Ryan McKesson

Enterprise Sales Executive

Championing business growth at Presidio, my journey in technology sales has been marked by fostering client relationships and consultative selling. 

My passion is connecting with clients and understanding their unique challenges, enabling tailored solutions ranging from Microsoft technologies to mobile enterprise applications. Beyond just transactions, it's about creating lasting value and empowering clients in Minneapolis and beyond with strategic consulting and innovative IT solutions.

Account Executive

Founded in 1989, Solution Design Group (SDG) in one of the top local IT consulting firms in the Twin Cities area. Our value proposition is simple: OUR PEOPLE and our commitment to building LONG-TERM relationships. SDG has a gold-standard for employing the best and the brightest technical talent available. This allows us to grow our business by being innovative partners to our clients.

 Our culture and business plan is structured around fostering long term relationships with our clients, our great team, and a commitment to responding to the perpetual trends and changes in the information technology industry. It is on this genuine model that SDG has been recognized by The Business Journal as a "Best Places to Work" and "Fast 50" multiple times.

 SDG provides IT Consulting Services and Staff Augmentation in Project Delivery, Microsoft Solutions and Open Source/JAVA application development in the Twin Cities market.


 Specialties: Java, Groovy, .Net, SQL Server Developers (SSIS, SSAS, SSRS) and DBA's, SharePoint, IT Consulting, Staff Augmentation, Project Managers and Business Analysts, Project Management, Business Analysis, Database development, Application Development, and Product Implementation.

I have been a part of a few events over the years, but last night was everything! 


The first annual American Cancer Society Taste for Hope event was a smashing success. 

Putting on an event is hard. 

Creating one from scratch and hosting the inagural version of it is insane.  

Congratulations to Danielle Ottman for having the courage to dream this event into reality. 

And to Sarah O'Brien for leading this into the magical evening it turned out to be. 

Thank you to everyone who was there and/or played a role in making it happen. It was incredible.

IT Ambassador, People Connector, Lifelong Learner and Purveyor of all things Positive.

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Congratulations CIOs Against Cancer - Minnesota  on an incredible TechSHEroes event! 

It was a day filled with joy, inspiration, and at times the sobering realization of just how much cancer affects all of our lives. 

One of the themes of the day was the importance of community. And I couldn’t be more proud of what we are building here in MN. 

Together, you all raised over $142k to fund cancer research that WILL save lives in the future. 

It was an honor for us at Presidio to sponsor lunch with our friends at Wiz. 

We are now gearing up for the CIO Auction Party taking place on May 7th. 

Hope to see many of you there too!

I did the most terrifying thing this morning. I went to the gym without my cell phone...


Well, I didnt GO to the gym without it, I got there and realized I'd forgotten it. 

I instantly thought about turning around. I didn't. 
But I was surprised by how difficult it was to carry on without my precious device.  

My first reaction was, what's even the point if I can track my workout in an app? Or listen to something "productive"? Heck, I couldn't even take a picture to prove I was there. 

I'm obviously poking fun at the situation, but this is not satire. 

I'm embarrassed by how afraid I was to be without my phone for an hour. And while my distraction-free workout wasn't life-changing. It was freeing enough to make me want to try it again. 

Soon.

Seven years ago, I published my first article on LinkedIn.


Looking back, the writing makes me cringe a little… but the message still makes me proud.

It was about the importance of networking events for women. Especially in technology.

Seven years later, that conversation feels more important than ever.

The impact of women coming together to learn, share, and grow with one another is undeniable.

Today, it’s an absolute honor to attend the 2nd Annual CIOs Against Cancer - Minnesota TechSHEroes event.

I’m proud of the community being built here in Minnesota, and incredibly grateful to be even a small part of it.

I’ve always felt that my writing on LinkedIn is incredibly selfish. Here’s why.


First and foremost, my target audience is me. I’m always writing to myself. Any advice I’ve shared here about networking, discipline, or habit formation has been aimed squarely at the person who needed to hear it most: me.

Second, I write about things that interest me, not what I think will interest everyone else. Some of the worst advice I’ve ever received was to only write about things I already know. That always felt limiting.

