for years. I think a lot about who I am as a person, how I speak, how I present myself, all that kind of stuff comes from him. He was the one that read my essays in university, taught me about the importance of presentations and how to speak. He taught me how to ‘command the room’. I remember watching him on TV in City Council meetings as a kid and I’ve tried to emulate a lot of his style in the way I conduct myself and present.  

Additionally, Martin, former Nucleus CEO and now the regional CEO of Lyra Technology Group, our parent company was a mentor for many years at Nucleus. He took me under his wing and taught me a lot about what I know about Managed Services. Karl, our CTO, has also been someone that I've leaned on heavily in a variety of ways over the years and he’s provided me with great insight and guidance as well, and most recently, Jennifer our CEO. When I think of mentorship, I’m very fortunate with who has been gracious enough to give me their time and energy (and still do!).  

How do you balance work and life?

Physical fitness is really important to me: getting away from my desk, sweating/getting the heart rate up, and pushing myself. It removes brain fog so I can think more clearly which is especially important in this industry; I need that decompression time. I start my day at 5:00 a.m. and go to the gym five days week!  I have young kids, so this is my personal time to get a good start to my day before my family is awake and it sets me up for success for the day and week ahead.  

Thanks for reading and stay tuned for future employee highlights.