Solving Problems

Richard Runswick, CSD

By Erica Rascón on Mar 19, 2018 in People

Yardi CSD Week is an opportunity for customer service specialists to receive recognition for their hard work, creativity, and innovation. These everyday heroes work directly with clients to solve problems and return business software to optimal operation.

Peers and managers recently honored Richard Runswick with the Creative Problem Solver award. We caught up with Runswick recently to learn more about his problem solving ingenuity.

Runswick has been encouraged to think critically and creatively all of his life, beginning in grade school. “My parents always encouraged me to excel in school, and I made education a priority,” he said. “I was lucky to grow up in a great school district, where I had teachers that cared about my education and pushed me to succeed.” Runswick joined Yardi after graduating from UCSB in 2012.

As an adult, Runswick draws inspiration from his wife Tina Runswick, a Systems Analyst at Yardi. “Her artistic and creative nature have always left me in awe,” he said.

Around the Yardi office, Runswick puts those influences to work. He and his teammates must often tackle complex tasks that require unconventional solutions. Whether working solo or as part of an interdepartmental team, Runswick enjoys the challenge.

During a Genesis 2 upgrade, for example, several clients experienced intermittent errors that logged them out of the system. Runswick quickly coordinated efforts with the System Reliability Engineers, Systems Analysts, and Development to find a solution. After diving into a series of seemingly unrelated factors, the team identified the error and promptly deployed the solution to Yardi clients.

James Austin, Senior Team Lead with CSD, has seen Runswick work through several challenging assignments. “There are many things that help make Richard Runswick an excellent problem solver. It isn’t enough for Richard to simply solve a problem. He also wants to know why that solution works, and what exactly went wrong.”

Austin continues, “Richard also has a long and varied experience with computers, everything from big box retail to hobbyist Minecraft server operator. Different viewpoints and experiences help make for creative solutions.”

Runswick also coordinates hotfixes, testing, bulk deployments and follow-up fixes for SaaS clients.

“My work has resulted in some late nights, thorough troubleshooting, and investigations but overall it has been a very successful endeavor,” smiles Runswick.

The atmosphere at Yardi’s Santa Barbara office has helped to make those late hours and complex situations manageable.

“The best part about working at Yardi is the talented, caring, and professional people that I have the opportunity to work with every day.  I can’t imagine working with a better group of people,” Runswick begins. “I also want to thank James Austin, who has been my team leader since I joined CSD. He is my mentor, and has always helped me to succeed.”

Runswick continues to deploy his skills and creativity for Yardi clients. He finds an extra reserve of motivation from his daughter Felicity (pictured above). “She is my inspiration in life,” beams Runswick. “She drove me to lose 85 pounds and take up hiking.  Her smiles can instantly brighten any day, and watching her grow and learn makes me want to be a better person.”

Learn more about Yardi’s outstanding employees on our People page. Interested in joining the Yardi team? Explore our career opportunities.