In reality, one of the best ways I’ve found to learn something is to write about it.

Writing isn’t just a way to share ideas. It’s one of the best ways I’ve found to understand them.

And finally, writing ideas out of my head has been incredibly freeing. My brain has never been great at turning itself off. Writing feels like opening a valve and letting the mental clutter flow somewhere useful.

I suspect a lot of people feel that same pull to write, share, or create something.

If that’s you, do it for yourself first.

The rest tends to take care of itself.

This is one of the coolest things I’ve ever seen an MLB manager do...


And that’s saying something, because this same manager once brought my kids onto Target Field and gave them a moment they’ll never forget.

But what Skip Schumaker did this week will go down in baseball lore forever. 

In the middle of their final spring training game, he walked out to the mound not to pull his pitcher, but to tell him he made the big leagues.

Carter Baumler thought his night was over. Instead, he got the call every player dreams about, and found out his career is just beginning. 

If you haven’t seen it, it’s worth watching.

My older brother played high school ball with Skip, and this is exactly who he’s always been. Thoughtful. Genuine. The kind of leader who understands moments matter. But people matter more. 

And this week, he created a moment that Baumler will remember for the rest of his life.

Can you imagine how many times Rory dreamt of curating this menu? 


The champions dinner at the Masters is one of the greatest traditions in sports. 

If you are not familiar, on Tuesday night of the tournament week, the past year’s champion hosts a dinner for all previous champions. 

The winner not only selects the menu, they actually have to pick up the tab as well. 

Truly happy Rory gets to finally  have this moment. And personally love the sticky toffee pudding choice for dessert 😀

What if I told you that In-N-Out makes the best cheeseburger on the planet? Would you agree?


Now, what if I also shared that growing up in California, my dad would take me there almost every Saturday after baseball, and that the nostalgia plays a big part in how I feel about it?

Would that at least help you understand my opinion?

I read this line in a book recently: Everything makes sense when you have all the information.

And I can’t stop thinking about it.

Where else am I too quick to judge or disagree, simply because I don’t have the full picture?

Because the truth is, most of the time… we probably don’t.

The biggest misconception about networking...

Is that your network is YOUR net worth? It is not. 

The value of your network isn't measured by how many people can help you. 

It's measured by how many people you can positively impact. 

The most meaningful connections I've made in my career were for other people. Not for me. 

When you approach it this way, networking starts to feel less like collecting contacts and more like connecting dots.

Less like a Rolodex… and more like putting together a puzzle.

And besides, it’s a heck of a lot more fun, too.

As Zig Ziglar famously put it, “You can have everything in life you want, if you will just help enough other people get what they want.”

Your time and attention are the greatest gifts you can give another person…

And most of the time, they’re enough.

For years, I held myself back from growing my network because I second guessed how I could possibly help someone, instead of simply finding out how.

Networking is rarely about bringing something to the table you can offer. It’s about showing up at that table to find out how you can help.

Let the Madness begin!!


For the past 23 years, no one close to me has ever asked me for advice when filling out their NCAA tournament bracket. 

Because every single year, I have the same team winning it all. My alma mater, the University of Arizona.

In many of those years, I was hoping for the Cinderella story, but a handful of times, it also looked like I knew what I was talking about. Or at least the basketball pundits agreed with my assessment of their chances. 

This year's tournament looks to be one of those times. 

My affection for UofA Basketball is well documented. But what I've rarely shared is the unexpected joy I've gotten from bringing my family along for this ride every March. 

My children refer to Arizona as "our" team. With comments such as "We have a real chance this year!" 

So while my hopes for this March Madness are both exceptionally high AND well justified. Win or lose, the real victory for me will be sharing it with my family. 

BEAR DOWN!

When an event sells out, there’s usually not much you can do about it...


But we were able to open up a small number of additional tickets for Taste of Hope Twin Cities next week.

So if you were hoping to attend, you have one more shot.

