Meet Russ

“What exactly do you do?” I hear this question a lot from both family and friends.  Many people, even those in the field of reliability, may find it difficult and complicated to explain.  However, we at Russ Parrish Consulting (RPC) disagree and want to simplify both processes and programs for our clients.  My name is Russ Parrish, Principal at RPC, and I am a maintenance and reliability junkie.

I have worked in maintenance, reliability, and operations (MRO); as well as; engineering, management, and leadership for over forty years. When I began as a submarine electrician in the US Navy, the avenue to become a Certified Maintenance and Reliability Professional (CMRP) did not yet exist.  However, as my career progressed and I was made aware of the reactive nature in manufacturing and business, I became intrigued by the ideas and concepts of Reliability Engineering. Each step of my career and educational path developed and enhanced my passion for the field. Throughout, there was a purpose for each academic endeavor and an urge to continue the development of my maintenance and reliability professional (MRP) skillset. I have been fortunate to have great mentors and other professionals to encourage me in these pursuits.  They often saw more in me than I saw in myself. All these factors have contributed to a unique and eclectic blend of skill, knowledge, intuition, and drive that has led to the creation of RPC.

So, exactly what makes me a junkie and drives my passion?  I love the opportunity to identify and improve performance, optimize the process, and deliver results. I have experience and enjoy working with all levels and parts of the organization. My process may seem long and a bit complicated but in practice it is just a matter of common sense:

1. listening to the client’s wants/needs
2. evaluating all the information available
3. determining perception vs. reality
4. identifying opportunities
5. creating an achievable and sustainable plan
6. driving communication and the necessary change management
7. helping to instill the discipline to achieve the desired results
8. putting tools in place to sustain the objectives we set out to accomplish 

At this point in my career, this is why I get up and go to work.  It is exciting to see how simple, common sense changes can have an immediate impact for my clients.  Each opportunity to work with a customer is new and different. I also get to partner and work with some of the best professionals in the maintenance and reliability field. 

“But still, what exactly is it that you do?”  In simple terms, I am a reliability visionary. I lead clients in trying to facilitate reliability as a core aspect of their business by driving performance, efficiency, and success. This is accomplished by helping our clients become more proactive, focusing on preventing problems before they occur. RPC’s goal is to assist our clients in delivering the right work, at the right time and cost, and with the appropriate (or acceptable) amount of risk.  The Society of Maintenance and Reliability Professionals (SMRP) benchmarking has determined that reactive work takes up to three times longer and costs four to ten times more than proactive work. The more reactive a company becomes the more time and money they waste. Experience has shown that the average company is more reactive than proactive; RPC welcomes the opportunity to help its clients become more proactive. Finally, the perfect MRO program does not exist, what works for one client may not work for another.  At RPC, we have the knowledge and expertise to design and help our clients implement their best individualized program.     

As we strive to improve client performance, the playing field is constantly changing. We are working in an exciting time for MRO. There are many new and evolving aspects of our field. Where Artificial Intelligence (AI), Internet of Things (IoT), Digital Twins (DT), Technology, and others will take us is still to be defined. We need to be ready and take advantage of all the opportunities that are, and will be, available. Most importantly, we want to build a solid foundation and echo two thoughts provided us by Reliability Academy, this month’s exceptional highlighted partner. First, reliability has become too complicated. Second, we should strive to keep reliability as simple as possible. Those may sound very similar, when in fact, they are not. One is a cause and the other an effect. Both are important as we move forward. We at RPC are excited for what the future holds and are looking forward to working with our clients as we make every effort to deliver the individualized maintenance and reliability program each deserves.

RPC was envisioned over a decade ago and finally went live in early 2025. Our mission is to provide superior performance and drive sustainable outcomes for our clients. Through exceptional service and integrity, RPC will align with our clients to achieve lasting success. Additional information on our service areas can be found at https://www.russpconsulting.com. Thank you for your time spent reading this and have a blessed day.