January 22, 2026 • 48 mins
What happens when “lead the way” becomes a life strategy? We sit down with Colonel Lionel Riley, Arkansas Air National Guard mission support group commander, CHRO at Riceland Foods, and Bentonville small business owner, to explore how discipline, trust, and preparation scale across an entire career. From his first sense of belonging at UCA to driving a Bradley at 18, Riley shares the moments that forged confidence and the lessons that still guide him as he leads more than 400 airmen through a fast-evolving mission at Ebbing Air National Guard Base.
We unpack the base’s transformation from A-10s to ISR and now a Foreign Military Sales program training F-35 and F-16 pilots, and why the River Valley is hearing jets again. Riley connects those operational shifts to leadership fundamentals, earning trust beyond rank, owning mistakes, and staying accountable under pressure. Then we pivot to his HR seat at Riceland Foods, a farmer-owned co-op with 5,500 growers and up to 1,900 employees. He explains how Arkansas rice feeds the world sustainably, what skills are in demand on the mill floor and in the boardroom, and why critical thinking and leadership at every level are non‑negotiable.
Riley also opens up about launching Graze Craze Bentonville with his wife, navigating surge orders, staging labor, and the joy of turning a charcuterie board into a celebration’s centerpiece. We talk about the Future Solutions Now Scholarship for Fort Smith students, embracing trades and certificates alongside four-year degrees, and the role of AI and innovation in both industry and the military. If you care about modern service, Arkansas workforce trends, or practical leadership you can use tomorrow, this conversation delivers clear takeaways with zero fluff.
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Episode Transcript
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SPEAKER_01 (00:01):
This is Central to NWA, a UCA podcast.
I'm your host, Paul Gatling, andwe are bringing the University
of Central Arkansas to NorthwestArkansas.
Each episode, we will talk withleaders, alumni, and innovators
driving this region forward.
People who are shapingindustries and defining what is
next for our state.
(00:22):
Let's get started.
All right, welcome into anotheredition of Central to NWA, a UCA
podcast.
I'm your host, Paul Gabling, andmy guest today is Colonel Lionel
Riley of the Arkansas AirNational Guard.
Now, Lionel has spent decades inuniform, but he also lives and
works here in Northwest Arkansasas the Chief Human Resources
Officer at Riceland Foods, whichof course is in southeast
(00:45):
Arkansas.
So that makes for an interestingcommute, which we will get into
among other things.
But um, and he also, with hiswife, Alicia, owns a Grace Craze
charcuterie franchise just downthe road uh from Bentonville
High School.
So we've got a lot to discusstoday, a lot to get to, but it's
the combination really ofmilitary leadership, corporate
(01:05):
leadership, um, that I think isgoing to make for a really
interesting conversation.
So we're glad you're with us.
And Lionel, glad you're with us.
Great to see you.
How are you doing?
I'm doing well, Paul.
SPEAKER_00 (01:15):
And hey, thanks for the invite, and I'm excited to
be here today.
SPEAKER_01 (01:19):
Well, uh, I know you know this, but uh the first
question I want to have, and Ihave many how many miles do you
drive in a typical work week?
Is as we said, you live here inBentonville, but you are you've
got a triangle going.
SPEAKER_00 (01:30):
You're all over the state in a typical work week.
I I am.
I'm I'm from Bentonville toJonesboro to Stuttgart,
sometimes to Little Rock andback up to Bentonville.
So it's about it's about uhabout 3,000 miles a month, is
what I'm averaging.
SPEAKER_01 (01:43):
Holy cow.
Okay.
All right.
Well, I'm sure you've you've gotthe vehicle for the gas mileage
and that, and you know all ofthe best places to stop on
Interstate 40 uh here and downthere.
So you alluded to it, just forlisteners meeting you for the
first time.
Give us your quick Bentonvillebackstory.
You've lived here about 20years, right?
SPEAKER_00 (02:00):
I have been here 20 years with my family.
Uh great place to be.
I originally born and raised inFort Smith, product of Fort
Smith education system.
Um, but been in Bentonvilleagain 20 plus years, and you
know, landed here through uh uhanother role, uh small retailer.
Some of your listeners may haveheard of a small company called
Walmart.
So I spent 17 years at WalmartCorporate, and um that's what
(02:23):
brought uh my family uh here toBentonville.
Uh and it's been it's beengreat.
SPEAKER_01 (02:28):
Yeah, yeah.
So you're you you qualify for aquestion I ask people who've
been here for a certain agerange, 20 years.
I mean, what's the biggest shiftyou've seen in Bentonville from
when you arrived to where we arenow and not even talking about
where we're gonna go in the next20 years?
SPEAKER_00 (02:43):
Yeah, I you know, I hate to be Captain Obvious, but
honestly, it's just it's it'sthe growth and expansion, um,
you know, and just the diversityof opportunity here.
Um, but it's it's it's perfect,though.
I I love it.
Um I know it's uh one of thethings that you you look about
the at as far as the change iswith the growth and the
diversity of opportunity.
(03:04):
But you know, things that staythe same though is really just
the culture.
Um the people here in NorthwestArkansas, they're all
goal-oriented.
Um, they they they they putstake in building relationships.
Um and so that's what I like.
And the thing I also like isreally not about how much has
changed with the growth, but howmuch um the area is being
(03:24):
intentional and staying thesame, keeping the same culture.
So I really appreciate thataspect.
SPEAKER_01 (03:30):
Well, those are all things that um are in your
wheelhouse with your career, youknow, intentionality, you know,
culture, uh, leadership, and thepeople.
And we're gonna get to all ofthose things, you know, the
military and the riceling andthe grace, grace craze, but I
want to start uh with somethingthat's a little closer to home,
and that is your UCA connection,right?
Your UCA alum class of 1998, youknow, proud Northside high
(03:51):
school uh graduate there in FortSmith.
So growing up there, uh what putUCA on your radar for the first
time?
SPEAKER_00 (03:58):
You know, I was I was a typical kid in Fort Smith.
I didn't necessarily have youknow the big dreams or saying,
hey, I need to go to a biguniversity, um, but I knew I
wanted to go to college.
Um UCA was on the radar becauseA, it was it was fairly close,
um, an hour and a half away, um,affordable and not too big.
I think when I when I landed atUCA was right at 8,000 students,
(04:20):
um, which is a nice sizepopulation coming from Fort
Smith, a little sleepy town andnot needing to be um uh you
know, such in awe of a lot likethe University of Arkansas or
other larger universities.
But uh and UCA to me was a wasattainable.
Uh I knew I could probably gothere and meet my goal of
graduating college.
So uh was selected and andattended UCA.
(04:44):
Great experience.
You know, my quick UCA story is,you know, going up there on my
first day and parents and I anddropping me off and got my two
suitcases and a footlocker thatgot me with school supplies.
And so we pulled up in front ofArkansas Hall from the other UCA
alums are listening in.
I was as I lived in ArkansasHall and we had students come
(05:06):
up.
You know, they had white shortson and orange shirts.
Uh and on those orange polos hadSOS.
I was like, what is that?
And it stood for studentorientation staff.
But they came up with big smile,started grabbing bags, asked me
where my room was, talking to myparents, escorted me to my room
in Arkansas Hall, and said, Hey,one of them said, Hey, you know,
there's a mixer at four o'clock.
(05:26):
Are you going to the mixer?
And I was like, uh, well, yes.
Uh, I don't know.
And it was like, hey, it's gonnabe at the fair center.
Uh matter of fact, I'll be backat 3:45.
I'm like, okay.
So we go and then we unload, andyou know, honestly, my parents
left.
And uh, you know, I really losttrack of time.
But I'll tell you, at 3:45, Iheard a knock on the door, open
(05:48):
the door, uh, and it was astudent orientation staff member
saying, Hey, come on, let's goto the mixer, right?
Bringing me along or grab myroommate, and off to the mixer
we go.
And that right there was just Iknew I landed in the right
place.
That sense of belonging,welcoming, um, and ushering you
along, right?
Because again, would I have goneout on my own?
Probably not.
Um, but because um she saidshe'll be back at 345, she was
(06:10):
back.
She said, come on, um, I went,had a great time.
And I knew right then, I said,you know what, I would want to
be a part of this.
Uh, and then just fast forwardnext semester, I applied, was
selected, and I was part of thestudent orientation staff for
the next couple of years.
Right.
And uh it's telling it's one ofthe best films in the world of
being able to just meet peoplewhere they are and kind of usher
(06:32):
them along, let them knowthey're welcome and feel belong
and say, hey, come with me.
SPEAKER_01 (06:36):
Yeah, what a great memory.
And and you'll love to know theystill have those orange shirts.
They still do that.
They it's one of it's one of thepoints of pride on move in day
there at campus.
The whole the whole campuscommunity gets involved um and
pitches in.
Any other uh memories, or maybelessons or or um you know
professors or classes that stickwith you from your your time in
(06:57):
Conway?
SPEAKER_00 (06:58):
Multiple.
I'll tell you another thing.
So I I'm a graduate with a BS ofcommunity health education,
right?
And now look at to me today.
I'm in human resources and youknow in the in the military.
But you know, going throughthat, the the thing I learned
and just some of the professors,you know, Dr.
Fox uh um over over healthsciences that instilled is that,
(07:18):
you know, A, show up, do thebest you can in class, and the
rest will follow.
And that's what I did.
I wasn't an A student, uh, Ididn't have the highest ACT
score.
Um, but I I showed up every dayto class, I turned in my
assignments, I took feedback,um, which I think is a critical
skill set that everyone needs toknow that it's not, it's not,
(07:39):
um, it's not critical or it'snot putting a thumb on you, but
critical constructive feedbackis needed for growth.
Uh and I and I took a lot offeedback during my days at UCA
from from education toorganizations.
Um, other things that stand outis just meeting meeting lifelong
friends.
You know, I had an opportunityto to meet um uh meet couples
(08:00):
who would invite me to theirhome, cook dinners, and allow me
to see how um other couples andfamilies operate as well, you
know, and still give me thathomegrown feeling when I was
away from home.
And I mean, there's lifelongfriends that I've created I
still stay in touch with today.
So I I enjoyed my time at UCA.
Um I I tell people today that,you know, if you are going to
(08:23):
attend the four-year universityand you're in Arkansas, and you
might think the other one, theflagship is too big, um, UCA
would be the perfect place foryou to to attend.
SPEAKER_01 (08:33):
I am so um it warms my heart to hear you mention Dr.
Fox, Dr.
Imogene Fox.
She is um uh someone I haveknown, she has known me since
the day I was born.
I grew up in Baldnob, she wasfrom Baldnob, drove back and
forth to Conway every day, andis still um feisty as ever, and
is still uh just I see her twoor three times now a year
(08:55):
through my job now at UCA and ata football game and or just here
and there at a scholarshipreception.
That's wonderful that you stillremember her and reference her
all these years later, and theimpact she had on you.
SPEAKER_00 (09:07):
The intentional um effort to to really have that
one-on-one connection withstudents, right?
Again, I was a number one of8,000, but again, I felt like I
was one of one um as she wasleading me through the health
education system.
Right.
SPEAKER_01 (09:20):
Great, that's great, uh, Lionel.
So as we mentioned kind of offcamera, your career path does
not really follow a um astraight line, uh right?
You it it really goes um uh fromhere to there and a lot of
different places.
And honestly, those are thegreat stories that that I love
to tell.
So you enlisted in uh in 1992,enlisted into the army, right?
What was the initial draw there?
SPEAKER_00 (09:42):
I'll tell you, so the army, I I I was not
recruited.
I recruited and have to comelooking for me.
My my my father served in thearmy uh and I knew I wanted to
serve in the army.
And I'll tell you the thediscipline, the accountability,
um, the challenges that itbrought all were just perks.
I was following in the footstepsof my father.
I knew I wanted to serve.
(10:03):
So um I enlisted in the army.
And a quick story about that isuh I was at the recruiter, and
the recruiter said, Hey, youknow, you want to be a driver,
you're gonna drive officersaround and and um drive drive uh
troops around.
I was like, okay, that soundsgood.
Again, I just wanted to enlist.
And so fast forward, I graduatehigh school three days later, I
land at uh Fort Bennon, Georgia,and was the name of the time,
(10:26):
home of the infantry.
And uh lo and behold, I hadsigned up to be 11 Bravo
Infantryman.
