David McNair
brings over 25 years of experience in the fields of Organizational and Leadership Development. As the founder of The McNair Group, he is a frequently requested speaker and coach for industries as diverse as healthcare, hospitality and tourism, retail, real estate development and utilities. David began his career with AT&T, moving to their Corporate Headquarters in the early 1980’s to work with customer service offices and retail sites across the United States. After that, he made a dramatic change to hospital administration for a large, acute care health system. In 1998 he founded The McNair Group, a team of seasoned professionals who coach organizations to higher levels of performance. While his focus is on maximizing the employee and the customer experience, he is driven by outcomes and performance measures for success!
Together with Bill Perry and Lisa Ford, David co-authored a highly successful business book, Exceptional Customer Service: Going Beyond Your Good Service to Exceed the Customers’ Expectations.
David lives in Charleston, South Carolina with his wife and four boys. When not working, he can be found on the sidelines of most any sporting event – or on the tidewaters of the Lowcountry.
Rick Redden
brings nearly 30 years of experience in designing and operationalizing strategy, coaching and developing high-impact executive talent, and helping teams to maximize growth opportunities and customer satisfaction.
Rick most recently served as Executive Vice President and Division President for a top 3 US bank, responsible for a $3 billion P&L, 2.5 million customers, 2,000+ branches/ATMs, and more than 7,000 employees. In addition to directly leading a number of highly successful businesses, Rick has been instrumental in national initiatives, including merger integration, customer segmentation, talent management, and business transformation and redesign efforts. Rick has also assisted client companies with acquisitions, major investments, capital structure decisions, and succession strategies.
Rick earned a B.S. in Business Administration from Appalachian State University, an M.B.A. from Georgia Tech, and is a graduate of the UNC-Chapel Hill Executive Leadership program. He has been active in the community, serving in leadership roles with state and national boards, including the Charleston Economic Leadership Council, South Carolina Bankers Association, Clemson University Board of Visitors, and the Kennedy Center National Symphony Orchestra.
Melanie Stith
is a seasoned executive leader with over 20 years of experience in HR and workplace culture and transformations. Her experience spans coaching to higher levels of performance, leadership development, engaging teams, leading through change, CEO selection and onboarding, board governance and more. She is passionate about empowering people and organizations to work at their very best.
Melanie, Principal Advisor for The McNair Group, most recently served as the Chief Administrative Officer for a large non-profit healthcare system in South Carolina with over 6000 employees, 100+ sites of care and $1.4B in net patient revenue. She also held the title of Chief People & Government Relations Officer as she led workforce strategy and government relations, building strong organization and community relationships.
Melanie has led multiple HR technology upgrades, engaged teams through mergers & acquisitions, redesigned compensation, benefit & well-being offerings to align with organizational goals and served as a champion for diversity, equity and inclusion. With a passion for hiring and retaining top talent and building effective teams, Melanie led the top tiers of employee engagement and won countless workplace awards, including Fortune’s Best Place to Work, for its exceptional culture and focus on mission.
Melanie earned a B.S. in Business Management with an emphasis in Human Resources from Clemson University, where she now serves as the Board Chair for the Department of Management Advisory Board in the Wilbur O. and Ann Powers College of Business. Melanie earned her JD at the University of South Carolina School of Law and practiced in the areas of employment law litigation & counseling before moving in house. She is also a graduate of the Riley Institute at Furman University, focusing on equity and social/economic progress in South Carolina.
Melanie is passionate about serving the community and was appointed to the Charleston Chamber of Commerce’s Board of Directors, participated in the Charleston Regional Development Alliance’s Economic Leadership Council, held multiple leadership roles with the American Heart Association and the March of Dimes and is the Chair-Elect for the Trident United Way.
Outside of work, Melanie loves boating, traveling and spending time with her husband and their three children. She is also an avid Clemson Tigers fan!
Bill Perry
has spent the past 15 years assisting organizations to improve their customer focus; develop their leaders; and plan their futures. His seminars and workshops on Exceptional Customer Service and supervisory development topics ranging from Leading Change to Motivating Staff and Self, and Communicating Effectively have received high praise from thousands of attendees across the country.
A former Captain in the U.S. Navy for 27 years, Bill left active duty in 1992 and took a position with Trident Technical College and as President of the Trident Area Community of Excellence (TACE). During his four years there, he worked with organizations throughout the region seeking to improve the quality of their products and service.
In 1996, Bill founded the Charleston Center for High-Performance Organizations and remains as its President today. He is an Executive in Residence at The Citadel, where he teaches senior cadets and a graduate-level course on Exceptional Customer Service.
Bill and his wife live in Charleston, South Carolina, where their favorite pastime is spoiling their two granddaughters.
Jim Howell
has more than 20 years of experience in the creation and delivery of customer service support tools. As the lead for our Help Desk and Technical Support, Jim oversees the creation and implementation of employee and customer surveys. Jim’s vast experience across industries from Hospitality and Tourism to Healthcare, Real Estate Development, Construction, Engineering, and Non-profits have provided him a wealth of experience in tailoring survey tools and reports to meet our clients’ needs.
