Her dedication sets the example at SEA CORP

SEA LEGS: Kathleen Finn, chief financial officer at SEA CORP, speaks with company President Larry Willner in the company’s Middletown office. She earned her accounting degree from Salve Regina in 1993 and hasn’t looked back yet. /
SEA LEGS: Kathleen Finn, chief financial officer at SEA CORP, speaks with company President Larry Willner in the company’s Middletown office. She earned her accounting degree from Salve Regina in 1993 and hasn’t looked back yet. /

During Kathleen Finn’s 12-year tenure as chief financial officer, Systems Engineering Associates Corp. has experienced spectacular growth, almost doubling in size with each passing year.
The Middletown operation – best known by the acronym SEA CORP – is ranked as one of the top businesses in Rhode Island, and has been included on Inc. Magazine’s list of fastest-growing companies for the past four years. The sour economy of recent years has done nothing to slow the company’s pace: Over the past three years, the number of employees has climbed by more than 50, and annual gross revenue has soared from $46.8 million to $73.5 million.
Finn (known to friends as Kiki) has played no small part in that success, according to those who work with her. “Kiki Finn has combined her fiscal, management and [personal] qualities together to become an exceptionally effective corporate officer,” said SEA CORP President Larry Willner. “Under her leadership, the company has grown more than 700 percent in annual revenue and from under 50 to nearly 400 employees and is now the largest provider of services to the Navy in Rhode Island.”
And despite her busy work schedule, Finn has also found the time to volunteer with numerous community organizations in the Newport area and beyond, including the United Way of Rhode Island, the American Cancer Society, the Rhode Island Community Food Bank and the Salvation Army.
“She has been in the lead of virtually every SEA CORP community-service project, from coordinating supplies for our servicemen and servicewomen that stand in harm’s way overseas to local families in need,” Willner said.
Finn launched her career by earning an accounting degree from Newport’s Salve Regina University, and used those skills working with several local companies before she arrived at SEA CORP in 1993. “At that time I was a single parent with three small children,” she recalled. “I wanted something where I could make a good living, and I was always good with numbers. I heard they were looking for an accounting manager; 18 years later, I can say it has served me quite well.”
SEA CORP provides systems engineering, advanced software, innovative technology research and other services to a board range of customers, the largest being the Naval Undersea Warfare Center in Newport. When Finn came aboard, there were only 10 employees, but that would soon change. “We haven’t stopped growing,” she said. “The credit goes to the employees. They’re engineers, administrators, electrical technicians. I don’t micromanage because it’s unnecessary. I am surrounded [by] smart people.”
Finn began at the company as a business manager, and rose to chief financial officer in five years. Asked about her own leadership style, she replied: “I lead by example. I’m very dedicated to the company. When people see the effort I put in, they follow suit.”
As chief financial officer, Finn set up a pricing structure that ensures the company is competitive when bidding for government contracts. She also introduced a “best value” model for bidding, a process that assures customers they’re paying for quality work.
Finn was also instrumental in the company achieving 9001 certification with the International Standards Organization, a step that assures customers they are getting quality work. She also advocated for the investment in Capability Modeling Maturity Integration certification, a quality-assurance standard for high-tech systems and software.
Her current duties go well beyond those usually assigned to a financial officer. She also handles human resources, supervises corporate safety, oversees all information technology operations and advises other top executives. Thanks largely to her efforts as supervisor of the human resources department, SEA CORP is able to provide employees with a generous benefits package. The company pays 85 percent of dental and health coverage. Other incentives include tuition reimbursements, quarterly bonuses and a life insurance program. “That is why our employee-retention rate is more than 95 percent,” she said. “Half the people I work with were here when I started, and many of the rest came on board because the company is growing.”
As corporate infrastructure coordinator, she’s responsible for all facilities, including maintenance, building upgrades and lease negotiations. During her tenure the company has expanded into three additional facilities at Middletown’s Aquidneck Corporate Park and in Groton, Conn. She also spearheaded efforts to make SEA CORP a greener company, through recycling and energy audits. The company is now investigating ways to make its facilities more energy efficient, including a possible wind turbine or solar panels.
Finn is equally dedicated to the company’s community-outreach efforts. For the past decade she has coordinated the SEA CORP Annual Charity Golf Tournament, a fundraiser for several nonprofits. During the holiday season she leads donation drives for organizations such as the Salvation Army. Other groups that have benefited from her efforts include the United Way, Haiti Earthquake Relief, the American Cancer Society and Operation Support Our Troops.
A lifelong Newport resident, Finn is also active with a number of community groups on her own time. She has served as treasurer for the Gooseberry Beach board of directors and on the Peter J. O’Neill Scholarship Committee. Additionally, she is a member of the Newport Elks BPO 104, Save The Bay, Seaman’s Church Institute, Aquidneck Land Trust and the Rhode Island Light House Foundation. She’s an active volunteer with the Friends of Ballard Park, an organization that coordinates recreational events and entertainment, including movies, concerts and a Fall Pumpkin Tour.
In 2007, she co-founded the Molly Finn Battle of the Bands with the Ballard Park group. The event, named for her daughter, encourages local youth to follow their musical aspirations by providing opportunities to perform and network with area music executives.
Finn, the granddaughter of Irish immigrants, has also played a role in several efforts to celebrate Newport’s Irish-American community. She’s a past president and active member of the Ladies Ancient Order of Hibernians, and helped revitalize the once-dwindling organization. She rolls up her sleeves for the group’s corned beef and cabbage dinner, which raises money for the Brigid Kelly Irish Step Dance Scholarship Fund.
Finn’s also on the board of directors of the city’s Irish Heritage Museum, which will open this spring. In 2009 she was honored as the grand marshal of the 53rd Annual Newport Saint Patrick’s Day Parade.
Finn is modest about being named one of Rhode Island’s top chief financial officers, and is quick to give credit to co-workers. “I appreciate the recognition, but I wasn’t working alone,” she said. “No one does anything in a bubble. It’s always a team effort.” •

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