And uh, you know, I wouldn't Iwouldn't trade that training for
anything in the world, honestly.
But it was a little bit of shockwhen I went and told the drill
sergeant I was supposed to be adriver.
And he said, You're gonna drivethese feet.
And so that but the infantry,you know, it's uh we have a
(10:47):
motto of lead the way.
And that that mantra sticks withme even today, even in my
current role as mission supportgroup commander.
But back in the day, uh when Ifirst enlisted and and saw that
sign and and you know, wasawarded that infantry blue cord,
uh, that lead the way slogan hashas stuck with me and I utilize
it all the time.
SPEAKER_01 (11:07):
So after Fort Benning and and those memories
and that quick introduction towhat we were doing here, what do
you recall about just reallyyour your career as an enlisted
man the next you know six, eightyears?
SPEAKER_00 (11:17):
Yeah, it was great.
Uh just being able to come outof that shell.
You know, I was a young kid whenI joined, um, and it it humbles
you real quickly, but it alsoinstills a level of confidence
beyond whatever you think youcould accomplish.
You know, back in the day, I'lldate myself and I'm an
18-year-old kid and I'm drivinga Bradley fighting vehicle.
I'm at the controls driving andoperating this, you know,$10
(11:40):
million piece of machinery.
Um, and and for that to evenresonate, it's like, wow, I am
doing it.
I can do it.
My battle buddies are telling methat I can do it.
They're showing me that I can doit.
And so again, I have theconfidence and the discipline to
operate that.
And so I have numerous storiesof that um where I've just
accomplished more than I everthought I could um throughout
(12:01):
the military.
You know, I've had theopportunity to travel and deploy
um with the Army and Air Forceand see the world.
Um, and it's just a pricelessexperience.
SPEAKER_01 (12:10):
Yeah, that's gotta do, that's gotta take whatever
confidence you have to adifferent level, right?
Whether you have high confidencealready, uh getting to do those
types of things has to have animmediate impact.
So in 2000, you left the Army,right?
And then you commissioned up twoor three years later into the
Arkansas Air National Guard.
Talk about that transition.
SPEAKER_00 (12:29):
Uh it it I'm gonna sound very hypocritical, but
again, best decision of my life.
Army training wouldn't trade itfor the world.
Um, but transferring to the tothe air guard um has just been
one of those, you know, careertrajectories, uh changing
initiatives that's that I'm justsuper proud of.
Um my army unit was disbandingand they were separating.
(12:52):
Um, had an opportunity to go toa unit in Lake Village.
And again, I'm like, LakeVillage, that's four and a half.
Now that's nothing to me.
But then I was like, who wantsto travel way down there for
that?
Um growing up in Fort Smith, uh,I knew about the air base.
My sister was a part of the theuh the 188th.
And so I started havingconversations with the
recruiters.
Um, and I interviewed, and Ihappened to uh interview with a
(13:13):
uh Colonel Dallas was the basecommander at the time, and we
had a services commanderposition open, um, and he
selected me, and that started mycareer in the uh Air National
Guard.
So I led services, which isdining hall, uh lodging,
mortuary affairs.
So we we, you know, we serviceeverything we call from the
beginning to the ending of yourmilitary career.
(13:35):
And you know, and from there,um, you know, I had several
other roles with equalopportunity uh intelligence,
which is our current mission setum that we operate out of.
Um and now I'm currently the uhmission support group commander
on base.
SPEAKER_01 (13:48):
Right.
And and last year, your mostrecent promotion um big one to
colonel, you know, taking overthe mission support group, about
a hundred, three hundred andfifty four hundred plus.
400 plus now.
Okay.
All right.
The website is outdated that Isaw that you need to update that
number.
So, yeah, talk about that role,what it means to you, and uh
just the overall work that youdo down at Ebbing.
SPEAKER_00 (14:10):
I'll tell you, it's a it's a huge privilege, and
it's not lost on me theresponsibility that I have.
Now, you know, and the privilegeto lead 400 plus airmen.
Um it is a huge mission set.
The mission support group isconsists of five squadrons.
So civil engineering, forcesupport squadron, communication
squadron, security forces con uhsquadron, and a logistics
(14:31):
readiness squadron.
And every one of those squadronstouches every part of that base,
every part of that base, stateand national level.
Um, and again, it's not lost onme to have the privilege to
lead, but we're we're doing alot of great things down there.
If some of your audience knowsthat we used to be uh a fighter
(14:52):
base because we had thoseaircraft down there.
Uh, the most recent aircraft umwe had was the A-10.
Um then we transitioned to uhISR mission, which is
intelligence surveillance andreconnaissance group.
Um, and then now we have FMS,which is the foreign military
cells.
So for people in the RiverValley, they're starting to see
and and hear the sounds of thosejets again as we're um we're
(15:15):
partnering and training innational uh F-35 pilots, and
we'll have some F-16s back onthe ramp here real soon.
So it's it's been incredible.
Uh the landscape of that basehas just changed.
It's kind of like NorthwestArkansas.
The growth has been tremendous.
We've added headcount, we'veadded a lot more infrastructure
to be able to support theaircraft that's coming back
(15:36):
online.
Um, and it it's a lot going ondown there.
SPEAKER_01 (15:40):
Yeah, yeah.
You've got uh from Singapore andjust all over the world that uh
are gonna start, you know,branching out and touching every
part of everyday life in FortSmith uh and that metro.
So 33 years now, Lionel in themilitary, 33 years.
That's a good age.
Hey, we're both good age.
33 years.
How has that just kind ofencapsulate that?
(16:02):
How has that shaped your uhleadership philosophy, whether
it's your military leadership orwhat we're going to get into a
little bit later, your yourcorporate leadership, you know,
the private sector.
SPEAKER_00 (16:12):
Yeah, I'll tell you, you know, from the from the
military standpoint, and and itsounds cliche, but just the
discipline that that is needed,the discipline that is
instilled, um, it just pays truedividends.
Discipline, I'll tell you alsoas an officer, you know, trust.
I mean, of course, you look attitles and rank and say, hey,
you, you know, you must followme because of my rank I have on
(16:34):
my chest, or the title that Ihold.
But I'll tell you, um, it's it'smuch greater than that.
It really comes with trust.
Um, the trust that the airmenand soldiers have in you, um,
the trust that they know youhave their back, and the trust
that they know that anythingthat you are requesting them to
do is something that you haveeither done yourself or will be
(16:54):
right there shoulder to shoulderdoing it with them.
Um so trust has been really big,discipline, and then just also
accountability, you know,self-accountability to raise my
hand when I make a mistake, um,to raise my hand when I may have
misspoke, um, and just holdmyself accountable because I
want my squadron leadership andmy airmen to hold themselves
(17:15):
accountable as well.
SPEAKER_01 (17:16):
All right, let's go to Riceland Foods now.
And then this part of your life,you know, you mentioned, you
know, 17 years with Walmart, alot of HR strategy, recruiting
strategy at the highest level uhwith that organization, a couple
of other stops, but then youwent to Riclin, what I think
it'll be uh three years nextyear coming up.
Three years in May.
All right.
So how did you land there?
(17:37):
And for people who may not knowRiceland, other than just the
the bag in the pantry, you know,how did you get to Riceland
Foods and what is the overallscope of that company that's
based in Stuttgart, which isabout four hours away?
Exactly.
SPEAKER_00 (17:49):
So I it's it's it's typical, right?
The the the recruiters uhreached out.
If I you get those in your inboxes sometimes, some you
entertain, some you don't.
Um I entertained this one uheven before I knew it was
Riceland just because of thescope of the way the job was
described.
Uh it was a CHRO opportunity.
(18:10):
Um prior to that, I was a vicepresident uh of People and
Culture, HR role as well for afintech company.
But um I I this was opportunity,it was local, in-state Arkansas.
And so I had thoseconversations, and those edge as
those conversations advanced.
Um the CEO at the time uh waswas looking for good HR support
(18:31):
to help build out the thestructure and be more of a
strategic partner.
And so I I accepted the uh thechallenge.
You know, uh HR to me is kind ofagnostic, right?
It doesn't matter what industryin.
You know, I've never farmedbefore, I've never been part of
a co-op model.
But again, people, resources,culture, engagement, all of
(18:52):
those are consistent withinhuman resources.
SPEAKER_01 (18:55):
So yeah, what what is universal, um, I guess, about
Arkansas workers?
I mean, you're you're bouncingbetween pretty three pretty
distinct regions, right?
You know, Bentonville, NorthwestArkansas, and then down to
Stuttgart, you know, SoutheastArkansas, and then the Jonesboro
is pretty much your trianglethat you spend a lot of your
working time in.
What is what is universal aboutuh the workforce, and then also
(19:15):
what is distinct about thoseworkforce.
SPEAKER_00 (19:17):
So, you know, what I believe is universal is just,
you know, people, people, peoplewant to work, uh, people want to
traditionally do good and begood at their job.
And then also people also wantto be able to to have uh a
mission that resonates withthem, the why behind it, you
know, more than the paycheck,right?
And so for Riceland, again, ourour tagline is you know, we're
(19:40):
feeding the world sustainably.
So when you have um people inthose areas that support all
those 5,500 farmers that make upour co op, they know that those
farmers are out working hard,bringing their rice, their
soybeans to our plants to bemilled.
They know they're a part ofthat.
And they know that.
That you know, the key tag, andwe talk about feed the world
(20:02):
sustainably, but I don't, I justI want to foot stop the world.
I'd feed Arkansas, I feed theUnited States, but we're trying
to feed the world sustainably.
What they're doing, puttingtheir hands on every day is
going out to kids and familiesthroughout the world.
Uh, and that's an Arkansasproduct.
SPEAKER_01 (20:20):
Yeah, I'm glad you said that.
Um, the world, I mean, that'sthe bigger picture of Roseland
Riot.
I mean, and I think most peoplewho live here know, but then
there are others who don't know.
You know, rice equals Arkansasand vice versa, always has been.
So give us, you know, give methe scope of, you know, the
number of employees, just thefootprint of your company, how
your company touches uhdifferent parts of the world
(20:41):
every single day.
SPEAKER_00 (20:42):
Yeah.
So we're made up of, like I say,the co-op is made up of about
5,500 farmers uh throughoutArkansas and the boot hill of
Missouri.
Uh we've probably run anywherebetween 1700 to 1900 full-time
employees.
Uh, and that is located inStuttgart, Jonesboro, Little
Rock, and we have a dryernetwork throughout.
(21:03):
Um, we got about 16 plus dryersum that host uh employees as
well.
So we're touching a lot inArkansas.
Uh we're we're we're we'reproducing a lot of uh of bushel,
millions of bushels of ricecoming through annually.
And and again, from that, umit's not just an Arkansas
product.
(21:23):
It's great to be an Arkansasproduct, but again, to be able
to see that blue and white labelon the shelf, or if you're out
at one of your restaurants, youknow, you don't see it in the
blue and white label, but you'reprobably it's probably about an
80% chance you're eating someArkansas rice when you're eating
rice out at a restaurant.
SPEAKER_01 (21:37):
From a purely uh HR perspective that you bring, what
are the the skills or themindsets that you uh or that the
company is finding most indemand as you grow and as you as
you hire people and look at newcollege graduates?
What are the skills that are indemand?
SPEAKER_00 (21:53):
You know, critical thinking.
Um the the the jobs at Ricelin,um, a lot of them are hard and
they're manual and you're inthat meal, right?
When it's cold, it's cold, whenit's hot, it's hot.
Um, and then it but there's alot of automation that comes
with it too.
So critical thinking is huge.
Um, leadership at all levels,you know, leadership is not just
based on a title or position,but we need people who can come
(22:16):
in, uh, who can think criticallyand also lead where they are in
each and every position.
Um so leadership, criticalthinking, and then, you know,
just the personality piece ofit.
We're in a generation todaywhere we have multiple
generational workforces togetherfrom the from the baby booners
to Gen Z to Gen Y, allhodgepodge together, right?
(22:39):
And so from an HR standpoint, itis kind of zooming out and
saying, ensuring that all areworking and getting along and
engaged and understand the whyand how do we have the resources
and perks needed to maintain theretention that we need to keep
processing those millions ofbushels of rice annually.
Right.
SPEAKER_01 (22:57):
Well, I mean, Riceland is um, you know, one of
those Arkansas brands, you know,Arkansas brand name, uh, great
company.
