2017 Men of the Year: Rob Rector

Motivating Factors

Family: My wife Kelly and I have been married for 28 years, and we have a daughter, Brittany.
Words you live by: Embrace and focus on implementing a culture of change. As Benjamin Franklin says, “If you fail to plan, you are planning to fail.”
Advice for other men: Get involved with your family and engaged in your community. Be both a leader and a father by example.

For the past 30 years, Rob Rector has worked to better his community and its people.

As vice chancellor for administrative services at Ozarks Technical Community College, Rector is leaving his mark on the community through leadership, a love for service and the art of partnerships.

During his time at OTC, Rector has brought together multiple groups, growing the college’s reach into area communities.

“I’ve been amazed at how people can come together to find a solution when conventional wisdom says no,” Rector says of his work on numerous public-to-public partnerships in Springfield, Hollister, Waynesville, Ozark and Lebanon.

The largest partnership was OTC’s recent work with the city of Springfield to relocate Central Avenue, install a roundabout and improve safety for students. A few years prior, the college and city also came together to work through a master plan and set campus boundaries.

“We can grow all the way to Silver Springs Park,” Rector says. “That was true visioning - a plan between these two public entities who rely on each other.”

In Waynesville, Rector worked with the city administrator to find another creative solution for an education center in the city.

“I sat down with him and we penciled out a deal on a napkin,” Rector says.

Partnerships weren’t a new tool in Rector’s bag.

Prior to joining the educational community, he served as general manager for shopping malls spread across five states, including most recently as mall manager for Simon Property Group’s Battlefield Mall in the Queen City. There, he utilized public-private partnerships to get things done.

“In 2004, the mall was losing retailers. We had an idea for an open-air shopping and lifestyle center and took it to the city,” Rector says. “That was 90 days from concept to reality and the first phase was so successful, it led to the second phase and an interior renovation of the mall.”

Another public-private partnership earned Rector a special honor in Bowling Green, Kentucky, where he worked to rebuild the Greenwood Mall following a tornado.

“On my last day in that job, they gave me the key to the city,” he says. “That was a special day.”

The partnerships over the years not only show Rector’s leadership style, but he counts them as his proudest accomplishments.

“To me, these projects signify what hard work and a common goal can accomplish,” he says. “It is crucial to demonstrate to the team that you are willing to contribute in all areas to achieve results.”

Rector’s service attitude extends to his civic affairs as well. He currently serves on the Springfield Board of Public Utilities and the board of Council of Churches of the Ozarks. Past leadership includes work with the Springfield Area Chamber of Commerce, Springfield Convention & Visitors Bureau and the International Council of Shopping Centers.

“Establishing relationships allows for shared vision that will ultimately strengthen our community and the achievement of its goals,” he says.