A resident of Birmingham, Alabama, Griffin McGahey has worked in leadership roles at HC3 (formerly High Cotton) for 24 years. Griffin McGahey is the vice president of HC3, a company that provides printing and mailing services to businesses in Birmingham, Alabama.
Griffin McGahey participates in a president- or CEO-led team that develops the company’s overall brand and strategic goals related to sales and profitability. He is integral to developing the company’s strategic marketing plan and oversees the company’s finance and human resources departments, providing guidance, direction, and assessment of the company’s other leaders. He also tracks the external and internal competitive landscape and identifies expansion, customer, market, and new industry opportunities.
For his work with HC3, Mr. McGahey has received recognition from the company, which named him a 2019 CEO Award finalist and a Birmingham Business Journal CEO Award finalist.
In addition to his role at HC3, Mr. McGahey has been the CEO of Pay.claims, a claims payment technology firm that offers businesses a way to streamline claim payments. Since 2017, he has overseen the company that provides a branded mobile interface that enables customers and providers to choose how they get paid.
What is your typical day, and how do you make it productive?
My productivity is anchored in the discipline of the Entrepreneurial Operating System (EOS). My week is structured around high-impact “Level 10” meetings and a rigorous review of our company scorecard metrics. I have made a conscious effort to minimize my presence in tactical meetings, attending only where I can provide unique value and relying heavily on my management team to handle day-to-day operations. To stay productive “on” the business rather than “in” it, I schedule dedicated “clarity breaks”—intentional blocks of time away from the noise of the office to think strategically about our long-term trajectory.
How do you bring ideas to life?
We bring ideas to life by putting them through a rigorous vetting process centered on the “Jobs to be Done” framework. Rather than chasing every new tech trend, we focus on the specific “job” a community financial institution is trying to hire us for—whether that’s increasing digital adoption or ensuring the secure, timely delivery of a regulatory statement. Once we identify a core problem that needs to be solved, we integrate the solution into our EOS “Rocks”—our 90-day priorities. By assigning these as 90-day priorities with clear owners and measurable goals, we ensure that ideas move from concept to a functional tool for our 400-plus clients.
What’s one trend that excites you?
The empowerment of community financial institutions through data. Historically, large national banks had a monopoly on sophisticated data analytics. Today, the playing field is leveling. I am excited by how community banks and credit unions are leveraging their data to provide a “hyper-local,” yet digital-first experience. By utilizing the data already present in their core systems, these institutions can deliver highly relevant, personalized communications that rival the big banks while maintaining the trust and personal touch of a community institution.
What is one habit that helps you be productive?
The discipline of saying “no” to good ideas. As a leader, the greatest threat to productivity isn’t a lack of ideas—it’s an abundance of “good” ones. It is very easy to get bogged down in projects that are interesting, but that don’t move the needle. I’ve made it a habit to ruthlessly filter our initiatives, saying no to the “good” ones so that our team has the capacity and focus to execute the “great” ones. This ensures that HC3’s resources are always aligned with our most impactful strategic goals.
What advice would you give your younger self?
Be more intentional with your time. In the early stages of your career, it is easy to “drift” through weeks and months by simply reacting to the issues of the day. My advice to my younger self would be to take control of your calendar early on. Don’t let the “whirlwind” of daily operations dictate your trajectory. Instead, be intentional about carving out time for high-level strategy and professional growth. If you don’t own your time, the business will own it for you.
Tell us something you believe that almost nobody agrees with you on.
Most businesses fail because they do too much, not too little. There is a pervasive belief in business that “more” is always better—more products, more services, and more markets. I believe the opposite: Most companies die of indigestion from over-diversification rather than starvation from focus. I often frustrate people by strictly sticking to the plan and saying no to shiny new opportunities. While this can be viewed as a weakness because it feels rigid, I believe it is a core strength that allows us to excel.
What is the one thing you repeatedly do and recommend everyone else do?
Exercise every day. The mental clarity required to lead a high-growth company is built on a physical foundation. I make it a non-negotiable point to exercise every single day. It isn’t just about your physical health. It is about the discipline of doing something difficult before the workday begins. It clears the mental fog and provides a level of stamina that is essential for staying focused through long cycles of strategic planning.
