Although it's been more than a decade since he laced up his sneakers for the University of Utah Runnin' Utes basketball team, Mark Rydalch still understands the value of teamwork.

The former South Summit High star, who played four years under Ute coaching legend Rick Majerus, was recently promoted to vice president of Rydalch Electric, a Salt Lake-based electrical contractor that was founded in 1994 by Rydalch's father Bob, and uncles Frank and Clyde (Frank is president of the company; Bob and Clyde are both 'semi-retired', but still putting in 40 hours a week, according to Mark).

Rydalch has been with the company for seven years, and is currently in charge of operations, as well as some business development and marketing. Asked to recall what he enjoyed most about playing for the Utes, Rydalch said, "I enjoyed just being part of a team. I was able to forge some good friendships, and I traveled to some neat places."

And what about playing for Majerus - a coach remembered by basketball fans as much for his oversized white sweater, fiery temper and overwhelming appetite as he was for his coaching brilliance?

advertisement

"I learned from one of the best coaches in college," said Rydalch, rather matter-of-factly. "Coach (Majerus) was really good at being able to capitalize on both the strengths on your team, as well as the weaknesses of your opponent. He could look at 20 minutes of tape of another team and be able to figure out how he was going to stop what they liked to do."

As for working in the construction industry, Rydalch adheres to a similar 'team-first' approach in his day-to-day work.

"That's one of the things we pride ourselves on here is being a part of a construction team," he said. "It's no different than being on a basketball team. Everybody has to stick to their role and do it well, or else the project isn't successful. Being a family owned business, I think we've done a very good job at that. We're able to put people in roles that they can be successful at."

Rydalch Electric is currently working on some notable projects in the region, including Intermountain Medical Center (buildings D and F), the Marriott Library at the U of U, and the Gordon B. Hinckley Alumni Building at BYU.