I believe leadership means serving others, as well as working with others to achieve a meaningful mission. I promise to lead by having a positive vision, painting it clearly for others, and providing a sense of purpose in our work. I believe in the purpose of our vision and the positive impact that it creates within the Castro family.

I believe solid values create strength, consistency and sustainability. The values that are most important to me are: character—doing the right thing, even when it is a struggle; genuineness and transparency—letting others see your true self, and a zeal to always uncover the truth; fairness—providing both opportunities and rewards based on merit; progress—always moving forward; and grit—getting it done, regardless of obstacles.

Because of these values, I also have “hot buttons.” These hot buttons are openly known as “Rudy’s Triggers,” and include: Gossip–egos that hurt our clients and team, bullying, including reckless or unfair statements demeaning others’ work product or integrity; obstructive and opaque behavior– withholding information for personal advantage, and things that are done in secret or with hidden agendas; and sloppiness– repeated mistakes, thoughtless work, and not meeting deadlines while not communicating that fact in time to adjust.

I believe self-reflection and constructively acting on it are the best source of mature growth. For example, I believe I am good at spotting trends, risks and opportunities in confusing data points and acting on them. I am not as good, however, in spotting risks and opportunities in futuristic things, where the data has yet to be formed.

As a result, you should expect me to help you find what you are good at, harvest that within you, and coach you to find resources to augment your shortcomings. You should also expect me to behave the same way for myself.

I believe in communicating genuinely and with conviction. As a general rule, more communication is better than less, and sooner is better than later. I also believe you can learn the most, and improve the most, by engaging in candid, meaningful conversations with other people at every level.

I expect us all to do things out in the open, minimize any human defensiveness we may feel, and respectfully correct for it when we see it in each other and ourselves. When wrong, I expect you to admit it as soon as you suspect it; and when saying sorry would help, to say it. As your leader, I will lead by example.

I promise to provide you constructive feedback with the best intentions for the individual, the team, the organization and our mission in mind. You can expect me to spend time in all areas of the Company, and to ask you routinely, “What can I do differently to serve you and be a better leader?”

I believe in assembling a group that consists of talented individuals that are cohesive, have extreme clarity of purpose and are even more powerful as a team. My vision: If I should go into a coma for a year, you will miss me, but not miss a beat. In our daily work, I expect we will hold ourselves and each other to high standards, work hard for the greater good, openly enjoy what we do, and celebrate success. I believe that we are all winners and all want to work on a winning team. I also believe in calculated risk taking…and then managing risks well once they are taken. I know we will make mistakes, and all the things we try will not work, but expect we should take special care to learn from our failures.

Said another way, I believe my primary goal as leader is not, and should not be, to keep the Company, its managers and its Board out of trouble. Leadership includes a willingness to be wrong for other’s sake. My goal is for us to create long-term value, filled with integrity, as a team. A team that is dedicated to setting themselves apart by being wholly devoted to the client experience, and doing whatever is necessary to deliver it in an extraordinary fashion. I strongly believe that “the perfect is the enemy of the good,” and I will take being darned good over perfect every day.

Therefore, even during down times or down moments you can expect me to continue to invest in the Company’s future, your personal development and maintain a constructive attitude.

I believe in leading a full, healthy life, and integrating career, family, community activities, and personal wellness (physical, mental, psychological and spiritual) in a way that allows us to prioritize what is most important at that moment. In doing so, I believe we all will enjoy happier, more productive lives and the return for the Company will be many fold.

Because of this belief, and because we are building a strong team to support it, you can expect me to put our personal wellbeing and family urgencies before the Company’s routine business.