John Kerrigan – Looking at the big picture

Hexagon Geosystems is shaping smart change driven by people working to close the gap between what is and what should be. To recognise the faces of smart change, we interviewed John Kerrigan, country manager in Ireland for Leica Geosystems, to share with us his work-life balance, career lessons, fun facts and more.

What is your role at Leica Geosystems and for how long you have been working with the company?
I have been working at Leica Geosystems for 6 years. I am the country manager for Ireland and I also have the responsibility for our KAM team.

How has Leica Geosystems helped you in your career development?
I have been very fortunate so far in my career with Leica Geosystems. I have been on many different courses, including sales and a negotiation training. I was also selected to attend the Hexagon Leadership Development Programme which was a fantastic experience.

What do you enjoy most about working at Leica Geosystems?
I enjoy the most dealing with our customer base and our distribution partners. Every day there is something different. Our customers are constantly being challenged in their daily working lives and it is up to Leica Geosystems and our distribution partners to help solve these challenges. This gives me great satisfaction. Our organisation has a proud history and it gives me great pride to be part of that and deliver our message and solutions into the Irish market place.

How do you balance your career at Leica Geosystems, and your personal life?
I now have a family so I need to be at home more. The organisation is fully supportive of this and gives us the tools and technology to enable this to happen. I have a home office and I use WebEx and video calls. Luckily, I live close to Belfast International Airport which has good links to Luton Airport. This allows me to get to our head office in Milton Keynes quite easily.

What are the career lessons that you have learned so far working at Leica Geosystems?
There are so many that it would be hard to list them all. I have learned it takes many different departments, all working in sync to enable the business to progress. I am part of the management team and it is really interesting to understand how each team works to enable “the machine” to progress. Working for a global organisation enables me to understand how different cultures work. I get the opportunity to meet up with my colleagues at our European conferences and it is great to see how they do things in their regions. We provide solutions to many different market segments which means we need to work in different ways depending on the customer. Working for Leica Geosystems gives me great exposure to all these segments and through experience I have learned to manage different situations appropriately.

How do you define success?
Happy customers, colleagues and, most importantly, a happy family.

What advice do you have for prospective Hexagon Geosystems candidates?
The company is such a “well-oiled” machine that it takes a little time to get up to speed, but once you do, you will get the support to achieve the goals that are set out for you. Do not be afraid to ask for assistance as there are so many people willing to offer help if they know you need it.

What does true leadership mean to you?
A leader is someone that prompts a culture in an organisation and through their actions inspires others to follow. We have many leaders throughout our organisation so it is not hard to be inspired to work hard to achieve our goals.

Fun facts

Favourite book:
Lord of the Rings by J.R.R. Tolkien

Favourite ice cream flavour:
Butterscotch

Favourite quote:
“May you have the hindsight to know where you've been, the foresight to know where you are going, and the insight to know when you have gone too far”

Favourite meal:
My wife’s Lasagne

Your motto:
Always give it your best shot and be on time.

People would be surprised if they knew:
My favourite music is Country.

Best vacation you’ve been to?
Honeymoon – Mexico & Caribbean Cruise

If you were stuck on an island what three things would you bring?
A football, a guitar, and sunscreen

What is the first concert you attended?
The Prodigy

Where is your hometown?
Leixlip, Co Kildare, Ireland