On Leadership
I was thinking the other day about the Outsell Signature Event co-produced with JEGI and the great time we had again this 13th year. We took our clients on a journey, building the company of tomorrow. Our industry is changing quickly whether from new technology, new entrants, customers changing habits or the requirements of our team members and their thirst for good leadership as we seek to find, hire, retain and strengthen our talent pool.
The event was off the record so I can’t go into specific he-said and she-said but what resonated for me was how much the importance of leadership was woven throughout the event. We spoke about creating the company of tomorrow and setting a vision. We spoke about how to do it all and then keep doing it as the marathons we are on never end. And all roads kept not only pointing back to talent but on CEO awareness about the importance of leadership and culture. In my 20 plus years of doing this work never before has this theme been so persistent in the room. Here are some phrases I heard and I don’t believe they were just lip service:
- Equal dignity and respect for everyone in the organization.
- 100% trust in every person.
- Investing in training is the single most important thing we can do even by offering as much as 3 or 4 weeks of it a year and letting some of it be personally driven or not related to ‘the job’ but what a learner wants to learn to grow as a human being.
- The use of facts as friends so that everyone is singing from the same sheet and the importance of setting priorities and by the way.
- One leader mentioned not giving any member of his exec team any more than five goals and he holds his exec team accountable in their reviews and performance ratings for how they uphold and inspire the vision, mission, and values of the organization.
- The importance of creating a culture of risk and creating a culture where great people can do great things.
- Another leader spoke about leadership health and wellness and making sure we are ok too, and another on the importance of empathy.
- One CEO spoke of the importance of talent in the next generation of the company. That if we can’t inspire and hold on to multiple generations and meet them where they are, we will not thrive long term.
I was reminded of all this week when one of our key leaders departed to take on another role as CEO of a young start-up here in the valley. He left Outsell a better company and left me a better leader. I’m more patient, calmer, clearer. And he reminded me every day about the importance of culture. I was gratified to see him leave our firm having grown, having gotten to learn what the b2b world is all about, having come from a bevy of consumer start-ups. I have never felt more gratified as a leader than to watch him take this step today back into a young company, that will make a real difference in our world, to carry the title of CEO one he has well earned and will thrive in no doubt.
Often a great leader helps other leaders grow even if it means leaving and taking on new opportunities. We cannot keep everyone in our world or we will stay stagnant, not change, not evolve. And each company is like a garden and the talent on our team is the plants we nourish, feed, trim, and train so that they can grow and flourish and thrive. He left and opened up new opportunities so the virtuous circle he created continued. Will I miss him? Yes. Immensely. But his time is now and this was the rightful step for him to take for all the right reasons.
I left my office yesterday a bit teary with some private messages we exchanged. And the one that made me proudest was buried in his message to the entire team talking about his wonderful memories of the firm and some vignettes that had us falling out of our chairs. But one thing he wrote reminded me again about the importance of culture, his final gift to me as he left.
“….This departure is bittersweet. I love this company. I’ve already seen a lot of hell holes for work environments, culture, and people and it lends perspective to how special Outsell is for balancing the forces of a career and life outside of work. In my mind, what makes a company special and successful is the people and I’m so lucky that I got to work with every single one of you. It’s always fun when you find such an intellectually stimulating environment where you’re learning something new almost every day. Thank you for that…”
So memo to all leaders I’m blessed to serve. Take the lessons from the Outsell Signature Event and from this special team member who will forever be a colleague and now a peer and be sure to mind the culture. At the end of the day it’s all we’ve got if we want to have healthy businesses and happy clients. Happy November.
Anthea
Anthea C. Stratigos
Co-founder & CEO
+1 650–342–7199
www.outsellinc.com
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