This year’s event will feature tasting stations from some of the Twin Cities’ most incredible culinary partners:

Borough • Bradstreet Crafthouse • Diane's Place • Krewe • Liliana • Mallards • Mirabelle • Molly’s • Nadia Cakes • O’Donovan’s Irish Pub • Pajarito • Pau Hana • Performance Foodservice – Twin Cities • Pimento Kitchen • Starling • Tequila Butcher

All are coming together for one evening at Orchestra Hall to support the American Cancer Society.

📍 March 12 | Orchestra Hall, Minneapolis
 🎟️ Tickets: tohtwincities.acsgala.org/

Hope to see a few more of you there.

#TasteOfHopeTwinCities #AmericanCancerSociety #TwinCitiesFood #EndCancer

The best time to start networking was 20 years ago. The next best time...



is today. 

Here’s the good news: you probably already know how.

If you’ve ever helped someone inside your company succeed and built alliances along the way, you know how to network.

If you’ve spent weekends on the sidelines of youth sports and built friendships with other parents, you know how to network.

If you’ve sat in a book club discussing ideas and listening to different perspectives, you know how to network.

We tend to overcomplicate networking when our need to receive is highest. When we’re looking for a job, making a sale, or trying to open a door.

But when you focus on giving first, the pressure fades.

And that is when you start to show up as your real self. Which is the only way to make real and genuine connections.

This year's CIOs Against Cancer - Minnesota Auction is going to be amazing! And we are making one final push to secure sponsors and make this the biggest event we've ever had. 

This is my favorite event of the year because it shows just how incredible this community of IT leaders truly is. 

Do not miss out on your opportunity to put yourself and your company in front of the most influential leaders here in town. 

Before you head out on spring break, add one more item to your to-do list and check out the remaining sponsorships we have available. 

Details in the comments section, or reach out to me directly for how to get involved!

If Mel Brooks could feel like a fraud while writing some of the greatest comedies of all time, it’s no surprise the rest of us wrestle with the same doubts.


This past weekend, I watched a new documentary about Brooks’ life and career. The film is full of famous actors describing the influence he had across Hollywood.

But what stuck with me most was how openly he wrestled with imposter syndrome along the way.

One line in particular stayed with me:

“You always agree with the most negative reviews because you know you’re a fake.”

We tend to assume the most successful people are also the most confident. 
That they believed in their genius long before anyone else did.

But in my experience, self-doubt seems to attach itself to almost any worthwhile pursuit.

Which is why it’s always inspiring to hear someone admit it out loud.

For context, Brooks shared that line shortly after releasing The Producers, more than a decade before the term “imposter syndrome” even existed.

Maybe his self-deprecation was part of his comedic genius. But it’s also honest. And wildly relatable. 

It must have been exhausting to second-guess himself so often.

But the real tragedy would have been if he had let that doubt stop him.

Because then, my friends…

We might never have gotten Spaceballs.

Purpose-Driven Growth Coach | Author, Grow North Thursday | Marketing Advisor | 3x Entrepreneur | Airplane & Sauna Builder

👋 Follow me for weekly thoughts on business growth, personal purpose, and life design. 

🔥 Try my free newsletter Grow North Thursday. Get 1 actionable growth system each week to align profit, purpose, and a meaningful life. 

Award-winning marketing leader with 20 years experience growing B2B technology brands, SaaS startups, and $300M+ legacy businesses.

My purpose is to help others grow in their personal and professional purpose, advancing joy and meaning in individuals and communities, and courageous choices that lead to a fulfilling life.

Personal interests: Experimental aviation, sauna building, lifting heavy weights, meditation, lifestyle design, and attacking cancer. Proud boy mom and partner in projects and dreams with my husband, my life build teammate, Ed.

My Core Values:
-Service & Integrity
-Growth & Curiosity
-Connection & Understanding
-Wellbeing & Health
-Courage & Creative Freedom

LET'S CONNECT.

I love working with smart and interesting people from all walks of life.

If you have an idea for a collaboration, want to jam out on a podcast, or hire me, then let's chat.

Colleen Kranz💡

Happy International Women's Day to these gals and everyone who supported TechSHEroes Against Cancer last week.

It was out of this world seeing the community of women in tech rally together for a cause bigger than themselves. And let me tell you, this event wasn’t just "inspiring" it raised over $140,000 and was like a masterclass in purposeful execution! Leave it to these powerhouse women!