When you feel overwhelmed or unfocused, what do you do?
I take a walk. When the noise of emails, meetings, and data becomes overwhelming, the best solution is often the simplest: I step away from the screen and take a walk. Removing myself from the immediate environment allows my brain to reset. Usually, by the time I’ve walked a mile, the “noise” has settled, and the one or two things that actually matter have risen back to the surface.
What is one strategy that has helped you grow your business or advance in your career?
Aggressive niche specialization. Early in my career, we operated as a generalist transactional document company. The turning point for HC3 was the decision to narrow our focus exclusively to community financial institutions. By specializing, we were able to build deep domain expertise and integrate more tightly with the core banking systems that our clients use. This narrowed focus accelerated our growth, allowing us to move from being a vendor to a strategic partner for over 400 banks and credit unions.
What is one failure in your career, how did you overcome it, and what lessons did you take away from it?
The lack of alignment in the “pre-EOS” era. Early on, I experienced the frustration of leading a team that was working hard, but moving in different directions. Because we lacked a formal operating system, we were reactive rather than intentional, which led to “project creep.” We overcame this by implementing the Entrepreneurial Operating System (EOS), which forced us to align on a single vision. The lesson I took away is that without a structured framework for accountability and intentionality, even the most talented team will eventually plateau.
What is one business idea you’re willing to give away to our readers?
The “Coke Bottle” model for e-commerce packaging. We currently live in a world of single-use cardboard boxes that create a massive logistical burden. I’d love to see a company develop a standardized, collapsible, and reusable shipping container for major retailers. Similar to the old model where you received a credit for returning glass bottles, customers could receive a small digital credit for dropping off their reusable boxes at a collection point. The technology and the logistics for the “reverse supply chain” exist. Someone just needs to build the standardized infrastructure.
What is one piece of software that helps you be productive? How do you use it?
Ninety.io. While many leaders ran EOS on spreadsheets for years, purpose-built tools like Ninety.io are a complete game changer. We use it as our central “source of truth” to digitize our EOS workflows—everything from running our level 10 meetings and tracking our quarterly Rocks to monitoring our weekly scorecard metrics. It provides instant, company-wide visibility into our health and priorities.
What is the best $100 you recently spent? What and why?
A set of mindset cards for my teenagers. Even though they cost less than $100, the ROI has been incredible. We keep them on the breakfast table, and every morning we look at a different card together before the day starts. It’s a simple ritual, but it creates a consistent moment of connection and intentionality with my kids before the “whirlwind” of the day begins.
Do you have a favorite book or podcast you’ve gotten a ton of value from and why?
Big Little Legends: How Everyday Leaders Build Irresistible Brands by Gair Maxwell. This book is a MasterClass in brand building. It brilliantly explains that creating a unique, viral brand that deeply connects with buyers isn’t just a matter of luck—it’s the result of a deliberate framework centered on storytelling. For a company like HC3, it reinforces the idea that even in a technical B2B space, the brands that win are the ones that stand out by becoming a “Category of One.”
What’s a movie or series you recently enjoyed and why?
Moneyball. I recently watched it again, and I still believe it is the best business movie of all time. It is the ultimate story of using data to challenge “the way things have always been done.” Billy Beane’s willingness to ignore traditional wisdom in favor of rigorous statistical analysis is exactly the mindset required for innovation. It mirrors the shift we are seeing in community banking: using data-driven insights to outmaneuver larger competitors.
Key learnings
- Focus is a competitive advantage. Narrowing your business niche to a specific audience—like community financial institutions—allows for deeper expertise and stronger client partnerships than a generalist approach.
- Systems create scale. Implementing a structured operating system like EOS provides the alignment and accountability necessary to transition from a reactive startup to a scalable enterprise.
- The power of “no.” Productivity is defined more by what you decline than what you accept. Relentlessly filtering for “great” ideas prevents an organization from being diluted by “good” ones.
- Intentionality trumps activity. High-level leadership requires carving out “clarity breaks” and protecting your calendar to ensure you are working on the business rather than just reacting to the issues of the day.
- Data level the playing field. In any industry, leveraging data allows smaller, agile organizations to challenge legacy giants by providing hyper-relevant, personalized experiences.