Uh, you've got a reallyinteresting job, I'm sure.
Uh, like we say, it'll be threeyears for you coming up in the
spring.
But just to keep life a littlemore interesting, you and uh
Alicia, your wife decided, youknow, I think we need to have a
small business in Bentonville.
We want to open a uh afranchise.
(23:19):
So uh small business ownership,you own a Graze Craze
charcuterie franchise on uhSoutheast J Street in
Bentonville.
Tell me how that came about andwhen that opened.
SPEAKER_00 (23:29):
You know, I was kind of full circle.
Uh the idea came about through auh a military transition uh
program.
So I signed up uh and they weretalking about, hey, what do you
do after the military or whatopportunities are available?
We looked into franchising umout there a few assessments and
some vetting.
Uh we kind of whittled it downto three opportunities, and and
(23:50):
Graze Craze kept hitting at thetop.
Um so I went and made the visitto uh the founders founded in
Oklahoma by a veteran, an AirForce veteran.
Uh, and this was about four anda half years ago when I started
the conversations.
And so we're still at the groundfloor.
Those are the good things for methat one, it was a business
model that I knew wassustainable.
It was a business model that Iknew would do well in Northwest
(24:11):
Arkansas.
And then three, it was it wasbrand new.
Uh so we're on the ground level.
Now, fast forward to today, Ithink Ori, we just hit a hundred
stores.
The the franchise has hit ahundred stores.
So again, two years ago when westarted, we were store number
38.
Wow.
So if you think about thatgrowth, that's great.
(24:32):
It's going to be booming.
Yeah.
But it is, it's a labor of love.
SPEAKER_01 (24:36):
Yeah.
I tell you, it's a labor oflove.
What's it like to start and umand operate a business as a as a
husband and wife team?
SPEAKER_00 (24:43):
Uh it will make you stronger.
I I know there's a lot ofsayings out there they say about
if a if a if a husband and wifecan get through building a house
together and canoeing together,they can get through anything.
And I like to add the thirdthing is if they can start a
business together and worktogether, they can get through
everything.
So it's been good.
And you know, I I'd be remiss ifI wouldn't give a shout out to
(25:06):
my wife, Alicia, who currently,as I sit here today talking to
you, she's in that store rightnext to her.
And and she does a tremendousjob, a lot of hours, Paul.
Nobody, nobody loves yourbusiness more than you do.
Uh so you're you're everythingfrom from the from the from the
janitor to the to the to thedelivery driver to the
(25:29):
dishwasher to, I mean, you'redoing it all.
Uh, it is a labor of love, but Iwill tell you, to be able to say
that we own and operate abusiness in Bigdale, Arkansas is
priceless to me.
Um, to be able to affordopportunities for others to
employ them, priceless.
And the third thing is it'sreally priceless, is just
getting the feedback from ourcustomer base uh on a product
(25:51):
that we deliver um consistently.
It's priceless.
SPEAKER_01 (25:56):
So, in terms of growth and business ownership
for your franchise, any anygrowth opportunities elsewhere
in Northwest Arkansas, are youstill focused on the one store
or are we 100% focused on that?
SPEAKER_00 (26:08):
But like any business, as you think about
scale and market share, I amlooking in to expand and open up
our second store in Fedville.
So uh actively looking for theright spot um that makes sense.
Um we currently serviceNorthwest Arkansas today out of
our Bentonville.
But again, as as as as marketshare and the demands become
more prevalent, that's going tobe a second location where we
(26:31):
can just expand our offeringseven more.
SPEAKER_01 (26:33):
You know, one thing I remember about um the first
time you and I met um indowntown Bentonville last year.
Um, well, two things.
I I remember, and this speaks toyour this speaks to your
military precision and yourcustomer service of your Graze
Craze.
You had Alicia deliver us asmall graze craze uh board while
we were meeting at the ledger indowntown, just like that.
(26:58):
I still remember it, obviously.
I I remember that that uh greattouch.
But really, besides that, youknow, we had a great
conversation.
You have a deep sense ofresponsibility to uh kids in
Fort Smith, Northside HighSchool.
You and Alicia uh have ascholarship for Northside High
School seniors, right?
Why is that important to you?
SPEAKER_00 (27:16):
Yeah, it's it's super important, Paul, because I
know there are students who werejust like me.
Again, I state I didn't have thehighest ACT score.
I didn't graduate with honors.
I didn't have a four-point O GPAwhen I graduated, but yet I
still wanted to pursueeducation.
Um, and I didn't know what thatwas or how I was going to do it.
So it's important for us to beable to give back because again,
(27:38):
you know, the name of thescholarship is the Future
Solutions Now Scholarship.
And on the application, it sayswe're looking for students with
grit and determination.
You know, there's no minimum GPArequirement to apply, there's no
minimum ACT requirement toapply.
There is an essay to tell us howyou're going to use the funds,
but everyone's not going to goto a four-year university.
(28:01):
And in today's world, um, thetrades are just as important:
barber school, cosmetology,medical assisting, graphic
design, the welding, theplumbing, the HVAC.
And I don't want students to belimited to say, you know what, I
don't want to attend a four-yearuniversity, but I may want to go
to this community college or Imay want to obtain a certificate
(28:22):
in X.
And I don't want them to bestifled by lack of funds,
resources, or money.
I want them to know that it'scompletely acceptable as long as
you continue to show up withthat grid every day and do what
you're supposed to do.
Um, if we can help support thatin any way, um, that's the goal.
So that's why it's important toyou.
SPEAKER_01 (28:39):
Do you think does that message resonate with them?
I mean, maybe that they haven'theard that.
Like people think of college,they think of, you know,
four-year option.
Does that resonate with themwhen you talk about uh and
encourage them to pursue highereducation uh or UCA, whatever
that looks like, does thatmessage resonate with them?
SPEAKER_00 (28:56):
It it does because it gives them a different signal
of like, I thought this, but isit okay?
Is it acceptable or is this whatthe world says I should be
doing?
So it it does resonate.
And you know, for me, thechallenge for me is how do I
make it resonate to more um tothe masses to let them know
again, there is multipleopportunities out there for
success.
(29:17):
Um, it's not, as you said, astraight line for four-year
university all the time.
However, that's fine too, right?
And that's perfectly fine.
And one of the things is we wereum, I know I was coming over and
prepping for this.
I didn't want to make it tooprescriptive and say, hey, this
is for four-year university, butI am thinking now, my wife and I
was talking the other day of,you know, maybe adding another
(29:38):
resource to say, hey, this isfor UCA potential students now.
So if you're going to usevirtual central Arkansas, you
have another path here to getsome financial support.
SPEAKER_01 (29:48):
Well, I'm sure, I mean, you some of those kids
have probably asked you thequestion, you know, where did
you go to school?
And you say University ofCentral Arkansas, and they say,
Oh, tell me about UCA.
What do you tell them?
SPEAKER_00 (29:57):
Well, I tell them, you know, it's, you know, people
talk about staying in your lane,and this is the lane for you.
And UCA is a launch pad.
It's it's not a specific lane.
Um, and and I'm dating myself,but I had the best, you know,
four and a half, five years atthe University of Central
Arkansas, um, just thefoundation of education, work
(30:19):
study jobs, you know, again,being held accountable to be
where you're supposed to be ontime, providing customer service
to other students, et cetera.
But I tell them you can doanything you want to do.
Look at me today, yes, as achief human resource officer for
a billion-dollar company, uh, asa Fulbird Colonel in the United
States Air Force, as a businessowner in Bentonville, Arkansas,
(30:41):
with a Bachelor of Science ofCommunity Health Education from
the University of CentralArkansas.
So you you can do whatever youwant to do.
Um, and UCA is is a great placeto start your post-secondary
education.
SPEAKER_01 (30:53):
Yeah, you just you ticked off uh three pretty big
things right there, you know,Full Bird Colonel, you know, HR,
the billion-dollar company, andsmall business owner.
Let's talk about where thosethings intersect, you know, your
military leadership versus yourcorporate leadership.
And you talked about your, youknow, your 17 years at Walmart
and then a couple of otherthings um at the corporate
(31:14):
level.
What um leadership strategies orwhat leadership muscles uh
translate through all of that?
Whether it's whether it's downat uh ebbing or whether it's uh
at Riceland Foods on Mondaymorning in the in the boardroom.
What are the what's the throughline through all of those?
SPEAKER_00 (31:30):
For me, it's it's it's it's execution.
Um you're you're gonna beassigned multiple tasks no
matter what role you're gonna bein.
Um and if you're assigned thosetasks and you don't execute,
then you're gonna fail.
Um high level of execution isone.
Discipline.
Uh again, it sounds cliche andit can be overused a lot, but
the discipline to prep and beprepared, the discipline to be
(31:53):
where you're supposed to be ontime, the discipline to lead
others effectively and managethe resources that you have.
So for me, it is it is it's adiscipline that just translates
all areas, um, whether it'smilitary, civilian, personal, et
cetera.
SPEAKER_01 (32:11):
So what then on the flip side, what does not
translate?
You know, what requires you tomaybe shift gears from, you
know, this setting to uh theother setting?
SPEAKER_00 (32:21):
Well, I'll tell you, in the military, again, you
know, by achieving the rank ofcolonel, there are some things
that get done just because youget you're the colonel.
And that doesn't necessarilytranslate all the time into
civilian life.
Right.
Honestly, I don't abuse thatthat power um by any means, but
you know, sometimes I do have toshift.
I do have to have a little bitmore patience and the
(32:43):
communication and explaining thewhy and and you know, providing
um a little bit more roadway onsome deadlines, right?
Um because again, the civilianmakeup, you're there for for
your job.
There are people who have a lotof responsibilities.
You still have your families andall those other things that
you're responsible for.
Um, and you only have a certainfinite, I know I have a finite
(33:04):
mind of time.
You have to get thingsaccomplished.
Um, but that that's one where Ikind of sometimes have to step
back, take the ego off my chest,sit back, be a little bit more
collaborative, um, and and talkabout those deadlines on a
little bit more open set.
SPEAKER_01 (33:19):
Yeah, yeah.
What what is the biggestmisconception um about the guard
or just about the modernmilitary uh right now?
SPEAKER_00 (33:28):
You know, I'll tell you the guard, the old saying,
update myself again, but it'shey, one weekend a month, two
weeks in the summer.
That's all we require.
Right.
Come on, you can do it.
Uh I'll tell you, that's not somuch true.
It's it's a lot.
Right.
Uh it's more than that oneweekend a month, two weeks in
the summer.
Even though for anyone isthinking about joining, yes,
that is 90% of the time of yourcommitment.
(33:51):
But honestly, the the higher yougo and the more responsibility
you have.
Um, you you there's no way youcan do it one weekend a month,
two weeks in the summer.
But I would say that's thethat's the biggest myth.
And then also, too, is that youyou you can't be a full-time
member in the guard.
(34:11):
The the guard, there are so manyways and opportunities for you
to flourish within the guard.
You can be the traditionalguard, where it is the one week
in a month, two weeks in thesummer, you can be a federal
technician, you can go AGR oractive guard reserve.
Um, so there are multiplepathways for you to serve
depending on your time.
(34:32):
If I had more time, the guardwould eat up more time.
There is only a certain amountof time that I have to do.
SPEAKER_01 (34:38):
You don't have more time.
I know that.
Yeah.
Well, I'm I'm glad you said thattoo, the time.
So your your travel schedule andyour your your your week to week
and your day-to-day um, youknow, really fascinates me.
The the travel itinerary.
I think you told me you youleave Bentonville at 5 a.m.
every Monday and you're boundfor Stuttgart.
And then on Tuesday, it's up toJonesboro for the Riceland
(34:59):
operations there.
And then I think you you pointback towards Northwest Arkansas
Wednesday or Thursday.
So just, you know, how do youmanage the uh not just the time,
but how do you manage just thereally the mental mental and
physical side of your of yourschedule week to week?
SPEAKER_00 (35:12):
You know, I it it it does go back a lot to that to
that military training, again,with just discipline.
Um I've always had the thefortunate enough to to be able
to get up early um and notnecessarily need an alarm.
So that's that's been instilledin me since I was 17 years old.
So that's natural for me.
And then the second is justplanning and prep.
(35:33):
Um, you know, prepping um thecalendar, looking at the week
ahead, what what deliverables doI have?