Huge credit to the planning committee and volunteers who pulled everything together so beautifully. Events like this look effortless when you're attending, but they only happen because of a lot of thoughtful work behind the scenes.

To me, #IWD is about celebrating this exact kind of power: women leading the charge to solve real-world problems.

Way to go TechSHEroes! 👏

Purpose-Led Growth Architect | Advisor to Entrepreneurs Building Profitable, Sustainable Businesses | Author of Grow North Thursday | 3x Entrepreneur & Builder of Communities, Airplanes & Saunas

Becoming calm is the loudest flex.
 

Anyone can lose their shit, react quickly, and raise their voice. Most of us can do that without thinking.
 
But staying steady when things feel chaotic is different. When the heat tries to pull you in and you stay grounded.
 
When life hits you again and again, and you still choose awareness over impulse.
 
It’s freaking hard. And it takes maturity to realize you don’t need to prove something in every moment.
 
It takes unlearning old reactions, sitting in the uncomfortable, and understanding the difference between passion and letting your emotions run the show.
 
Calm isn’t weakness. It’s mastery.
 
It’s knowing in your bones you don’t have to prove anything, explain everything, or react to everyone.
 
While others burn energy panicking, you move quietly, clearly, and with purpose.
 
In a world addicted to noise, calm is a freaking superpower.

✌️

A few years ago, Ed and I planned to build a sauna in our basement.

We had fallen in love with traditional Finnish sauna. Like the ritual of it, and the way it forces you to leave all the tech at the door, the calm nature of it, and the best sleep ever afterwards.

We knew we wanted sauna, and the culture that surrounds it woven into our daily life.

Then we had a different thought.

If we’re going to build this, could it be an asset?

So instead of building it in our basement, we built a high-end wood-fired sauna on a trailer. 

The idea was simple: build it, rent it, and generate income. Let it pay for itself.

At first, the model looked promising. Bookings came in quickly. People were excited.

But the lived experience of mobile rentals was different from what we expected.

It meant hauling equipment across the cities, setting up in unfamiliar spaces, answering the same stove questions over and over, and staying “on” the entire time. We were not facilitating calm experiences... we were managing logistics.

We kept trying to optimize it with better instructions, tighter systems, and more efficiency.

What we weren’t questioning was whether we even wanted to scale that version of the business.

Looking back, I can see that this is exactly how growth confirmation bias works.

In tomorrow's newlsetter I'm unpacking how confirmation bias sneakily shapes your growth decisions - and how to make sure you are scaling the right thing for you, not just the thing that looks successful.

(We'll also cover the great place Saunable ended up!)

If you'd like the full scoop, check out the link in my bio. ↑

So… I messed up.


Last week, I double sent my newsletter. Two different, carefully written emails went out at the exact same time.

I stared at my screen confused. Then I felt it in my body before my brain fully caught up. My heart started beating faster. I got hot. (I literally took off my flannel because I started sweating!)

Nothing catastrophic happened. A few people unsubscribed. Most probably skimmed and moved on.

But what caught my attention wasn’t my mistake.
 
It was the thought that came up immediately:

“I don’t do that.”

That sentence told me this wasn’t about email scheduling. It was about identity.
 
When you hold yourself to a high standard for a long time, it slowly becomes part of who you believe you are.
 
I am consistent. I am disciplined. I am steady.
 
And those are good things.
 
But when your identity gets tightly wrapped around competence, even a small mistake can feel worse than it actually is.
 
If you build in public, lead a team, run a business, or simply care deeply about doing things well, this will happen to you.
 
Something will slip.
 
The real question is not whether you can avoid mistakes.
 
It’s whether your identity can absorb them without turning one moment into a character judgment.
 
Tomorrow’s Grow North Thursday is about high standards, flexibility, and the long game.
 
If you’re not on the list yet, now’s a good time.

✌️

Hey LinkedIn Friends,


Miss Luna pup, the fam, and I are hitting the road to explore the Great Smoky Mountains (or frankly wherever our motorhome can get that's not snowing this week).

