Alumni Spotlight - Keith Mullett
He doesn’t know how to fly a helicopter, but Keith Mullett is
taking an international helicopter corporation to new heights. At
35 years of age, this graduate of Memorial’s co-operative
business degree program is the managing director of CHC
Helicopter’s European operations. And he’s earned that
role in just eight years with this huge corporation. In recognition
of his remarkable progress, Keith Mullet was named as one of
Canada’s top 40 under 40 by the Globe and Mail.
For a young man with such impressive stats, Keith Mullett,
B.Comm.(Co-op) (Hons.)’93, is quick to share the credit for
his success. “You are only a product of the team around
you,” he said in a recent interview by phone from his office
in Aberdeen, Scotland. “That’s what’s great about
CHC. You tend to be surrounded by very good people and team
players.”
Under his leadership the CHC team has saved $20 million for the
European division by integrating European operations. They’ve
also successfully re-negotiated an international pension plan in a
highly unionized environment — reducing costs to the company
and still satisfying union members with the terms.
Memorial University’s business program gave him a solid
foundation on which to build his career, says Keith. He feels that
the broad areas covered in his undergraduate degree and his
co-operative experience — although at very junior levels in
the companies where he was placed — nevertheless gave him
valuable exposure to the working environment of financial
accounting. “And I have never regretted going down that
road.”
“As long as I can remember I’ve always wanted to move
upward with every organization where I was involved,” admits
Keith, “not simply for the sake of moving up, but because I
am driven to get involved in diverse and complex situations and to
find solutions.” With that drive and interest, he brings a
balance of ambition, ability and quiet confidence to the table that
seems to inspire trust in others. “I’ve been able to
get my hands into the mix on high-level business operations that
many people my age have yet to be exposed to,” he says.
Keith, a chartered accountant since 1995, gives a lot of credit to
his former mentor Ed Stratton, B.Comm.(Hons.)’68, who was a
senior executive with the Matchless group of companies in St.
John’s. Having hired Keith away from Ernst and Young, Mr.
Stratton gave him a great deal of freedom and guidance in buying
and selling companies and restructuring existing organizations for
profitability. “I learned that I can thrive in an
entrepreneurial situation. And in many ways that experience
parallels what I am doing now at CHC,” says Keith,
“because, despite the size, the company is very much about
co-operation and no one is hung up on bureaucracy.”
Looking back on the experience of being named to the top 40 under
40 Keith says at first it was surprising. He didn’t expect to
win and had forgotten that he’d been nominated. Then came the
call from Toronto telling him he’d won and dealing with the
surprise. “Then I started hearing about these other
remarkable people who were also named and I started to ask myself
‘How did I wind up in such great company.’” That
awe eventually changed to “quiet satisfaction and
pride.”
Keith's current challenge is implementing a shift in technology for
the CHC fleet to new types of helicopters. “This is a very
interesting time to be in this business because a bulge in new
technology is coming at a time when demand for offshore oil service
is at an all-time high because of the $70 barrel of oil.”
He’s also spearheading CHC's move into privately contracted
search and rescue services for European governments — a
service provided, until recently, by military forces.
But the challenges he’s embraced don’t end there. With
three children ranging in age from one-month-old Cameron, to Ewan
who’s not yet two years, to five-year-old Moira, Keith is
also very busy on the home front. But he’s not half as busy
as his spouse, Jennifer (Duff ) B.Comm’93, who’s put
her successful business career on hold to be home with their
children. She, like her husband, is a graduate of Memorial’s
Commerce co-op program—though they did not date until after
graduation.
As far as plans for the future go, it’s steady as she goes.
“I’m only in this position one year and there is a lot
to learn,” says Keith. “Right now we are both satisfied
with our life here and if CHC wants me to stay on, then that is
fine with us. There are plenty of opportunities here and I’m
in no rush to leave.”
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