Where do I need to go?
I do get a lot of windshieldtime, and I'll tell you so take
a lot of phone calls frommultiple entities in the in the
truck while I'm driving uh tomaximize that time.
And then it's just, you know,home prep, the packing, um,
being able to spend family timetogether and kind of box that
(35:56):
and um, you know, put someparameters around it time and
dedicate time to that, um, aswell as also running operations
for the store.
Again, my wife is there 105% ofthe time.
And we're talking about titles.
You know, I do have anothertitle there, it's CDO.
And, you know, a lot of peoplethink that's chief diversity
officer, but it's uh it's thechief dishwashing officer at
(36:16):
Grays Craze.
So if you're eating in ourproduct, I would tell you those
dishes are the cleanest thatyou'll ever uh see uh because
I'm at the ham of washing thoseon the weekends and at nights
when I'm at home.
Right.
But you know, it just goes backto prep.
Just if I if I take it in uh uhcharcuterie means, you know, the
key to effective getting boardsout on time is the prep, having
(36:38):
those items prepped.
Um, and it it's the same thingwith me and my travel schedule,
having my bag prep, having mycalendar prep, having more time
I know I need to hit and be onthe road and be back and all of
that.
So uh preparation is key.
SPEAKER_01 (36:52):
What does a typical Sunday night in your household
look like as you're gettingready to start it all over
again?
SPEAKER_00 (36:58):
Right, right.
Well, in this season it is busyat the store, I tell you.
It's a double-edged forward.
You want the business, and thensometimes you're like, geez wee,
can you slow down?
But next month we'll be cryingfor the business.
So I'll I'll take this where itis.
But usually it's it is spendingtime um with family, and it also
is getting that bag packed forthe week.
Make sure I have everything Ineed for what is scheduled and
(37:20):
also what could be scheduled.
Um, and that's also keeping, youknow, a military uniform in my
truck, too.
You never know um at what pointI may be able to have to stop in
um to be seen, or maybe I canmake a meeting on base in person
that normally I couldn't if I'min transit.
So um it's just about beingprep, really looking at that
(37:41):
calendar and the way ahead whereI can be ready and as prepared
as to be.
SPEAKER_01 (37:45):
Prepared and efficiency and discipline, all
things you're familiar with onmultiple fronts.
Well, let's talk about someArkansas workforce issues and
then kind of UCA's role in thosethings.
So, where do you see um, youknow, kind of a two-part
question, I guess.
Where do you see Arkansasworkforce um trending in the
next 10 years, just as far as uhthe skills?
SPEAKER_00 (38:07):
Yeah, so tech enabled.
Um technology is here,innovation is here.
Um, if you don't have theaptitude for that, be careful
because you may get left behind.
Now, I don't say that as a scaretactic for those who are, you
know, a little bit skeptical ofAI or innovation, but technology
is key.
Um we we run uh a manual processum at Riceland, but we're highly
(38:31):
efficient and we are alsooperationalizing that with
innovation.
Um same thing with the military.
Gone with the days of the oldget your rucksack and it has
everything in.
I mean, we laptop enabled, phoneenabled, computer enabled,
communication, satellite, all ofthat is very pertinent um for
those planes to fly, for ourmission to in the in the intel
(38:54):
uh to continue to be successful.
Um, technology is at theforefront of all of it.
SPEAKER_01 (38:59):
Yeah.
So then what the the second partof my question is what is
pertinent for um highereducation as a whole, and then
specifically the University ofCentral Arkansas, what is
pertinent?
Uh what's a pertinent reactionto that?
What should they be doing uhbetween uh the instructors and
our students to prepare uh theworkforce for those things that
you just described, the next 10years or so?
SPEAKER_00 (39:21):
You know, innovation and and and technology, again,
every every part of a core studyhas to have, I think, uh AI
element to it.
Uh again, not for that to beutilized as scary or invasive,
but to embrace it.
Um, because A, um it's faster,B, um a lot of it is accurate.
(39:42):
Um, and then C, our competitorsare doing it and utilizing it
and mastering it right now.
So we for us to remain thatcompetitive advantage, we have
to embrace the use of technologyand innovation today.
Um and I'll tell you on thesofter side of that uh skill set
is again just leader leader.
Ability and communication isimportant.
(40:02):
You know, we're we're I talkedabout we're in a tech world
today, and and young kids today,I can say that.
They're they're they're in theirphone or talking.
You know, when they put thatphone down and say, hey, now we
have to have a face-to-faceconversation.
Let's talk about that.
Can you communicate andeffectively articulate your
goals or what needs to happennext?
So uh communication is key.
And then again, just leadingwhere you are, um, not waiting
(40:26):
for someone to necessarily handhold you and walk you through A,
B, and C, but being able to beproactive and take on um
immediate leadershipopportunities.
SPEAKER_01 (40:36):
What is the best way a student can improve their
leadership aptitude?
Uh it may be just as simple aswhat you just said, putting your
phone down for five minutes uhor 30 minutes or whatever.
What's the most important thingor or how can a student, um,
let's say a sophomore, uhfinding their footing in
college, uh, how can theyimprove their aptitude on
(40:58):
becoming a better leader?
SPEAKER_00 (41:00):
Get out your dorm room if you're if you're staying
on campus and get on campus ifyou're staying off campus.
Um, the the good thing about UCAand other colleges and
universities, there is aplethora of organizations and
affiliates and all of that.
And each one of those has anopportunity to serve.
So if you're in opportunities toserve, volunteer, that right
(41:21):
there to me is training thatleadership muscle.
Because again, you're owning atask or a project, whether it's
a sign-up sheet, a volunteer tobe somewhere, to hand out
things, to donate, to recruit,all of those will flex that
leadership muscle and takeownership of, hey, I'm
responsible for this goal.
It's my job to achieve thatgoal.
(41:43):
And this organization, I havethe opportunity to do that.
And it doesn't matter what.
Doesn't have to be this bigthing, don't have to be
responsible for the budget orall of that, but there are
tasks.
The work has to get done.
Right.
SPEAKER_01 (41:54):
There are things you can be responsible for.
It doesn't have to be the greatbig thing.
So all right, I've got a fewquestions here.
I just want to throw at you realquick.
We talked about one a minuteago, how you spend your
windshield time.
You take some phone calls, butaside from that, do you listen
to podcasts or do you listen tomusic?
SPEAKER_00 (42:08):
Well, let me tell you, here's the honest truth.
90% of the time, uh the radio'soff.
Okay.
Uh, but I'll tell you the 10% ofthe time I'm listening to
central to northwest Arkansas.
SPEAKER_01 (42:18):
Oh, there you go.
There you go, Lionel.
I love it.
What's the best uh road tripsnack on Interstate 40?
Where's the place you stop at?
You I I'm gassed up and I'mrolling.
SPEAKER_00 (42:28):
I don't stop to my destination.
Okay.
And uh have me a uh chocolatepeanut butter uh protein bar and
a Jack Lynx turkey sack.
SPEAKER_01 (42:37):
That should get you all the way to Stuttgart.
Yeah, it gets me there.
Hardest most challenging part ofrunning a charcuterie business.
SPEAKER_00 (42:44):
Oh my goodness.
The attention to detail uh andthe timing, right?
So we we love customers whoorder ahead because we can plan
our labor, um, but we know uhthe world doesn't operate like
that.
So there's impromptu orders,there are people who forgot,
there are events that come upthat they're in charge of
getting the food, and it's like,hey, I need this real time right
now.
(43:04):
And as a business owner, myfirst response is yes.
My wife's is like, what are wedoing?
Do we have time?
But it's it's really just beingable to stage um and plan out
the labor for the orders.
What's the best part of runningthat business?
Feedback.
Um, you know, our the the bestthing about being a local
business owner is, you know,it's not it's customers, but our
(43:25):
customers, we literally knowthey're our neighbors.
And to be able to get thatfeedback uh about our board
presentation for maybe it's acelebration of life, maybe it's
a birthday, maybe it's a babyshower, maybe it's a family
homecoming.
But to get that feedback uhabout how beautiful, how fresh,
how the board um was presented,it's a wow factor and a
(43:46):
centerpiece.
That's the most rewarding.
SPEAKER_01 (43:48):
What is a book about leadership or a leadership
lesson that you're constantlygoing back to, constantly in
your head, constantly guidingyou?
Atomic habits is one.
SPEAKER_00 (43:57):
Um just, you know, it it it keeps you ingrained on
how small, repeatable habitslead to big success.
Um, you know, another one from amilitary standpoint is just make
your bed by Admiral WilliamMcRaven.
Again, it just talks aboutmental toughness, grit,
determination, um, and and forall those skills that you need
(44:19):
um innately and also that youneed to be aware of that you'll
have opportunities um that everyday is not gonna be easy.
You're gonna get knocked down,um, but get back up and fight
and continue on.
Yeah.
SPEAKER_01 (44:31):
So we're gonna we're gonna close this out here.
I want to find out what's nextfor all of your big three things
for your Riceland, for yourfamily, and for your military
career.
I want to start first with uhRiceland.
What's next for Riceland Food?
And you could say it'd be threeyears in May that you've been
there.
SPEAKER_00 (44:45):
Three years in May.
Yep.
Riceland for me next is just A,we want to continue to be able
to feed the world sustainably.
Um we want to be able to be goodpartners with our farmers and
let them know that we aremaximizing their yield of that
rice that they're entrusting uswith uh for the world.
Um, we also want to make surethat we're focused on the next
(45:05):
generational workforce.
Make sure we have the rightlabor mix.
You know, today everything is soexpensive.
There's no labor cost, resource,et cetera.
Um, everything has just gone upexponentially.
So we want to be mindful and andgood stewards of our financial
resources.
SPEAKER_01 (45:22):
What is next for the 188th and and your military
career?
33 years.
SPEAKER_00 (45:27):
33 years.
I I can say this with greatpride that I am on the downhill
slope.
Uh, you know, I probably gotanother couple of years max left
in me.
Uh, and what's exciting for meis just to continue with the uh
FMS missions to get more F-35son the ramp, more F-16s on the
ramp, and supporting that flyingmission.
Um, I think it's just gonna begreat uh for the River Valley
(45:50):
and the state of Arkansas.
SPEAKER_01 (45:51):
Right.
And what is next for the Rileysin Northwest Arkansas?
SPEAKER_00 (45:55):
You know, for my wife and I, hopefully just to be
the best grandparents that wecan be.
You know, we're grandparents toto twin, three and a
half-year-old boys, uh, which isjust a great job.
And uh we want to continue to dothat, continue to be good
neighbors in the community andhopefully be able to grow and
expand uh a Grace Grazebusiness.
SPEAKER_01 (46:14):
Yeah.
Well, good segue.
How can listeners support you inyour work, whether it's the
guard, whether it's Rice LandFoods, or maybe more
importantly, uh Grace Graze?
SPEAKER_00 (46:23):
I'll tell you.
So if it's the guard, if you'reif you're 17 years to 31 years
old and you thought aboutjoining the military in general,
do it.
Uh it it's it's changed thetrajectory of my life.
It's been one of the greatestdecisions I've ever made.
So don't be scared.
There's a lot of opportunity, uha lot of tuition assistance, a
lot of perks to join in themilitary.
And there's no better place umto be a member of the National
(46:47):
Guard than the state ofArkansas.
Um and second for for um the uhFor Riceland.
Yeah, for Iceland, again, um,I'm just gonna continue on to
make sure that our workforce isset um and that we have the
procedures and the culture inplace um to make sure we're
maximizing engagement and uhkeeping the best workforce
(47:09):
possible.
SPEAKER_01 (47:10):
Right.
And what's that website forGrace Craze?
If I'll get home tonight and Iwant to order me aboard,
grayscraze.com slashBentonville-AR.
SPEAKER_00 (47:18):
Order it up.
SPEAKER_01 (47:19):
Yeah.
All great stuff.
Lionel, great to visit with you.
Uh it's great to know you, andit's great uh to have you as an
ally and an alumni of theUniversity of Central Arkansas.
So continued success to you andall of your endeavors.
Thank you, Paul.
I really appreciate it.
All right, very good.
And then that'll do it for thisedition of Central to NWA a UCA
(47:39):
podcast.
Until next time, go Bears.
That's it for this episode ofCentral to NWA, a UCA podcast.