Stepping away from the feeds for a bit, but I'll still have a few ideas coming your way while I'm gone. 

Are you traveling anywhere this spring?

Schedule your fun first ☀️


Summer is around the corner here in Minnesota.

One of the best pieces of advice I ever received and now live by:

Schedule your fun first, before anything else.

Your travel, workouts, date nights, time with relatives and friends, hikes, camping trips.

Put joy on your calendar before work and routine fills every gap.

Most people schedule work first.

Then schedule play and adventure with whatever time is left.

Instead book fun like it's a meeting, an appointment, an obligation. Schedule it in stone.

It's really not work/life balance.

Because it's all life.

Don't miss it.


📌 EAA AirVenture Oshkosh with our aviation life crew. One week in July. The world's biggest aviation gathering. On the calendar forever ✓

45 is the new 50. Please don’t ignore this.


Colon cancer screening guidelines have changed.
 
The recommended age to begin screening is now 45.
 
If you thought you didn’t need to think about this until 50, that’s no longer true.
 
My mom was diagnosed with stage 4 colon cancer at 44.
 
A good friend just had their first colonoscopy at 45, and pre-cancerous polyps were caught early.
 
Colon cancer is one of the most preventable cancers when it’s caught early. But it’s showing up in younger adults more than ever, and too many people are finding out too late.
 
Please don’t assume you have more time.
 
If you’re 45, schedule it.
 
If you’re close to 45, put it on your radar.
 
If you have people in your life who are 45 or older, send this to them.
 
Someone shouldn’t miss this because they didn’t know.
 
Awareness saves lives.

I am the biggest fan of Julia Child. Here's why:


Julia Child didn’t become Julia Child until her late 30s.

She wasn’t a prodigy chef. She didn’t grow up in a kitchen. She found cooking in her late 30s and then approached it with a level of curiosity that was relentless.

She loved the technique, was constantly testing, and kept honing her process.

The second half of this sentence I'm standing by is the part people miss.

A lot of people want to find their passion. Far fewer are willing to stay interested in something long enough to actually get good at it.

Interest and sustainable passion is what keeps you learning when the early excitement fades.

It pushes you to understand the craft, not just perform it.

And over time, that’s where real work and real contribution start to compound.

Julia Child built a remarkable life around that simple idea.

Find something that genuinely fascinates you.

Then stay curious about it for a very long time.


📌 If you're ever in St. Paul, check out the Julia Child exhibit at the Minnesota History Center. It’s excellent!!

You can’t out-strategize misalignment.


I’ve seen it dozens of times (and felt it myself): The strategy is polished. The messaging is "on brand." The funnel is built.

But your gut tells you something's off.

When your "stated" values and your "actual" operations don't match, you aren't just tired, you're losing money.

In tomorrow's 𝗚𝗿𝗼𝘄 𝗡𝗼𝗿𝘁𝗵 𝗧𝗵𝘂𝗿𝘀𝗱𝗮𝘆, I’m breaking down the business case for being genuine. It’s not a personality trait; it’s a growth strategy.

3 signs your alignment is leaking:

• 𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗖𝗮𝗹𝗲𝗻𝗱𝗮𝗿 𝗧𝗲𝘀𝘁: If you value "deep work" but your calendar is 90% reactive meetings, your strategy is performative.
  
• 𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗖𝗼𝗻𝘃𝗶𝗻𝗰𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗧𝗿𝗮𝗽: If you feel like you’re constantly "convincing" people rather than connecting, your messaging is likely trying to be "liked" rather than being clear.
  
• 𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗘𝗻𝗲𝗿𝗴𝘆 𝗔𝘂𝗱𝗶𝘁: If you feel chronic drain after sales calls, you might be wearing "emotional armor" instead of showing up as yourself.

Growth gets a lot lighter when you stop optimizing for optics.

☘️ Erin Go Bragh and Grow North! ☘️

[📍I’m sharing the full breakdown of how to operationalize this in the newsletter tomorrow. Check the first comment to join 160+ weeks of these conversations.]

One person’s "Go For It" can look like a disaster at first.


