In an ordinary world, when people think about creativity, they may think about it as an unconventional or “thinking outside of the box” way of doing things. But, according to Justin Ullman, CEO of RhinoDox, being creative is the “ultimate approach to solving problems.” He believes everyone has an innate and ingenious talent and that if individuals are working in an area where their natural genius shines, their ideas might seem incredibly creative to those who do not share a similar mindset. Moreover, problem-solving is usually never an ‘Aha’ moment, but rather it is a relentless process of trial and error. There are certain frameworks and habits for driving creativity such as taking risks and failing, perseverance and lastly, possessing an innate curiosity.
Ullman’s professional journey began in the late 90s, when he was, as he likes to call himself, a mediocre programmer who could speak well to the “business” side of things. He eventually became a Business Analyst, where he not only articulated the technicalities but also could address the business side related to the practical applications of technology. One of Ullman’s mentors recognized this as his natural genius early on in his career, and he was encouraged to explore and execute his marketable strengths and traits.
Before establishing RhinoDox, Ullman spent two decades in document management. But being a technologist by trade, new advancements in the space such as AI, search engine technology and graph databases gave him a valuable opportunity to solve the existing problem of document management in a way that had never been done before. Ullman feels that the successes of the past seemed to come with ease and that it’s the pitfalls and failures that need to be studied like scripture. Today, identifying the individuals who are positively ready to tackle ‘The Holy Grail’ of the enterprise has allowed Justin to build a team of big thinkers, giving him confidence for the organization’s success in the coming future.
RhinoDox: Meticulously Moving Big Content into the Digital World
Headquartered in Chicago, Illinois, RhinoDox has built a first-of-its-kind Intelligent Content Platform, solving the enterprise’s ‘Big Content’ problem. The platform can find any file or document across all the systems in an Enterprise, as well as look at the words and concepts inside the content and help drive revenue, risk and other valuable information from it. The RhinoDox Intelligent Content Platform is one of the first to truly unite systems together, so information is not only available at your fingertips, but can serve up the right content before you even know it.
Since its inception, the RhinoDox platform has remained unmatched in the industry in its storage, search and workflow capabilities along with the continuous momentum to thrive and grow in the Chicago technology space.
List of 5 Fundamental Core Values behind RhinoDox
- Master Yoda: Each member of the RhinoDox team shares a passion for learning and working on what makes them better.
- Be Brave: Driving transformational change requires bravery and taking risks, which is reflected in the way that RhinoDox is making decisions, having conversations and doing their best work.
- Take a Right at the Light: The RhinoDox team always takes the time to drive the right decisions, and do what’s best for their clients.
- The Real Deal: The best people are open and honest in their communication and don’t pretend to have all the answers, and each member of the RhinoDox team strives to follow that mantra.
- Better Than When We Started: When it comes to his team and his clients, Ullman is committed to investing professionally and personally, and making sure that every individual and organization is better than when they started their relationship with his company.
Addressing Leadership Responsibilities
On being a successful leader, Ullman explains, “I can only say that I am open, honest and vulnerable when it comes to building companies and leading people. There is always more to learn, and I have leaned on dozens of people over the years to help me get where I am today. Being self-aware and vulnerable to your shortcomings is very important, as it allows you to seek out others who have a natural genius in the areas of your deficiency. The same goes in the companies I’ve built.”
Raising the Bar with High Standards
From a product standpoint, RhinoDox has already beaten the established legacy competitors with its revolutionary platform, largely thanks to the team that Ullman has put together. As CEO, Ullman sets the desired vision and saga of where the organization is going, identifies the natural genius in his people and works hard to attract and retain the absolute best talent he can find.
Technology vs. an Older Generation
RhinoDox focuses on Industrial Manufacturing, which today’s younger generation (i.e. Millennials) view as an antiquated industry that they aren’t pursuing careers in. Because of this, it’s becoming important for industrial manufacturers to incorporate advanced technology and automation into their processes so they can continue to successfully run their organizations. Given the fact that Millennials and the generation coming behind them are digital natives, who use technology in nearly every facet of their lives, adding technology to the equation isn’t just a good idea, it’s required. Technology will not only help in attracting new talent, it will help manufacturers increase productivity and efficiency in the face of a labor shortage.
