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Corridor Person of the Year |
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 Col. Kenneth O. McCreedy, installation commander at Fort George G. Meade
By Tammi Slater
Col. Kenneth O. McCreedy had every intention of being a history teacher.
But when he learned there were only 12 job openings in the country, he decided to rethink his options. Shortly thereafter, he signed up for the Army Reserve Officers’ Training Corps (ROTC) fully expecting to go to the United States Military Academy at West Point. Today, 26 years of service later, he still hasn’t made it to there.
In 1982 he went on active duty and served tours in Panama, Germany and Bosnia- Herzegovina.
Never in a million years did McCreedy think he would land the job of installation commander at Fort George G. Meade. The position has turned into the most satisfying military experience the 52-year-old has held, he said.
“The ultimate sign that you’re doing well in your chosen profession is to get command,” he said. “Being selected for command at Fort Meade meant you went through the rigorous selection process of high quality people and it’s a supreme compliment to be selected. I felt a lot of satisfaction at making a very tough cut.”
Not only did McCreedy take well to the job but those he serves also took notice of his work. His quiet leadership style is engaging and notable and when he speaks his words, chosen carefully and spoken articulately, make others stop and listen. And that’s all before you get to the uniform he proudly wears everyday.
Behind the camouflage, McCreedy has helped strengthen the region, its businesses leaders, elected officials and citizens across the Baltimore-Washington Corridor. For that reason he was voted Corridor Person of the Year.
While some people are made to be leaders, McCreedy feels it’s just his nature to step forward, he said.
“I’ve always felt I’m the guy that raises his hand and doesn’t stay quiet,” he said. “I would describe myself as a leader who sees leadership not as a personal thing but an impulse to service so you can help people and influence a course of events in a positive way.”
McCreedy has paid special attention to how things impact those both inside and outside the gates at Fort Meade, credits Jay Baldwin, vice president of M&T Bank and president of the Fort Meade Alliance.
“He’s done a tremendous job of putting himself out there to the business community,” he said. “He’s very business friendly while still understanding the importance of installation commander and I don’t think we’d [The Fort Meade Alliance] be where we are today without him.”
Working at Fort Meade McCreedy has had to mix business with military, a task he said he has never done more of since taking the post.
“The business community and the military are the same in that people care deeply about what they are doing,” he said. “On the military post it extends the definition of what the community includes. So often we feel insulated on the military post but it’s great here that we feel so connected and work together.”
However, at times, mixing the business and military community can prove difficult, admits McCreedy.
“It’s a bit challenging having to work with different acronyms,” he said. “I have some sympathy now for what business people go through when I use military language. Each business has its own business language and that’s important but a learning curve.”
The transition to the job of installation commander he was least prepared for, said McCreedy. He drew on lessons such as cause and effect and unintended and intended consequences, learned in an advanced strategic art program he took years ago to help bridge the gap.
“I really didn’t understand what the job entailed,” he said. “I wasn’t sure how my skills would translate … All of us are a product of our experiences and my experiences in the military were important in my development and my ability to see complexity and nuances.”
McCreedy has referred to those lessons often when planning and preparing for the Base Realignment and Closure Act (BRAC), which is expected to bring a surge of jobs, people and households to the region.
Fort Meade alone will experience a 25 percent increase in population and 5,700 jobs as a result of BRAC, but the jobs are those that characterize the current workforce so the movement is fairly continuous, he added.
The economic development of the Corridor has reached its latest peak with BRAC, said McCreedy.
“BRAC has focused people on the future and how we want to leverage growth to have a better quality of life for the next generation of citizens,” he said. “The longest pole in the tent for us are our transportation issues but we can view it as an opportunity to make investments for infrastructure we need later.”
Next July marks the end of McCreedy’s tenure as installation commander just as the BRAC momentum gains full speed. While retirement is a possibility he has no definite plans yet, he said.
“I’ll go wherever the Army tells me to go next or I’ll retire,” he said.
While change is commonplace in the military, it’s always hard to walk away from a good thing, said McCreedy.
“There’s a sense that there’s not really a beginning or end but continuity in life,” he said. “In a sense I’ve been blessed with a third year on the job here.”
Lt. Gov. Anthony Brown said it’s been a real joy to work with McCreedy and he would love to have him around until at least 2010.
“I’ve never met a finer Army representative,” he said. “He’s the epitome of Army leadership – he’s candid, genuine, a straight shooter, and he has the community and businesses best interest in mind and you see that in everything he does.” |
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