I'm Paul Gatling, SeniorDirector of Northwest Arkansas
Engagement for the University ofCentral Arkansas.
Be sure to subscribe to the showand follow UCA on all the
appropriate social media.
I'll see you next time onCentral to NWA.
This is Central to NWA, a UCA podcast.
I'm your host, Paul Gatling, andwe are bringing the University
of Central Arkansas to NorthwestArkansas.
Each episode, we will talk withleaders, alumni, and innovators
driving this region forward.
People who are shapingindustries and defining what is
next for our state.
(00:22):
Let's get started.
All right, welcome into anotheredition of Central to NWA, a UCA
podcast.
I'm your host, Paul Gabling, andmy guest today is Colonel Lionel
Riley of the Arkansas AirNational Guard.
Now, Lionel has spent decades inuniform, but he also lives and
works here in Northwest Arkansasas the Chief Human Resources
Officer at Riceland Foods, whichof course is in southeast
(00:45):
Arkansas.
So that makes for an interestingcommute, which we will get into
among other things.
But um, and he also, with hiswife, Alicia, owns a Grace Craze
charcuterie franchise just downthe road uh from Bentonville
High School.
So we've got a lot to discusstoday, a lot to get to, but it's
the combination really ofmilitary leadership, corporate
(01:05):
leadership, um, that I think isgoing to make for a really
interesting conversation.
So we're glad you're with us.
And Lionel, glad you're with us.
Great to see you.
How are you doing?
I'm doing well, Paul.
SPEAKER_00 (01:15):
And hey, thanks for the invite, and I'm excited to
be here today.
SPEAKER_01 (01:19):
Well, uh, I know you know this, but uh the first
question I want to have, and Ihave many how many miles do you
drive in a typical work week?
Is as we said, you live here inBentonville, but you are you've
got a triangle going.
SPEAKER_00 (01:30):
You're all over the state in a typical work week.
I I am.
I'm I'm from Bentonville toJonesboro to Stuttgart,
sometimes to Little Rock andback up to Bentonville.
So it's about it's about uhabout 3,000 miles a month, is
what I'm averaging.
SPEAKER_01 (01:43):
Holy cow.
Okay.
All right.
Well, I'm sure you've you've gotthe vehicle for the gas mileage
and that, and you know all ofthe best places to stop on
Interstate 40 uh here and downthere.
So you alluded to it, just forlisteners meeting you for the
first time.
Give us your quick Bentonvillebackstory.
You've lived here about 20years, right?
SPEAKER_00 (02:00):
I have been here 20 years with my family.
Uh great place to be.
I originally born and raised inFort Smith, product of Fort
Smith education system.
Um, but been in Bentonvilleagain 20 plus years, and you
know, landed here through uh uhanother role, uh small retailer.
Some of your listeners may haveheard of a small company called
Walmart.
So I spent 17 years at WalmartCorporate, and um that's what
(02:23):
brought uh my family uh here toBentonville.
Uh and it's been it's beengreat.
SPEAKER_01 (02:28):
Yeah, yeah.
So you're you you qualify for aquestion I ask people who've
been here for a certain agerange, 20 years.
I mean, what's the biggest shiftyou've seen in Bentonville from
when you arrived to where we arenow and not even talking about
where we're gonna go in the next20 years?
SPEAKER_00 (02:43):
Yeah, I you know, I hate to be Captain Obvious, but
honestly, it's just it's it'sthe growth and expansion, um,
you know, and just the diversityof opportunity here.
Um, but it's it's it's perfect,though.
I I love it.
Um I know it's uh one of thethings that you you look about
the at as far as the change iswith the growth and the
diversity of opportunity.
(03:04):
But you know, things that staythe same though is really just
the culture.
Um the people here in NorthwestArkansas, they're all
goal-oriented.
Um, they they they they putstake in building relationships.
Um and so that's what I like.
And the thing I also like isreally not about how much has
changed with the growth, but howmuch um the area is being
(03:24):
intentional and staying thesame, keeping the same culture.
So I really appreciate thataspect.
SPEAKER_01 (03:30):
Well, those are all things that um are in your
wheelhouse with your career, youknow, intentionality, you know,
culture, uh, leadership, and thepeople.
And we're gonna get to all ofthose things, you know, the
military and the riceling andthe grace, grace craze, but I
want to start uh with somethingthat's a little closer to home,
and that is your UCA connection,right?
Your UCA alum class of 1998, youknow, proud Northside high
(03:51):
school uh graduate there in FortSmith.
So growing up there, uh what putUCA on your radar for the first
time?
SPEAKER_00 (03:58):
You know, I was I was a typical kid in Fort Smith.
I didn't necessarily have youknow the big dreams or saying,
hey, I need to go to a biguniversity, um, but I knew I
wanted to go to college.
Um UCA was on the radar becauseA, it was it was fairly close,
um, an hour and a half away, um,affordable and not too big.
I think when I when I landed atUCA was right at 8,000 students,
(04:20):
um, which is a nice sizepopulation coming from Fort
Smith, a little sleepy town andnot needing to be um uh you
know, such in awe of a lot likethe University of Arkansas or
other larger universities.
But uh and UCA to me was a wasattainable.
Uh I knew I could probably gothere and meet my goal of
graduating college.
So uh was selected and andattended UCA.
(04:44):
Great experience.
You know, my quick UCA story is,you know, going up there on my
first day and parents and I anddropping me off and got my two
suitcases and a footlocker thatgot me with school supplies.
And so we pulled up in front ofArkansas Hall from the other UCA
alums are listening in.
I was as I lived in ArkansasHall and we had students come
(05:06):
up.
You know, they had white shortson and orange shirts.
Uh and on those orange polos hadSOS.
I was like, what is that?
And it stood for studentorientation staff.
But they came up with big smile,started grabbing bags, asked me
where my room was, talking to myparents, escorted me to my room
in Arkansas Hall, and said, Hey,one of them said, Hey, you know,
there's a mixer at four o'clock.
(05:26):
Are you going to the mixer?
And I was like, uh, well, yes.
Uh, I don't know.
And it was like, hey, it's gonnabe at the fair center.
Uh matter of fact, I'll be backat 3:45.
I'm like, okay.
So we go and then we unload, andyou know, honestly, my parents
left.
And uh, you know, I really losttrack of time.
But I'll tell you, at 3:45, Iheard a knock on the door, open
(05:48):
the door, uh, and it was astudent orientation staff member
saying, Hey, come on, let's goto the mixer, right?
Bringing me along or grab myroommate, and off to the mixer
we go.
And that right there was just Iknew I landed in the right
place.
That sense of belonging,welcoming, um, and ushering you
along, right?
Because again, would I have goneout on my own?
Probably not.
Um, but because um she saidshe'll be back at 345, she was
(06:10):
back.
She said, come on, um, I went,had a great time.
And I knew right then, I said,you know what, I would want to
be a part of this.
Uh, and then just fast forwardnext semester, I applied, was
selected, and I was part of thestudent orientation staff for
the next couple of years.
Right.
And uh it's telling it's one ofthe best films in the world of
being able to just meet peoplewhere they are and kind of usher
(06:32):
them along, let them knowthey're welcome and feel belong
and say, hey, come with me.
SPEAKER_01 (06:36):
Yeah, what a great memory.
And and you'll love to know theystill have those orange shirts.
They still do that.
They it's one of it's one of thepoints of pride on move in day
there at campus.
The whole the whole campuscommunity gets involved um and
pitches in.
Any other uh memories, or maybelessons or or um you know
professors or classes that stickwith you from your your time in
(06:57):
Conway?
SPEAKER_00 (06:58):
Multiple.
I'll tell you another thing.
So I I'm a graduate with a BS ofcommunity health education,
right?
And now look at to me today.
I'm in human resources and youknow in the in the military.
But you know, going throughthat, the the thing I learned
and just some of the professors,you know, Dr.
Fox uh um over over healthsciences that instilled is that,
(07:18):
you know, A, show up, do thebest you can in class, and the
rest will follow.
And that's what I did.
I wasn't an A student, uh, Ididn't have the highest ACT
score.
Um, but I I showed up every dayto class, I turned in my
assignments, I took feedback,um, which I think is a critical
skill set that everyone needs toknow that it's not, it's not,
(07:39):
um, it's not critical or it'snot putting a thumb on you, but
critical constructive feedbackis needed for growth.
Uh and I and I took a lot offeedback during my days at UCA
from from education toorganizations.
Um, other things that stand outis just meeting meeting lifelong
friends.
You know, I had an opportunityto to meet um uh meet couples
(08:00):
who would invite me to theirhome, cook dinners, and allow me
to see how um other couples andfamilies operate as well, you
know, and still give me thathomegrown feeling when I was
away from home.
And I mean, there's lifelongfriends that I've created I
still stay in touch with today.
So I I enjoyed my time at UCA.
Um I I tell people today that,you know, if you are going to
(08:23):
attend the four-year universityand you're in Arkansas, and you
might think the other one, theflagship is too big, um, UCA
would be the perfect place foryou to to attend.
SPEAKER_01 (08:33):
I am so um it warms my heart to hear you mention Dr.
Fox, Dr.
Imogene Fox.
She is um uh someone I haveknown, she has known me since
the day I was born.
I grew up in Baldnob, she wasfrom Baldnob, drove back and
forth to Conway every day, andis still um feisty as ever, and
is still uh just I see her twoor three times now a year
(08:55):
through my job now at UCA and ata football game and or just here
and there at a scholarshipreception.
That's wonderful that you stillremember her and reference her
all these years later, and theimpact she had on you.
SPEAKER_00 (09:07):
The intentional um effort to to really have that
one-on-one connection withstudents, right?
Again, I was a number one of8,000, but again, I felt like I
was one of one um as she wasleading me through the health
education system.
Right.
SPEAKER_01 (09:20):
Great, that's great, uh, Lionel.
So as we mentioned kind of offcamera, your career path does
not really follow a um astraight line, uh right?
You it it really goes um uh fromhere to there and a lot of
different places.
And honestly, those are thegreat stories that that I love
to tell.
So you enlisted in uh in 1992,enlisted into the army, right?
What was the initial draw there?
SPEAKER_00 (09:42):
I'll tell you, so the army, I I I was not
recruited.
I recruited and have to comelooking for me.
My my my father served in thearmy uh and I knew I wanted to
serve in the army.
And I'll tell you the thediscipline, the accountability,
um, the challenges that itbrought all were just perks.
I was following in the footstepsof my father.
I knew I wanted to serve.
(10:03):
So um I enlisted in the army.
And a quick story about that isuh I was at the recruiter, and
the recruiter said, Hey, youknow, you want to be a driver,
you're gonna drive officersaround and and um drive drive uh
troops around.
I was like, okay, that soundsgood.
Again, I just wanted to enlist.
And so fast forward, I graduatehigh school three days later, I
land at uh Fort Bennon, Georgia,and was the name of the time,
(10:26):
home of the infantry.
And uh lo and behold, I hadsigned up to be 11 Bravo
Infantryman.
And uh, you know, I wouldn't Iwouldn't trade that training for
anything in the world, honestly.
But it was a little bit of shockwhen I went and told the drill
sergeant I was supposed to be adriver.
And he said, You're gonna drivethese feet.
And so that but the infantry,you know, it's uh we have a
(10:47):
motto of lead the way.
And that that mantra sticks withme even today, even in my
current role as mission supportgroup commander.
But back in the day, uh when Ifirst enlisted and and saw that
sign and and you know, wasawarded that infantry blue cord,
uh, that lead the way slogan hashas stuck with me and I utilize
it all the time.
SPEAKER_01 (11:07):
So after Fort Benning and and those memories
and that quick introduction towhat we were doing here, what do
you recall about just reallyyour your career as an enlisted
man the next you know six, eightyears?
SPEAKER_00 (11:17):
Yeah, it was great.
Uh just being able to come outof that shell.
You know, I was a young kid whenI joined, um, and it it humbles
you real quickly, but it alsoinstills a level of confidence
beyond whatever you think youcould accomplish.
You know, back in the day, I'lldate myself and I'm an
18-year-old kid and I'm drivinga Bradley fighting vehicle.
I'm at the controls driving andoperating this, you know,$10
(11:40):
million piece of machinery.
Um, and and for that to evenresonate, it's like, wow, I am
doing it.
I can do it.
My battle buddies are telling methat I can do it.
They're showing me that I can doit.