I spent my spring break mountain biking with the fam in Bentonville, Arkansas, home of Walmart. I saw this tag on Sam Walton’s keys to his 1979 Ford F-150 in the museum.

If you're like me, you hear his name and envision the empire, but did you know Sam’s first "go" was a total train wreck?

He lost his very first store because he forgot a simple auto-renew clause in his lease. His landlord kicked him out, and he had to move his family to a tiny town, Bentonville, to start over from scratch.

A "rookie" mistake that should have been the end of the story.

I got to talk to an AI version of Sam about this in the museum. He talked about how starting from scratch forced him to rethink store norms and processes, that mess prompted a whole new way to grow.

I went to Bentonville as a Walmart skeptic. But riding world-class trails and walking through incredible art museums built by that family's investment kind of changed how I look at the impact Sam made.

Bentonville is the booming mountain biking capital of the world today because one guy wasn't afraid to look like a failure or start over in a place nobody cared about.

Going for it doesn't usually lead to immediate success. Most of the time, it leads to what feels like a mess. It leads to people not "getting it" yet. It may lead to starting over.

I survived the trails (barely). But I’m coming home thinking about those keys.

If you’re overthinking a move because it might look messy:

Go for it.

✌️

I am a world-class over-optimizer.


If there is a more efficient calendar system, new food tracking tool, or a "perfect" morning routine, I’ve probably tried it. I used to think that if I just added the right habit or the right software, I’d finally feel like I was "winning."

But over the past few years I’ve realized most of the time, I wasn’t short on information. I was short on awareness.

I was building high-level goals on top of very old, very dusty internal programming. I’d hit a wall of burnout or frustration and my immediate reaction was to add more... more discipline, learning, or effort.

I called these reactions "my personality." I thought being the one who "fixes everything immediately" was just who I was.

What I didn’t realize was that I was living from assumptions that I treated as facts. Assumptions like: "If I don’t handle this right now, everything falls apart."

My real growth over the last few years didn't come from a new tool. It came from... self-inquiry.

Self-inquiry is the ability to pause and ask, "Is this actually true?" before a thought becomes a decision, and that decision becomes my life. It’s creating space between what happens and what you do next.

In tomorrow’s edition of Grow North Thursday, I’m breaking down a simple 3-step method to practice self-inquiry in real-time.

We’re moving past "over-optimizing" our schedules and starting to look at what’s actually driving the bus.

If you’re ready to stop calling your old programming "personality," join us. Link is in my bio. 👆



#𝗦𝗲𝗹𝗳𝗜𝗻𝗾𝘂𝗶𝗿𝘆 #Leadership #GrowN𝗼𝗿𝘁𝗵𝗧𝗵𝘂𝗿𝘀𝗱𝗮𝘆

This sunrise. I had to pull over and take it in. Every day is a chance to reframe your perspective. Here are some of my favorite mindset shifts:  

“I don’t have time” 
→ “I’ll spend just 10 minutes.” 
Starting small beats not starting at all.  

“I want to write a book” 
→ “I am a writer who writes daily.” 
It’s really not about my goal. It’s about showing up as the person I want to be.  

“I have to work out” 
→ “I get to work out.” 
Gratitude for my legs and my life gets me moving.  

“I’m not skilled enough” 
→ “I’ll figure this out.” 
I don't have to know everything to start. I just have to begin.  

“This is too much” 
→ “What’s one thing I can control right now?” 
When I feel overwhelmed, I try to simplify. One step forward is enough.

“I don’t know where to start” 
→ “What will future me thank me for doing today?” 
Think long-term, but act short-term.  

“I’m afraid to fail” 
→ “If I fail, I’ll know what to improve.” 
Safe failure is data.  

“I don’t want to do this” 
→ “I’ll feel so great once it’s done.” 
I try to tap into the relief and accomplishment waiting on the other side.  

“It’s not worth the effort” 
→ “Every step builds character.” 
Chop wood. Carry water. Even the smallest actions build who I'm becoming.  

When your thoughts feel heavy today, remember, a tiny reframe can change everything.

What is the best piece of advice your mother or father has given you? 

Did you/do you follow that advice?

taplio

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Colleen Kranz💡

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The Battle

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