Rick McNabb ’78 shares his biggest takeaway from college was the brotherhood that was built over the four years at OU. “Our connection was stronger than any geographical or time limitation that was put between us,” he said. “I loved all the guys I met and grew personally through those relationships.”
After he moved out of the state to begin his professional career he reflects, “There are many relationships that come and go in life, but the lifelong bond is a sense of belonging that lingers on after collegeick earned a degree in finance, as well as his MBA from the University of Oklahoma, all in one swoop. “I assessed the job market at the time and decided to finish two degrees. I felt if I left, there was a high risk of not returning to school once life and family began,” Rick said.
“When I left OU, I was hungry, motivated to find relevance and purpose in life.” Rick set out on his own ready to take on new challenges. “I ignored predefined boundaries, which freed me to excel—I don’t live in a box.” Living by this moto and staying focused on his goal to be relevant and purposeful in life led Rick down the path of success.
Rick has been able to travel the world extensively and focuses on a world perspective. “I want to build a world best practice view that is not just a siloed U.S. perspective.” All of his businesses span three continents, with six business in the U.S., Europe, and he is currently establishing a business in Saudi Arabia helping them rebuild their health care systems. They all have a digital transformation and problem-solving theme, and are focused on rebuilding health care, consumer goods, media and entertainment, finance, and insurance industries. Rick’s view is “in the digital era, in order to solve the world’s biggest problems, you need multiple platforms.” His platform world includes Optimity Advisors, a digital consultancy; SaltFlats Labs, an innovation house incubator; Jumpgate Solutions, a technology platform developer; Fire Monkey Investments, a private equity company; and several real estate holding companies.
Rick is also building a media company to create documentaries to tell world stories. He has dedicated film crews focused on subjects like solving the ocean’s plastic situation. He wants to utilize his technology platform with crowdsourcing and social media capabilities to create a collective intelligence network to help solve these big problems. Rick’s companies also donate a portion of their funds to the United Nations list of sustainability goals.
When asked what satisfies him about his current status in life, Rick’s answer is simple: “I am thankful. I have been happily married for 40 years. I have a large family. I’ve built several successful businesses. In the last 10 years, I discovered I really enjoyed being an entrepreneur. I learned when to pull the trigger and when not to in business and in life. I am grateful for my family, my businesses, and the experiences both have given me.”
In the future, Rick has plans to become an explorer, while teaching and sailing around the world with his grandchildren along for the ride. In case you hadn’t noticed, Rick loves to learn, evolve, and is constantly on the go. Rick resides in Naples, Fla., Minneapolis, Minn., New York City, N.Y., and Washington, D.C. He can be reached via email at [email protected].
