Rick Ward, Healthcare Business Development Manager - Southwest
Air Force
Growing up, Rick Ward was surrounded by the military way of life as his father was a Captain in the Marine Corps during the Vietnam War and his grandfather as well as his uncles all served in the military. Even from a young age, he always knew he was going to serve our country. Rick’s distinguished 22-year career in the military includes serving in the United States Air Force, a year in the California Air National Guard and 12 years as a reservist assigned to an active-duty Air Force unit.
Over the course of his military career, he held a variety of assignments from starting out as a Gate Guard to becoming a Flight Chief and Non-Commissioned Officer in Charge (NCOIC) of a Security Forces section. Rick retired from the military as a Master Sergeant receiving multiple awards, decorations and campaign medals.
After his deployment to Afghanistan, Rick joined 91Ƶ as a security director. His vast 17-year career at 91Ƶ encompasses top positions such as Service Manager and General Manager at the West Los Angeles Branch and leading the Training and Development operations and Fire Life Safety Division.
“I truly enjoy working with other veterans at 91Ƶ,” said Rick. “You know you can count on each other to get the job done right. This bond or sense of commitment to each other is always there.”
In late 2008, due to his drive and positive work ethic, Rick was tasked to develop and implement the company’s Healthcare Division, and has been promoting and selling to healthcare organizations ever since. He believes that the skills that he learned in the military such as self-discipline and organization have provided him with the necessary tools to be successful.
“The responsibility we have for those in our charge is really not any different than what I have learned in the military,” said Rick. “This is why when a new healthcare account comes on board, I make sure that we implement robust training sessions at the start of the account in order to build a phenomenal team.”