And so again, I have theconfidence and the discipline to
operate that.
And so I have numerous storiesof that um where I've just
accomplished more than I everthought I could um throughout
(12:01):
the military.
You know, I've had theopportunity to travel and deploy
um with the Army and Air Forceand see the world.
Um, and it's just a pricelessexperience.
SPEAKER_01 (12:10):
Yeah, that's gotta do, that's gotta take whatever
confidence you have to adifferent level, right?
Whether you have high confidencealready, uh getting to do those
types of things has to have animmediate impact.
So in 2000, you left the Army,right?
And then you commissioned up twoor three years later into the
Arkansas Air National Guard.
Talk about that transition.
SPEAKER_00 (12:29):
Uh it it I'm gonna sound very hypocritical, but
again, best decision of my life.
Army training wouldn't trade itfor the world.
Um, but transferring to the tothe air guard um has just been
one of those, you know, careertrajectories, uh changing
initiatives that's that I'm justsuper proud of.
Um my army unit was disbandingand they were separating.
(12:52):
Um, had an opportunity to go toa unit in Lake Village.
And again, I'm like, LakeVillage, that's four and a half.
Now that's nothing to me.
But then I was like, who wantsto travel way down there for
that?
Um growing up in Fort Smith, uh,I knew about the air base.
My sister was a part of the theuh the 188th.
And so I started havingconversations with the
recruiters.
Um, and I interviewed, and Ihappened to uh interview with a
(13:13):
uh Colonel Dallas was the basecommander at the time, and we
had a services commanderposition open, um, and he
selected me, and that started mycareer in the uh Air National
Guard.
So I led services, which isdining hall, uh lodging,
mortuary affairs.
So we we, you know, we serviceeverything we call from the
beginning to the ending of yourmilitary career.
(13:35):
And you know, and from there,um, you know, I had several
other roles with equalopportunity uh intelligence,
which is our current mission setum that we operate out of.
Um and now I'm currently the uhmission support group commander
on base.
SPEAKER_01 (13:48):
Right.
And and last year, your mostrecent promotion um big one to
colonel, you know, taking overthe mission support group, about
a hundred, three hundred andfifty four hundred plus.
400 plus now.
Okay.
All right.
The website is outdated that Isaw that you need to update that
number.
So, yeah, talk about that role,what it means to you, and uh
just the overall work that youdo down at Ebbing.
SPEAKER_00 (14:10):
I'll tell you, it's a it's a huge privilege, and
it's not lost on me theresponsibility that I have.
Now, you know, and the privilegeto lead 400 plus airmen.
Um it is a huge mission set.
The mission support group isconsists of five squadrons.
So civil engineering, forcesupport squadron, communication
squadron, security forces con uhsquadron, and a logistics
(14:31):
readiness squadron.
And every one of those squadronstouches every part of that base,
every part of that base, stateand national level.
Um, and again, it's not lost onme to have the privilege to
lead, but we're we're doing alot of great things down there.
If some of your audience knowsthat we used to be uh a fighter
(14:52):
base because we had thoseaircraft down there.
Uh, the most recent aircraft umwe had was the A-10.
Um then we transitioned to uhISR mission, which is
intelligence surveillance andreconnaissance group.
Um, and then now we have FMS,which is the foreign military
cells.
So for people in the RiverValley, they're starting to see
and and hear the sounds of thosejets again as we're um we're
(15:15):
partnering and training innational uh F-35 pilots, and
we'll have some F-16s back onthe ramp here real soon.
So it's it's been incredible.
Uh the landscape of that basehas just changed.
It's kind of like NorthwestArkansas.
The growth has been tremendous.
We've added headcount, we'veadded a lot more infrastructure
to be able to support theaircraft that's coming back
(15:36):
online.
Um, and it it's a lot going ondown there.
SPEAKER_01 (15:40):
Yeah, yeah.
You've got uh from Singapore andjust all over the world that uh
are gonna start, you know,branching out and touching every
part of everyday life in FortSmith uh and that metro.
So 33 years now, Lionel in themilitary, 33 years.
That's a good age.
Hey, we're both good age.
33 years.
How has that just kind ofencapsulate that?
(16:02):
How has that shaped your uhleadership philosophy, whether
it's your military leadership orwhat we're going to get into a
little bit later, your yourcorporate leadership, you know,
the private sector.
SPEAKER_00 (16:12):
Yeah, I'll tell you, you know, from the from the
military standpoint, and and itsounds cliche, but just the
discipline that that is needed,the discipline that is
instilled, um, it just pays truedividends.
Discipline, I'll tell you alsoas an officer, you know, trust.
I mean, of course, you look attitles and rank and say, hey,
you, you know, you must followme because of my rank I have on
(16:34):
my chest, or the title that Ihold.
But I'll tell you, um, it's it'smuch greater than that.
It really comes with trust.
Um, the trust that the airmenand soldiers have in you, um,
the trust that they know youhave their back, and the trust
that they know that anythingthat you are requesting them to
do is something that you haveeither done yourself or will be
(16:54):
right there shoulder to shoulderdoing it with them.
Um so trust has been really big,discipline, and then just also
accountability, you know,self-accountability to raise my
hand when I make a mistake, um,to raise my hand when I may have
misspoke, um, and just holdmyself accountable because I
want my squadron leadership andmy airmen to hold themselves
(17:15):
accountable as well.
SPEAKER_01 (17:16):
All right, let's go to Riceland Foods now.
And then this part of your life,you know, you mentioned, you
know, 17 years with Walmart, alot of HR strategy, recruiting
strategy at the highest level uhwith that organization, a couple
of other stops, but then youwent to Riclin, what I think
it'll be uh three years nextyear coming up.
Three years in May.
All right.
So how did you land there?
(17:37):
And for people who may not knowRiceland, other than just the
the bag in the pantry, you know,how did you get to Riceland
Foods and what is the overallscope of that company that's
based in Stuttgart, which isabout four hours away?
Exactly.
SPEAKER_00 (17:49):
So I it's it's it's typical, right?
The the the recruiters uhreached out.
If I you get those in your inboxes sometimes, some you
entertain, some you don't.
Um I entertained this one uheven before I knew it was
Riceland just because of thescope of the way the job was
described.
Uh it was a CHRO opportunity.
(18:10):
Um prior to that, I was a vicepresident uh of People and
Culture, HR role as well for afintech company.
But um I I this was opportunity,it was local, in-state Arkansas.
And so I had thoseconversations, and those edge as
those conversations advanced.
Um the CEO at the time uh waswas looking for good HR support
(18:31):
to help build out the thestructure and be more of a
strategic partner.
And so I I accepted the uh thechallenge.
You know, uh HR to me is kind ofagnostic, right?
It doesn't matter what industryin.
You know, I've never farmedbefore, I've never been part of
a co-op model.
But again, people, resources,culture, engagement, all of
(18:52):
those are consistent withinhuman resources.
SPEAKER_01 (18:55):
So yeah, what what is universal, um, I guess, about
Arkansas workers?
I mean, you're you're bouncingbetween pretty three pretty
distinct regions, right?
You know, Bentonville, NorthwestArkansas, and then down to
Stuttgart, you know, SoutheastArkansas, and then the Jonesboro
is pretty much your trianglethat you spend a lot of your
working time in.
What is what is universal aboutuh the workforce, and then also
(19:15):
what is distinct about thoseworkforce.
SPEAKER_00 (19:17):
So, you know, what I believe is universal is just,
you know, people, people, peoplewant to work, uh, people want to
traditionally do good and begood at their job.
And then also people also wantto be able to to have uh a
mission that resonates withthem, the why behind it, you
know, more than the paycheck,right?
And so for Riceland, again, ourour tagline is you know, we're
(19:40):
feeding the world sustainably.
So when you have um people inthose areas that support all
those 5,500 farmers that make upour co op, they know that those
farmers are out working hard,bringing their rice, their
soybeans to our plants to bemilled.
They know they're a part ofthat.
And they know that.
That you know, the key tag, andwe talk about feed the world
(20:02):
sustainably, but I don't, I justI want to foot stop the world.
I'd feed Arkansas, I feed theUnited States, but we're trying
to feed the world sustainably.
What they're doing, puttingtheir hands on every day is
going out to kids and familiesthroughout the world.
Uh, and that's an Arkansasproduct.
SPEAKER_01 (20:20):
Yeah, I'm glad you said that.
Um, the world, I mean, that'sthe bigger picture of Roseland
Riot.
I mean, and I think most peoplewho live here know, but then
there are others who don't know.
You know, rice equals Arkansasand vice versa, always has been.
So give us, you know, give methe scope of, you know, the
number of employees, just thefootprint of your company, how
your company touches uhdifferent parts of the world
(20:41):
every single day.
SPEAKER_00 (20:42):
Yeah.
So we're made up of, like I say,the co-op is made up of about
5,500 farmers uh throughoutArkansas and the boot hill of
Missouri.
Uh we've probably run anywherebetween 1700 to 1900 full-time
employees.
Uh, and that is located inStuttgart, Jonesboro, Little
Rock, and we have a dryernetwork throughout.
(21:03):
Um, we got about 16 plus dryersum that host uh employees as
well.
So we're touching a lot inArkansas.
Uh we're we're we're we'reproducing a lot of uh of bushel,
millions of bushels of ricecoming through annually.
And and again, from that, umit's not just an Arkansas
product.
(21:23):
It's great to be an Arkansasproduct, but again, to be able
to see that blue and white labelon the shelf, or if you're out
at one of your restaurants, youknow, you don't see it in the
blue and white label, but you'reprobably it's probably about an
80% chance you're eating someArkansas rice when you're eating
rice out at a restaurant.
SPEAKER_01 (21:37):
From a purely uh HR perspective that you bring, what
are the the skills or themindsets that you uh or that the
company is finding most indemand as you grow and as you as
you hire people and look at newcollege graduates?
What are the skills that are indemand?
SPEAKER_00 (21:53):
You know, critical thinking.
Um the the the jobs at Ricelin,um, a lot of them are hard and
they're manual and you're inthat meal, right?
When it's cold, it's cold, whenit's hot, it's hot.
Um, and then it but there's alot of automation that comes
with it too.
So critical thinking is huge.
Um, leadership at all levels,you know, leadership is not just
based on a title or position,but we need people who can come
(22:16):
in, uh, who can think criticallyand also lead where they are in
each and every position.
Um so leadership, criticalthinking, and then, you know,
just the personality piece ofit.
We're in a generation todaywhere we have multiple
generational workforces togetherfrom the from the baby booners
to Gen Z to Gen Y, allhodgepodge together, right?
(22:39):
And so from an HR standpoint, itis kind of zooming out and
saying, ensuring that all areworking and getting along and
engaged and understand the whyand how do we have the resources
and perks needed to maintain theretention that we need to keep
processing those millions ofbushels of rice annually.
Right.
SPEAKER_01 (22:57):
Well, I mean, Riceland is um, you know, one of
those Arkansas brands, you know,Arkansas brand name, uh, great
company.
Uh, you've got a reallyinteresting job, I'm sure.
Uh, like we say, it'll be threeyears for you coming up in the
spring.
But just to keep life a littlemore interesting, you and uh
Alicia, your wife decided, youknow, I think we need to have a
small business in Bentonville.
We want to open a uh afranchise.
(23:19):
So uh small business ownership,you own a Graze Craze
charcuterie franchise on uhSoutheast J Street in
Bentonville.
Tell me how that came about andwhen that opened.
SPEAKER_00 (23:29):
You know, I was kind of full circle.
Uh the idea came about through auh a military transition uh
program.
So I signed up uh and they weretalking about, hey, what do you
do after the military or whatopportunities are available?
We looked into franchising umout there a few assessments and
some vetting.
Uh we kind of whittled it downto three opportunities, and and
(23:50):
Graze Craze kept hitting at thetop.
Um so I went and made the visitto uh the founders founded in
Oklahoma by a veteran, an AirForce veteran.
Uh, and this was about four anda half years ago when I started
the conversations.
And so we're still at the groundfloor.
Those are the good things for methat one, it was a business
model that I knew wassustainable.
It was a business model that Iknew would do well in Northwest
(24:11):
Arkansas.
And then three, it was it wasbrand new.
Uh so we're on the ground level.
Now, fast forward to today, Ithink Ori, we just hit a hundred
stores.
