During the December 2021 graduation celebration for Northern Illinois University Executive MBA students, Alan Handley, CEO of LRS (formerly known as Lakeshore Recycling Systems) and NIU alumnus, provided an inspirational keynote address outlining important life lessons. The event was held at The Signature Room and Lounge at 875 North Michigan Avenue — the former Hancock Center — in Chicago.
Handley grew up on a small farm in Wisconsin. His mother drove the local school bus and his father was a blue-collar worker. Hard work and determination were at the forefront of their lives. As a result, higher education tended to land on the back burner, but only for a time. Before Handley pursued an academic degree, he served in the United States Marine Corps. Upon completion of his military service, he attended NIU where he earned his undergraduate degree in accountancy. Handley launched his career in public accounting, a field he stayed in for five years before moving to commercial banking. He then returned to public accounting before embarking on operational roles.
While Handley enjoyed success in all his endeavors, the demands of his career required significant travel. After some time, he realized he wanted to focus more on his family. So, in 2012, Handley transitioned his career, and took on his first official role as CEO for an upstart local Chicago waste and recycling company LRS.
Today, LRS is the fourth largest privately owned waste diversion, recycling and portable services company in the North America. LRS employs more than 2,000 people across 10 states, operates 62 sites and generates more than $550 million in revenue annually.
A proud Huskie, Handley shared that much of his success is dependent on what he learned during his NIU days. He believes his determination, focus and drive have been significantly enhanced from his NIU experience. Handley emphasized these same qualities and characteristics are integral when he considers hiring top talent.
As he prepared for his keynote address, Handley said he reflected on his lessons learned over the course of his nearly 30-year career, and counted more than 200 pieces of advice to impart. He narrowed those down to his top nine as he addressed the students:
- Openly take risks in your lives. “The one common denominator throughout my career has been taking risks. Although they were not all smart risks, I learned from my mistakes and made them teachable moments.”
- Fail. “Failure goes hand in hand with risk, and you must be in an environment that accepts both. You cannot penalize others for failing when they take risks. Experimenting, pushing forward and innovating are all on parallel tracks with risk and failure. So, fail small, but fail often. And most importantly, learn from your experiences.”
- Be curious. “Always seek ways to learn — and never stop questioning. Many people hedge risks by going with what they know. Remember that curiosity is the backbone of humanity. When you surrender to your comfort zone you surrender your drive. Push yourself regularly, both mentally and physically, and know that being curious makes you well-rounded and intriguing with more lived experiences to share as part of your legacy.”
- Surround yourself with good people. But more importantly, take care of them. “Not only surround yourself with smart people, but also trust them, empower them, allow them to make mistakes, to make their own decisions, and yes, to fail. Nothing is more dangerous than being around smart people and not rewarding or acknowledging them. They need to know you have their back.”
- Find love. “Finding love, being loved and being empathetic are what it means to be a good leader and a good human being, especially in the world we live in today. I know many individuals with a lot of money who are miserable. While I acknowledge I’ve done well for myself, frankly there is no amount of money I would trade for the life I have made for my four daughters and my lovely wife.”
- Push yourself well out of your comfort zone. “Seek out uncomfortable situations where you don’t have all the answers. For me, this happens a lot when I travel. I like to experience new foods, cultures, belief systems and people. Doing so leaves me with a greater appreciation for what I have, as well as what I have learned from my travels. Pushing yourself into new situations enhances your empathy and helps cultivate new ideas. You can take these experiences and put what you learn from them into what you do for a living to create a forceful fire. As an example, take on a new career or volunteer opportunity, mentor someone you normally would not mentor, reach out and help someone whom you may not typically help, or volunteer to serve on a new committee. Take on an initiative you feel might not make you comfortable and even be nervous about tackling it. It’s normal to walk into a meeting and have butterflies. Butterflies mean you care, and caring about what you do will lead to success. The day you walk into work without butterflies is the day you need to change everything you do in your life because I truly believe that a healthy level of fear is a key driver in obtaining success. Do at least one thing almost every day that makes you nervous. You will grow from those experiences.”
- Never underestimate the power of your network. “Every position I’ve had originated from someone I knew when I worked at Price Waterhouse and KPMG. Always treat people properly and create a good network. Stay in touch with contacts. Every week I still talk to my fellow business school students to trade ideas and gain advice. Without question, the advice we share with each other is better advice than I could ever pay for. Don’t forget your fellow students, now and throughout your career. They are valuable both personally and professionally in a deep and connected way. So don’t stop building your network, and certainly don’t fall into the trap of thinking you can do things on your own.”
- Give back, build up. “Never forget those who helped you get to where you are in your organization and throughout life. As you spend more time and gain more resources, be it time or money, do not forget how you got there and who paved the way. You can do this by mentoring people and thinking about those who helped you in the past. Ultimately, you will be a better and happier person for it.”
- Be passionate. “Wherever you are in your career you must maintain, grow and continue to kindle your passion. As humans we are not meant to float down the stream and bounce across rocks. We are all designed to swim upstream, to fight the current and go in a direction no one else is going. This is what makes Huskies special, and what makes those of you who continue your education so truly special. Always fan your internal flame, and as you mature as professionals and age as humans, avoid complacency and avoid surrendering to the status quo.”
In closing, Handley reminded students to take risks and to fail small but fail often, be relentlessly curious, love fiercely, be empathetic, seek out things that challenge you and make you uncomfortable, never underestimate friends and their contributions to your social and professional growth, and always find ways to give back.
“Above all, stay hungry and live passionately,” Handley said. “If you can achieve these things, your lives will be richer and more fulfilled. You will be a more interesting person. And those around you, with whom you work and live, will be better because of your example.”
by Michaela Dudek, Digital Marketing major and Graduate Assistant in the MBA Office, NIU College of Business; editorial oversight by Michelle De Jean, director of marketing, NIU College of Business and by the NIU Clearinghouse.
