Leading with Impact: The EMBA Alumni Perspective?

In this Q&A series, we’ll talk with graduates of the RU EMBA program and ask them about the impact made to their professional lives. In this first installment, Melea McRae, Founder and CEO of Crux KC, shares how the Rockhurst University Executive MBA program has impacted her career and personal life.??

Tell us about when you graduated and what you do now.?

I graduated in 2020, the year of the “no graduation” graduation. It was touching, though, because many of the faculty — maybe 10 or so — came to my house. They went to all the graduates’ homes with signs, a cake and balloons and congratulated each graduate from a distance. We were on my front lawn, all six feet apart. It was really sweet.??

Graduating was such an accomplishment for me. As a single mom and entrepreneur, the only time I had to study was at 3 a.m. Thank God I’m a morning person! I would get up at 3 many mornings during the work week to study, then I had class every other weekend. So, when that was over, I wondered how I would fill my time. Now what? On one hand, I got all this time back. However, it left a burning desire to continue to learn and challenge myself. That thirst for learning and curiosity was now embedded in me.?

What ultimately led to your decision to complete the RU EMBA program????

I was mulling over this decision for some time — even before launching Crux — and in 2018, I presented the opportunity to my advisory board. I did not want to screw up what I was building at Crux. I had never been an entrepreneur or a CEO before; I didn’t even truly know what kind of a leader I was.??

I interviewed a lot of business leaders that I respected to ask them whether they had an executive MBA, and if so, where they went. 90% of them had gone to Rockhurst. So, I called Rockhurst and started that process.??

When I took this to my advisory board, they thought I was crazy: only two years into building a startup and now thinking about adding an executive MBA into the equation. I explained to them that this was something I needed to do for myself and for my business. So, they told me to go crush it. I’m incredibly fortunate to have the caliber of seasoned leaders on my advisory board, and I needed them to know I listened to their advice and wanted their blessing.?

There are 7 distinct and unique benefits of getting your EMBA at Rockhurst: Leader Development; Lifelong Learning; Jesuit Tradition; Elective Options; International Residency; 12-Month Leadership Core Experience; and the Rockhurst Network. Which one resonates the most with you and why??

What I wanted to get out of the program was leadership development, however I didn't appreciate the lifelong learning aspect until I was finished. I also didn’t fully appreciate the importance of the Jesuit values. Honestly, I didn’t realize what a key differentiator infusing those values into the program really was. I remember asking in my interview, “I’m not Catholic, does that prevent me from attending Rockhurst?”??

What I loved about understanding and integrating the Jesuit values was the focus on the whole person. There was an ethics class that was life changing. We had to write our manifesto based on our values and beliefs. Hearing from each member of my class as they delivered their “why” is a day in class I will never forget. Delivering my own why was both awesome and incredibly challenging at the same time. I don’t believe a typical executive MBA program from a non-Jesuit university would have had that same self-reflection as part of the curriculum or would have challenged my thinking the way Rockhurst did.??

How has going through this program affected your professional career??

It was a huge awakening for me in terms of my leadership style, and it helped me realize that I needed to be working on the business instead of in the business. I would say my biggest “aha” moment was understanding the difference between leadership versus managing people. The program emphasized the importance of building a strong culture of trust and giving my team the autonomy to do their jobs. Let them take the keys and run with it, learn from mistakes and give them the space to develop and grow.???

I wrote the TEAM CRUX values as an assignment, aligning words representing what I felt defined our beliefs into the acronym. Studying the impact of values at Rockhurst made me realize that they are far more than words on a wall, they are the foundation of culture. If someone doesn’t share Crux’s values, they don’t fit. If a client doesn’t share those, we make a conscious decision to not work with them.??

Because I was already the CEO at Crux, I wasn’t advancing my “career” by getting my EMBA. However, I was transforming myself as a leader, while growing my business and striving to become a level 5 leader with a mixture of humility, passion and drive.?

How did learning in a cohort challenge your ideas of how a business operates and how people work together??

I think there is some mad science behind this because the program pairs you with people in your cohort who are wired very differently. None of us were like the other; we were all over the place in terms of leadership styles, behavior traits, career choices, etc. The program requires many group projects and internal debates on how to problem solve and how to complete assignments. You must work together as a team to get the assignment done. You must learn to appreciate the other perspectives, and then fine tune your negotiation skills to sell your cohort on your idea and get buy in to move forward… Much like in business. I’ve got to get my own leadership team, made up of individuals wired very differently, rowing in the same direction for us to realize success.?

What is the number one takeaway you’ve learned from the program????

Leadership is motivating people and being that role model that they want to follow. Management is hitting the deadlines and getting the work done. Not everyone was made to be a manager and not everyone is capable of being a leader. The biggest thing that I learned was the difference between the two.?

I will also say that the network of leaders I've met throughout the program and continue to stay connected with has been the nicest byproduct of being a part of the Rockhurst EMBA community.?

What advice would you give to others considering joining the program????

I would say if you’re ready to challenge your thinking and transform yourself as a leader, you need to do this. It’s a time commitment, but you’ll get so much out of it if you commit to putting the time and the work in. The ROI is up to you, however when I look at what I’ve learned from the program, both personally and professionally, it’s hard to put a price tag on that.??

Beyond your career, how has going through the RU EMBA program impacted your personal life??

Opening my eyes to my blind spots and my triggers has allowed me to understand how I can choose to react differently. I’ve learned to stop, listen, and breathe through things that might have triggered me in the past. I’ve learned how to ask what might be three of the most powerful words in the English language... “help me understand (fill in the blank)” versus making my own assumptions or forming my own conclusions. I know I’m a better mom, a better partner and a better friend as a result.?

If you could go back to before you started the program and tell yourself something, what would that be????

“You’re making the right decision. Don’t question it.” I really did worry about whether this would take too much time away from my business and if I could truly juggle all the things. I would tell myself, “Stop stressing. You are going to come out of this stronger, more confident and with more tools in your toolbox to lead, grow and scale Crux.”?