The the franchise has hit ahundred stores.
So again, two years ago when westarted, we were store number
38.
Wow.
So if you think about thatgrowth, that's great.
(24:32):
It's going to be booming.
Yeah.
But it is, it's a labor of love.
SPEAKER_01 (24:36):
Yeah.
I tell you, it's a labor oflove.
What's it like to start and umand operate a business as a as a
husband and wife team?
SPEAKER_00 (24:43):
Uh it will make you stronger.
I I know there's a lot ofsayings out there they say about
if a if a if a husband and wifecan get through building a house
together and canoeing together,they can get through anything.
And I like to add the thirdthing is if they can start a
business together and worktogether, they can get through
everything.
So it's been good.
And you know, I I'd be remiss ifI wouldn't give a shout out to
(25:06):
my wife, Alicia, who currently,as I sit here today talking to
you, she's in that store rightnext to her.
And and she does a tremendousjob, a lot of hours, Paul.
Nobody, nobody loves yourbusiness more than you do.
Uh so you're you're everythingfrom from the from the from the
janitor to the to the to thedelivery driver to the
(25:29):
dishwasher to, I mean, you'redoing it all.
Uh, it is a labor of love, but Iwill tell you, to be able to say
that we own and operate abusiness in Bigdale, Arkansas is
priceless to me.
Um, to be able to affordopportunities for others to
employ them, priceless.
And the third thing is it'sreally priceless, is just
getting the feedback from ourcustomer base uh on a product
(25:51):
that we deliver um consistently.
It's priceless.
SPEAKER_01 (25:56):
So, in terms of growth and business ownership
for your franchise, any anygrowth opportunities elsewhere
in Northwest Arkansas, are youstill focused on the one store
or are we 100% focused on that?
SPEAKER_00 (26:08):
But like any business, as you think about
scale and market share, I amlooking in to expand and open up
our second store in Fedville.
So uh actively looking for theright spot um that makes sense.
Um we currently serviceNorthwest Arkansas today out of
our Bentonville.
But again, as as as as marketshare and the demands become
more prevalent, that's going tobe a second location where we
(26:31):
can just expand our offeringseven more.
SPEAKER_01 (26:33):
You know, one thing I remember about um the first
time you and I met um indowntown Bentonville last year.
Um, well, two things.
I I remember, and this speaks toyour this speaks to your
military precision and yourcustomer service of your Graze
Craze.
You had Alicia deliver us asmall graze craze uh board while
we were meeting at the ledger indowntown, just like that.
(26:58):
I still remember it, obviously.
I I remember that that uh greattouch.
But really, besides that, youknow, we had a great
conversation.
You have a deep sense ofresponsibility to uh kids in
Fort Smith, Northside HighSchool.
You and Alicia uh have ascholarship for Northside High
School seniors, right?
Why is that important to you?
SPEAKER_00 (27:16):
Yeah, it's it's super important, Paul, because I
know there are students who werejust like me.
Again, I state I didn't have thehighest ACT score.
I didn't graduate with honors.
I didn't have a four-point O GPAwhen I graduated, but yet I
still wanted to pursueeducation.
Um, and I didn't know what thatwas or how I was going to do it.
So it's important for us to beable to give back because again,
(27:38):
you know, the name of thescholarship is the Future
Solutions Now Scholarship.
And on the application, it sayswe're looking for students with
grit and determination.
You know, there's no minimum GPArequirement to apply, there's no
minimum ACT requirement toapply.
There is an essay to tell us howyou're going to use the funds,
but everyone's not going to goto a four-year university.
(28:01):
And in today's world, um, thetrades are just as important:
barber school, cosmetology,medical assisting, graphic
design, the welding, theplumbing, the HVAC.
And I don't want students to belimited to say, you know what, I
don't want to attend a four-yearuniversity, but I may want to go
to this community college or Imay want to obtain a certificate
(28:22):
in X.
And I don't want them to bestifled by lack of funds,
resources, or money.
I want them to know that it'scompletely acceptable as long as
you continue to show up withthat grid every day and do what
you're supposed to do.
Um, if we can help support thatin any way, um, that's the goal.
So that's why it's important toyou.
SPEAKER_01 (28:39):
Do you think does that message resonate with them?
I mean, maybe that they haven'theard that.
Like people think of college,they think of, you know,
four-year option.
Does that resonate with themwhen you talk about uh and
encourage them to pursue highereducation uh or UCA, whatever
that looks like, does thatmessage resonate with them?
SPEAKER_00 (28:56):
It it does because it gives them a different signal
of like, I thought this, but isit okay?
Is it acceptable or is this whatthe world says I should be
doing?
So it it does resonate.
And you know, for me, thechallenge for me is how do I
make it resonate to more um tothe masses to let them know
again, there is multipleopportunities out there for
success.
(29:17):
Um, it's not, as you said, astraight line for four-year
university all the time.
However, that's fine too, right?
And that's perfectly fine.
And one of the things is we wereum, I know I was coming over and
prepping for this.
I didn't want to make it tooprescriptive and say, hey, this
is for four-year university, butI am thinking now, my wife and I
was talking the other day of,you know, maybe adding another
(29:38):
resource to say, hey, this isfor UCA potential students now.
So if you're going to usevirtual central Arkansas, you
have another path here to getsome financial support.
SPEAKER_01 (29:48):
Well, I'm sure, I mean, you some of those kids
have probably asked you thequestion, you know, where did
you go to school?
And you say University ofCentral Arkansas, and they say,
Oh, tell me about UCA.
What do you tell them?
SPEAKER_00 (29:57):
Well, I tell them, you know, it's, you know, people
talk about staying in your lane,and this is the lane for you.
And UCA is a launch pad.
It's it's not a specific lane.
Um, and and I'm dating myself,but I had the best, you know,
four and a half, five years atthe University of Central
Arkansas, um, just thefoundation of education, work
(30:19):
study jobs, you know, again,being held accountable to be
where you're supposed to be ontime, providing customer service
to other students, et cetera.
But I tell them you can doanything you want to do.
Look at me today, yes, as achief human resource officer for
a billion-dollar company, uh, asa Fulbird Colonel in the United
States Air Force, as a businessowner in Bentonville, Arkansas,
(30:41):
with a Bachelor of Science ofCommunity Health Education from
the University of CentralArkansas.
So you you can do whatever youwant to do.
Um, and UCA is is a great placeto start your post-secondary
education.
SPEAKER_01 (30:53):
Yeah, you just you ticked off uh three pretty big
things right there, you know,Full Bird Colonel, you know, HR,
the billion-dollar company, andsmall business owner.
Let's talk about where thosethings intersect, you know, your
military leadership versus yourcorporate leadership.
And you talked about your, youknow, your 17 years at Walmart
and then a couple of otherthings um at the corporate
(31:14):
level.
What um leadership strategies orwhat leadership muscles uh
translate through all of that?
Whether it's whether it's downat uh ebbing or whether it's uh
at Riceland Foods on Mondaymorning in the in the boardroom.
What are the what's the throughline through all of those?
SPEAKER_00 (31:30):
For me, it's it's it's it's execution.
Um you're you're gonna beassigned multiple tasks no
matter what role you're gonna bein.
Um and if you're assigned thosetasks and you don't execute,
then you're gonna fail.
Um high level of execution isone.
Discipline.
Uh again, it sounds cliche andit can be overused a lot, but
the discipline to prep and beprepared, the discipline to be
(31:53):
where you're supposed to be ontime, the discipline to lead
others effectively and managethe resources that you have.
So for me, it is it is it's adiscipline that just translates
all areas, um, whether it'smilitary, civilian, personal, et
cetera.
SPEAKER_01 (32:11):
So what then on the flip side, what does not
translate?
You know, what requires you tomaybe shift gears from, you
know, this setting to uh theother setting?
SPEAKER_00 (32:21):
Well, I'll tell you, in the military, again, you
know, by achieving the rank ofcolonel, there are some things
that get done just because youget you're the colonel.
And that doesn't necessarilytranslate all the time into
civilian life.
Right.
Honestly, I don't abuse thatthat power um by any means, but
you know, sometimes I do have toshift.
I do have to have a little bitmore patience and the
(32:43):
communication and explaining thewhy and and you know, providing
um a little bit more roadway onsome deadlines, right?
Um because again, the civilianmakeup, you're there for for
your job.
There are people who have a lotof responsibilities.
You still have your families andall those other things that
you're responsible for.
Um, and you only have a certainfinite, I know I have a finite
(33:04):
mind of time.
You have to get thingsaccomplished.
Um, but that that's one where Ikind of sometimes have to step
back, take the ego off my chest,sit back, be a little bit more
collaborative, um, and and talkabout those deadlines on a
little bit more open set.
SPEAKER_01 (33:19):
Yeah, yeah.
What what is the biggestmisconception um about the guard
or just about the modernmilitary uh right now?
SPEAKER_00 (33:28):
You know, I'll tell you the guard, the old saying,
update myself again, but it'shey, one weekend a month, two
weeks in the summer.
That's all we require.
Right.
Come on, you can do it.
Uh I'll tell you, that's not somuch true.
It's it's a lot.
Right.
Uh it's more than that oneweekend a month, two weeks in
the summer.
Even though for anyone isthinking about joining, yes,
that is 90% of the time of yourcommitment.
(33:51):
But honestly, the the higher yougo and the more responsibility
you have.
Um, you you there's no way youcan do it one weekend a month,
two weeks in the summer.
But I would say that's thethat's the biggest myth.
And then also, too, is that youyou you can't be a full-time
member in the guard.
(34:11):
The the guard, there are so manyways and opportunities for you
to flourish within the guard.
You can be the traditionalguard, where it is the one week
in a month, two weeks in thesummer, you can be a federal
technician, you can go AGR oractive guard reserve.
Um, so there are multiplepathways for you to serve
depending on your time.
(34:32):
If I had more time, the guardwould eat up more time.
There is only a certain amountof time that I have to do.
SPEAKER_01 (34:38):
You don't have more time.
I know that.
Yeah.
Well, I'm I'm glad you said thattoo, the time.
So your your travel schedule andyour your your your week to week
and your day-to-day um, youknow, really fascinates me.
The the travel itinerary.
I think you told me you youleave Bentonville at 5 a.m.
every Monday and you're boundfor Stuttgart.
And then on Tuesday, it's up toJonesboro for the Riceland
(34:59):
operations there.
And then I think you you pointback towards Northwest Arkansas
Wednesday or Thursday.
So just, you know, how do youmanage the uh not just the time,
but how do you manage just thereally the mental mental and
physical side of your of yourschedule week to week?
SPEAKER_00 (35:12):
You know, I it it it does go back a lot to that to
that military training, again,with just discipline.
Um I've always had the thefortunate enough to to be able
to get up early um and notnecessarily need an alarm.
So that's that's been instilledin me since I was 17 years old.
So that's natural for me.
And then the second is justplanning and prep.
(35:33):
Um, you know, prepping um thecalendar, looking at the week
ahead, what what deliverables doI have?
Where do I need to go?
I do get a lot of windshieldtime, and I'll tell you so take
a lot of phone calls frommultiple entities in the in the
truck while I'm driving uh tomaximize that time.
And then it's just, you know,home prep, the packing, um,
being able to spend family timetogether and kind of box that
(35:56):
and um, you know, put someparameters around it time and
dedicate time to that, um, aswell as also running operations
for the store.
Again, my wife is there 105% ofthe time.
And we're talking about titles.
You know, I do have anothertitle there, it's CDO.
And, you know, a lot of peoplethink that's chief diversity
officer, but it's uh it's thechief dishwashing officer at
(36:16):
Grays Craze.
So if you're eating in ourproduct, I would tell you those
dishes are the cleanest thatyou'll ever uh see uh because
I'm at the ham of washing thoseon the weekends and at nights
when I'm at home.
Right.
But you know, it just goes backto prep.
Just if I if I take it in uh uhcharcuterie means, you know, the
key to effective getting boardsout on time is the prep, having
(36:38):
those items prepped.
Um, and it it's the same thingwith me and my travel schedule,
having my bag prep, having mycalendar prep, having more time
I know I need to hit and be onthe road and be back and all of
that.
So uh preparation is key.
SPEAKER_01 (36:52):
What does a typical Sunday night in your household
look like as you're gettingready to start it all over
again?
SPEAKER_00 (36:58):
Right, right.
