Written by Patrick Wooten, Participant in the 2020 Fall Leadership Discovery class, after hearing from mentor Mike Carter, Founder & CEO of eGroup

By the time most of us are just beginning our workday, Mike Carter has already put in three to four hours of work as the CEO of his IT consulting services company that serves 350 customers across 30 states. Likewise, while many of us try to get in a little cardiovascular exercise every week, Mike is training to run a 250 kilometer ultra-marathon in Peru. And anyone who listens to Mike speak for more than a few minutes will appreciate that he is not only an intense and competitive person, but also a compassionate one. By harnessing these traits, Mike has discovered a leadership style that has served him well as a CEO, husband, father and citizen.

Mike Carter’s leadership journey began with his childhood as the son of an Air Force fighter pilot, moving from place to place as an Air Force brat and constantly being forced to adapt to new surroundings. After graduating from the Citadel in 1992, Mike worked for eight years for a computer services firm based in Charleston, rising to the position of Chief Technology Officer while working in a field that, as a self-proclaimed “computer nerd,” he loved. Although Mike had the opportunity to remain at the company and make a good living, he saw an opportunity in the market and decided to start his own IT company, eGroup, in 1999. Twenty-one years later, Mike’s company—which provides IT solutions and services to the healthcare, public services, manufacturing, nonprofit, legal, insurance and financial services industries—has annual revenues of approximately $35 million, a customer satisfaction score of 98.8%, and was named one of the best places to work by Inc. magazine.

While hard work and intensity have been big contributors to his success, Mike emphasized that it has been his focus on relationships that has defined his leadership style. And Mike made it clear that his relationships with his wife and children—which he takes just as seriously as his career—have provided him with a better understanding of how to invest in relationships in his professional life. In fact, one of the key takeaways from Mike’s remarks was that the same qualities that make a person a strong leader professionally can also make him or her a strong leader as a family member, as a friend and as a good community member. For example, Mike believes that a person can make a commitment to work hard, make careful decisions and invest in relationships across all aspects of the person’s life—personally and professionally—and that this approach will allow the person’s personal life to inform their professional life, and vice versa.  

Other key points Mike made during his presentation included:

1. “Whether you think you can, or think you can’t, you’re right.” This Henry Ford quote resonates with Mike, who believes that having a can-do attitude is important for leaders. Dream big, stay positive and focus on finding solutions.
2. If you want better results, make better choices. Mike recalled a presentation by leadership consultant Robert Cooper in which he challenged his audience to ask what they would have to do to most quickly and effectively put the current “you” out of your job. By constantly striving to become a better version of yourself and thinking carefully about the decisions you are making, you will become a better leader. Your choices—more than your accomplishments—will build your resumé.
3. Focus means you say “no” a lot. The only way you can master the things you truly care about is if you say no to other things. Mike believes in Malcolm Gladwell’s “10,000 hour rule,” as discussed in his book Outliers. This theory posits that a person does not truly master a task—whether it is making a sales call, drafting a legal brief, or playing a piano—until the person has spent 10,000 hours doing it. Mike also notes that saying “no” does not mean saying “never”; it just means you are choosing not to focus on a particular thing at that particular time.
4. Relationships and treating people with compassion are critical. As hard as Mike works on his career, he works just as hard on building and maintaining his relationships with his family members. As the father of two gay sons, Mike has learned the importance of love, acceptance and inclusivity. Mike also strives to build a culture at work that is inclusive and compassionate, that gives his employees the freedom to thrive and be the best versions of themselves, and that ensures everyone at the company shares a common vision and purpose.

On behalf of the entire 2020 Fall Leadership Discovery class, I would like to thank Mr. Carter for taking the time to share his leadership journey and advice.

Patrick Wooten, Nelson Mullins
Participant in the 2020 Fall Leadership Discovery class

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