Fixations: Renovations are a homeowner headache, but they help this exec relax

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Debra McCullagh, president and chief operating office at manufacturer Minus Forty Technologies Corp., talks about her renovation hobby and leadership in this interview from the December, 2018, issue of FPM.

FPM: How did your renovation habit start?

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McCullagh: I always had an artistic side. I got married very young and there was not a lot of money to do things, so you start to do them on your own. Our first home purchase, we renovated our basement, and neighbours found out and wanted us to renovate theirs or would ask for my input on colours and design. My most recent project was a Cape Cod-style home, which I purchased down the road from me and I realized it does not work for how people live in a home today. I completely remodelled it and my son bought it from me. Also, my father was in construction, so as a young child I saw him frame houses, do drywall and I saw electricians work, so I understand the concept of renovation.

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FPM: What do you get out of it?

McCullagh: This hobby is my creative outlet. At Minus Forty, I don’t have the opportunity to satisfy that side of myself. Some people sketch, paint, work out, I renovate homes. When I’m done a renovation, I get an instant high and gratification when the finished result is exactly what I pictured in my head.

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FPM: What are a couple of keys/tips to renovating?

McCullagh: First, you need to understand the process. After you are familiar with the process, it’s critical to create a timeline with next steps. Then you need to make yourself a storyboard. Go look at tiles, carpeting, colours to get ideas or create the storyboard for the house and each room. Lastly, you need to figure out how you are going to live in the place and renovate the home accordingly. Also, I’m very decisive and I can stay ahead of contractors that I work with to direct them and project manage them while doing the quality control.

FPM: How do you find the time to have such an involved hobby?

McCullagh: My children are older now and married, and my son is hands-on and helps. You just need to make time for your hobbies. I know how to recruit the right people to help me reach my end goal. It’s all about delegation, project management and timelines.

FPM: Would you ever consider doing it full time?

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McCullagh: There’s not enough money in flipping a house. It’s all taxed extremely high, but when I retire, I would consider it. I could control my own hours. I don’t see myself in Florida doing nothing, but I would love to renovate a home there. Right now, I just really enjoy working with the Minus Forty people.

I get motivated when I help others who want to achieve their potential and succeed

FPM: What keeps you motivated at?Minus Forty?

McCullagh: In renovation, contractors always want their shoulders to be patted. Mentoring employees and motivating them to see them fully engaged in what they are doing motivates me. I get motivated when I help others who want to achieve their potential and succeed.

FPM: Describe your leadership style.

McCullagh: I like to mentor, motivate and teach people. I like to take a person on the floor who had doubts in their skills — I have a girl who was a great assembler on the floor and now she does my accounting — and push them to grow, question themselves and be successful.

FPM: What’s the most important lesson you’ve learned in your career?

McCullagh: When I turned 40, I realized that I could be feminine at work and wear colours and manage with my warmth and the same skill set that I used to raise my children. All these management books were written by men back in the day and they did not speak to me. I learned how important it is to be myself and to nurture and be sympathetic. Also, it used to always be about winning for me, but what I’ve learned is that it’s more important to have a win-win and not a win-lose. A person cannot walk away feeling like they lost. It should be a win for both people, whether it’s an idea or a contribution to the company. Winning is not everything.

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FPM: You’ve also helped design a back-end technology system for the company. Why not buy one?

McCullagh: Our system started off 25 years ago and it has our entire business wrapped up in it. It counts inventory, does inventory control and has an audit system. It also does not require weeks of training; it’s very user friendly. It encompasses every area of our business: It’s used to share company objective with employees, along with budgets, trends, sales forecasts, top customers, sales dollars we shipped in a day and more. An out-of-the-box system would not allow us to share all this information. It’s unique to us, but I could sell it to a manufacturer. It’s ideal for manufacturing because the principles are the same.

FPM: What would be the ultimate home to redesign?

McCullagh: A beach house, because I have not done one yet. I understand North American buildings with basements and foundations, but I have no understanding of designing for hurricanes. Beach homes require stilts and pilings, something that’s unknown to me. I would have loved to do a hotel, but you need to build a reputation for a $100-million project like that and I don’t have that experience, but, if I did, it would be a fun project.

FPM: Pet peeve?

McCullagh: When you hire someone who drains the team or is a cancer to the amazing culture you built.

Financial Post

aholloway@financialpostmagazine.com