Well, in this season it is busyat the store, I tell you.
It's a double-edged forward.
You want the business, and thensometimes you're like, geez wee,
can you slow down?
But next month we'll be cryingfor the business.
So I'll I'll take this where itis.
But usually it's it is spendingtime um with family, and it also
is getting that bag packed forthe week.
Make sure I have everything Ineed for what is scheduled and
(37:20):
also what could be scheduled.
Um, and that's also keeping, youknow, a military uniform in my
truck, too.
You never know um at what pointI may be able to have to stop in
um to be seen, or maybe I canmake a meeting on base in person
that normally I couldn't if I'min transit.
So um it's just about beingprep, really looking at that
(37:41):
calendar and the way ahead whereI can be ready and as prepared
as to be.
SPEAKER_01 (37:45):
Prepared and efficiency and discipline, all
things you're familiar with onmultiple fronts.
Well, let's talk about someArkansas workforce issues and
then kind of UCA's role in thosethings.
So, where do you see um, youknow, kind of a two-part
question, I guess.
Where do you see Arkansasworkforce um trending in the
next 10 years, just as far as uhthe skills?
SPEAKER_00 (38:07):
Yeah, so tech enabled.
Um technology is here,innovation is here.
Um, if you don't have theaptitude for that, be careful
because you may get left behind.
Now, I don't say that as a scaretactic for those who are, you
know, a little bit skeptical ofAI or innovation, but technology
is key.
Um we we run uh a manual processum at Riceland, but we're highly
(38:31):
efficient and we are alsooperationalizing that with
innovation.
Um same thing with the military.
Gone with the days of the oldget your rucksack and it has
everything in.
I mean, we laptop enabled, phoneenabled, computer enabled,
communication, satellite, all ofthat is very pertinent um for
those planes to fly, for ourmission to in the in the intel
(38:54):
uh to continue to be successful.
Um, technology is at theforefront of all of it.
SPEAKER_01 (38:59):
Yeah.
So then what the the second partof my question is what is
pertinent for um highereducation as a whole, and then
specifically the University ofCentral Arkansas, what is
pertinent?
Uh what's a pertinent reactionto that?
What should they be doing uhbetween uh the instructors and
our students to prepare uh theworkforce for those things that
you just described, the next 10years or so?
SPEAKER_00 (39:21):
You know, innovation and and and technology, again,
every every part of a core studyhas to have, I think, uh AI
element to it.
Uh again, not for that to beutilized as scary or invasive,
but to embrace it.
Um, because A, um it's faster,B, um a lot of it is accurate.
(39:42):
Um, and then C, our competitorsare doing it and utilizing it
and mastering it right now.
So we for us to remain thatcompetitive advantage, we have
to embrace the use of technologyand innovation today.
Um and I'll tell you on thesofter side of that uh skill set
is again just leader leader.
Ability and communication isimportant.
(40:02):
You know, we're we're I talkedabout we're in a tech world
today, and and young kids today,I can say that.
They're they're they're in theirphone or talking.
You know, when they put thatphone down and say, hey, now we
have to have a face-to-faceconversation.
Let's talk about that.
Can you communicate andeffectively articulate your
goals or what needs to happennext?
So uh communication is key.
And then again, just leadingwhere you are, um, not waiting
(40:26):
for someone to necessarily handhold you and walk you through A,
B, and C, but being able to beproactive and take on um
immediate leadershipopportunities.
SPEAKER_01 (40:36):
What is the best way a student can improve their
leadership aptitude?
Uh it may be just as simple aswhat you just said, putting your
phone down for five minutes uhor 30 minutes or whatever.
What's the most important thingor or how can a student, um,
let's say a sophomore, uhfinding their footing in
college, uh, how can theyimprove their aptitude on
(40:58):
becoming a better leader?
SPEAKER_00 (41:00):
Get out your dorm room if you're if you're staying
on campus and get on campus ifyou're staying off campus.
Um, the the good thing about UCAand other colleges and
universities, there is aplethora of organizations and
affiliates and all of that.
And each one of those has anopportunity to serve.
So if you're in opportunities toserve, volunteer, that right
(41:21):
there to me is training thatleadership muscle.
Because again, you're owning atask or a project, whether it's
a sign-up sheet, a volunteer tobe somewhere, to hand out
things, to donate, to recruit,all of those will flex that
leadership muscle and takeownership of, hey, I'm
responsible for this goal.
It's my job to achieve thatgoal.
(41:43):
And this organization, I havethe opportunity to do that.
And it doesn't matter what.
Doesn't have to be this bigthing, don't have to be
responsible for the budget orall of that, but there are
tasks.
The work has to get done.
Right.
SPEAKER_01 (41:54):
There are things you can be responsible for.
It doesn't have to be the greatbig thing.
So all right, I've got a fewquestions here.
I just want to throw at you realquick.
We talked about one a minuteago, how you spend your
windshield time.
You take some phone calls, butaside from that, do you listen
to podcasts or do you listen tomusic?
SPEAKER_00 (42:08):
Well, let me tell you, here's the honest truth.
90% of the time, uh the radio'soff.
Okay.
Uh, but I'll tell you the 10% ofthe time I'm listening to
central to northwest Arkansas.
SPEAKER_01 (42:18):
Oh, there you go.
There you go, Lionel.
I love it.
What's the best uh road tripsnack on Interstate 40?
Where's the place you stop at?
You I I'm gassed up and I'mrolling.
SPEAKER_00 (42:28):
I don't stop to my destination.
Okay.
And uh have me a uh chocolatepeanut butter uh protein bar and
a Jack Lynx turkey sack.
SPEAKER_01 (42:37):
That should get you all the way to Stuttgart.
Yeah, it gets me there.
Hardest most challenging part ofrunning a charcuterie business.
SPEAKER_00 (42:44):
Oh my goodness.
The attention to detail uh andthe timing, right?
So we we love customers whoorder ahead because we can plan
our labor, um, but we know uhthe world doesn't operate like
that.
So there's impromptu orders,there are people who forgot,
there are events that come upthat they're in charge of
getting the food, and it's like,hey, I need this real time right
now.
(43:04):
And as a business owner, myfirst response is yes.
My wife's is like, what are wedoing?
Do we have time?
But it's it's really just beingable to stage um and plan out
the labor for the orders.
What's the best part of runningthat business?
Feedback.
Um, you know, our the the bestthing about being a local
business owner is, you know,it's not it's customers, but our
(43:25):
customers, we literally knowthey're our neighbors.
And to be able to get thatfeedback uh about our board
presentation for maybe it's acelebration of life, maybe it's
a birthday, maybe it's a babyshower, maybe it's a family
homecoming.
But to get that feedback uhabout how beautiful, how fresh,
how the board um was presented,it's a wow factor and a
(43:46):
centerpiece.
That's the most rewarding.
SPEAKER_01 (43:48):
What is a book about leadership or a leadership
lesson that you're constantlygoing back to, constantly in
your head, constantly guidingyou?
Atomic habits is one.
SPEAKER_00 (43:57):
Um just, you know, it it it keeps you ingrained on
how small, repeatable habitslead to big success.
Um, you know, another one from amilitary standpoint is just make
your bed by Admiral WilliamMcRaven.
Again, it just talks aboutmental toughness, grit,
determination, um, and and forall those skills that you need
(44:19):
um innately and also that youneed to be aware of that you'll
have opportunities um that everyday is not gonna be easy.
You're gonna get knocked down,um, but get back up and fight
and continue on.
Yeah.
SPEAKER_01 (44:31):
So we're gonna we're gonna close this out here.
I want to find out what's nextfor all of your big three things
for your Riceland, for yourfamily, and for your military
career.
I want to start first with uhRiceland.
What's next for Riceland Food?
And you could say it'd be threeyears in May that you've been
there.
SPEAKER_00 (44:45):
Three years in May.
Yep.
Riceland for me next is just A,we want to continue to be able
to feed the world sustainably.
Um we want to be able to be goodpartners with our farmers and
let them know that we aremaximizing their yield of that
rice that they're entrusting uswith uh for the world.
Um, we also want to make surethat we're focused on the next
(45:05):
generational workforce.
Make sure we have the rightlabor mix.
You know, today everything is soexpensive.
There's no labor cost, resource,et cetera.
Um, everything has just gone upexponentially.
So we want to be mindful and andgood stewards of our financial
resources.
SPEAKER_01 (45:22):
What is next for the 188th and and your military
career?
33 years.
SPEAKER_00 (45:27):
33 years.
I I can say this with greatpride that I am on the downhill
slope.
Uh, you know, I probably gotanother couple of years max left
in me.
Uh, and what's exciting for meis just to continue with the uh
FMS missions to get more F-35son the ramp, more F-16s on the
ramp, and supporting that flyingmission.
Um, I think it's just gonna begreat uh for the River Valley
(45:50):
and the state of Arkansas.
SPEAKER_01 (45:51):
Right.
And what is next for the Rileysin Northwest Arkansas?
SPEAKER_00 (45:55):
You know, for my wife and I, hopefully just to be
the best grandparents that wecan be.
You know, we're grandparents toto twin, three and a
half-year-old boys, uh, which isjust a great job.
And uh we want to continue to dothat, continue to be good
neighbors in the community andhopefully be able to grow and
expand uh a Grace Grazebusiness.
SPEAKER_01 (46:14):
Yeah.
Well, good segue.
How can listeners support you inyour work, whether it's the
guard, whether it's Rice LandFoods, or maybe more
importantly, uh Grace Graze?
SPEAKER_00 (46:23):
I'll tell you.
So if it's the guard, if you'reif you're 17 years to 31 years
old and you thought aboutjoining the military in general,
do it.
Uh it it's it's changed thetrajectory of my life.
It's been one of the greatestdecisions I've ever made.
So don't be scared.
There's a lot of opportunity, uha lot of tuition assistance, a
lot of perks to join in themilitary.
And there's no better place umto be a member of the National
(46:47):
Guard than the state ofArkansas.
Um and second for for um the uhFor Riceland.
Yeah, for Iceland, again, um,I'm just gonna continue on to
make sure that our workforce isset um and that we have the
procedures and the culture inplace um to make sure we're
maximizing engagement and uhkeeping the best workforce
(47:09):
possible.
SPEAKER_01 (47:10):
Right.
And what's that website forGrace Craze?
If I'll get home tonight and Iwant to order me aboard,
grayscraze.com slashBentonville-AR.
SPEAKER_00 (47:18):
Order it up.
SPEAKER_01 (47:19):
Yeah.
All great stuff.
Lionel, great to visit with you.
Uh it's great to know you, andit's great uh to have you as an
ally and an alumni of theUniversity of Central Arkansas.
So continued success to you andall of your endeavors.
Thank you, Paul.
I really appreciate it.
All right, very good.
And then that'll do it for thisedition of Central to NWA a UCA
(47:39):
podcast.
Until next time, go Bears.
That's it for this episode ofCentral to NWA, a UCA podcast.
I'm Paul Gatling, SeniorDirector of Northwest Arkansas
Engagement for the University ofCentral Arkansas.
Be sure to subscribe to the showand follow UCA on all the
appropriate social media.
I'll see you next time onCentral to NWA.
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Betrayal Weekly
Betrayal Weekly is back for a new season. Every Thursday, Betrayal Weekly shares first-hand accounts of broken trust, shocking deceptions, and the trail of destruction they leave behind. Hosted by Andrea Gunning, this weekly ongoing series digs into real-life stories of betrayal and the aftermath. From stories of double lives to dark discoveries, these are cautionary tales and accounts of resilience against all odds. From the producers of the critically acclaimed Betrayal series, Betrayal Weekly drops new episodes every Thursday. If you would like to share your story, you can reach out to the Betrayal Team by emailing them at betrayalpod@gmail.com and follow us on Instagram at @betrayalpod and @glasspodcasts. Please join our Substack for additional exclusive content, curated book recommendations, and community discussions. Sign up FREE by clicking this link Beyond Betrayal Substack. Join our community dedicated to truth, resilience, and healing. Your voice matters! Be a part of our Betrayal journey on Substack.
Dateline NBC
Current and classic episodes, featuring compelling true-crime mysteries, powerful documentaries and in-depth investigations. Follow now to get the latest episodes of Dateline NBC completely free, or subscribe to Dateline Premium for ad-free listening and exclusive bonus content: DatelinePremium.com