Diego Rodriguez almost did not make it to where he is today, but he is now in charge of over 2,000 employees in the FBI's largest field office in New York City. He leads investigations from terrorism to public corruption in the greatest city in the world and eight counties in the state of New York.

First Hispanic to Lead FBI's Largest Field Office

FBI Director James B. Comey named Diego Rodriguez the first Hispanic assistant director in charge of the New York Field Office last December 2014. Comey picked Rodriguez because of his "tactical experience" and motivational style of management.

The 50-year-old's first case was not a very easy task as Islamic State terrorist groups are using the Internet to recruit members and motivate the launch of attacks in the United States. His office was able to detect and arrest several suspected Islamic State supporters.

Humble Beginnings

Rodriguez was born in Colombia before moving to Queens in New York with his father. He graduated from St. John's University in 1988 and was teaching Spanish in middle school. He was then invited to take the FBI exam by a friend who works as an agent.

However, he took a pass on the opportunity despite the bureau recruiting Hispanics and bilingual agents at the time. After some additional thinking, he finally decided to take the FBI exam and passed it in 1990 where he became a member of the SWAT team under the drug squad.

In 2003, he moved to FBI Headquarters in Washington to take on special cases before being appointed as a special agent of the New York office's crime division in 2010. Before being appointed as assistant director, he was in charge of the FBI office in Dallas from 2012 to 2014.

But what makes him a very successful leader? Character.

Boy Scouts

"Some believe we are born with character and others believe we're born without it; some think we cultivate this trait as we move through life. I, for one, believe that character is cultivated, and I started building my character at a young age, when I joined the Boy Scouts and began honing and fine tuning a wealth of personal skills," Rodriguez said.

The husband and father of four daughters revealed that his time with the Boy Scouts helped him during his SWAT training. The skills he learned as a scout combined with the teachings from his parents allowed him to become a great leader while serving his country.

"Scouting truly modeled me as a leader, and consequently has contributed to my success and service to our country," he added.