Winter Newsletter
Leading Tomorrow’s Leader
by Wendy Soderquist Togami,
Director of Leadership Development
"Me and all my friends
We’re all misunderstood
They say we stand for nothing and
There’s no way we ever could
Now we see everything is going wrong
With the world and those who lead it
We just feel like we don’t have the means to rise above and beat it
So we keep waiting for the world to change"
- John Mayer, Waiting for the World to Change
The next generation of “coming of age” leaders - those young adults in their mid 20’s and 30’s, children of the baby boomers- has a unique set of challenges ahead of them, as well as a unique approach to their world. Despite what John Mayer’s lyrics suggest, research has shown that this generation is less apt to wait for anything or to doubt themselves. They are frank, fun loving, and adaptable as well as very interested in social and environmental issues. They value authenticity, flexibility, and life outside the office. However, their sense of commitment is often temporary and tentative. They distrust big government, big business, big money – basically, big anything.
Many companies will be transitioning leadership of organizations to this generation in the next 10 years as the baby boomer generation retires. This means that more representatives from the younger generation will find themselves in positions of leadership sooner than their parents ever dreamed of reaching themselves. Many will be ill-prepared. They will lack the life experience needed for the complex issues they will face. Yet others may be able to take the best of past generations and create for us a more balanced, customized, socially conscious corporate America.
Our experience has shown us that two overarching forces exist in the business world today: a drive for results and a need for the retention of a talented pool of employees. Companies can achieve both by understanding the values of the next generation of leaders. However, studies suggest that the business community has been slow to respond to the changing values of this generation. Therefore, many thirty-somethings are opting out of the corporate world to set up shop for themselves or simply job hop.
This leads me to the question: What values do we share with Generation Y? What can we learn from them? Furthermore, how can we capitalize on these new learnings and focus on the best that this generation is bringing with them to the working world?
Our Milestone program is a place where emerging leaders can come to address personal values and ideas. We have seen young leaders ask themselves some tough questions: Could it be that challenge and added value are more satisfying than money? Isn’t respecting contributions, whether they are made from home, at work late at night, or after a year’s travel overseas, good for business as a whole? Perhaps self-confident, open-minded, frank conversations will bring stability to our workforce in the long run as well as increase the number of Americans who are fully engaged in their work.
If these are the questions and thoughts on the minds of the next generation of leaders, what a great opportunity for all of us to stop and ponder the same issues. They will be tomorrow’s corporate CEO and may in fact be a generation who shows more evidence of their values through their behaviors in the workplace than recent generations. Instead of “waiting for the world to change,” this generation may be aiming to start a revolution. Are you ready to lead them there?
wsoderquist@jbu.edu
University of Georgia to Teach The Wal-Mart Way
There is no doubt that Wal-Mart is a driving force in today’s economy. Many valuable lessons can be gleaned by studying the multi-billion dollar retailer, from the power of organizational culture to logistical efficiency to external relationship management. The University of Georgia’s Leonard Leadership Scholar program recognized this fact. They recently approached the Soderquist Center to develop a program that could help their students understand “The Wal-Mart Way.” The program is made up of junior and senior business students and is a division of the university’s Institute for Leadership Advancement. Fifteen to twenty students will travel to Northwest Arkansas in March 2007 to participate in this three-day program. Before attending, they will have read Don Soderquist’s book
The Wal-Mart Way: The Inside Story of the Success of the World’s Largest Company. “The program is a great opportunity for the Soderquist Center to partner with another university to develop the next generation of leaders,” said Dusty Pruitt, Coordinator for the program.
During their stay, students will be able to view Wal-Mart from different perspectives. The program begins with a visit from Tom Muccio, retired President of Procter & Gamble’s Global Customer Teams and current CEO of BioBased Technologies. Students will be able to learn first-hand about the unique relationship that suppliers have with Wal-Mart. They will also visit the office of a local supplier.
Students will get a glimpse of the internal operations of Wal-Mart. They will attend a Saturday morning meeting, tour a Wal-Mart distribution center, and meet with a Wal-Mart buyer and recruiter. Andy Wilson, CEO of The Soderquist Center, will also speak to the students about his experience at Wal-Mart.
The Institute for Leadership Advancement was established in 1998 as a multidisciplinary academic unit within the Terry College. The ILA’s purpose is to create and promote cutting-edge knowledge about leadership and use the knowledge to develop leaders who enhance the performance of their organizations and communities. With a variety of opportunities for undergraduate students, graduate students, executives and business organizations, the ILA is one of the most comprehensive leadership development institutes to operate within a university setting anywhere in the country. More information is available at www.terry.uga.edu.
Two New Facilitators
The Soderquist Center is pleased to introduce two new facilitators. Heather Davidson and Jennifer Haas of Fayetteville, AR have joined the team as Design & Delivery Facilitators/Managers. Both women are responsible for session development and facilitation for the Center.
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Heather comes to the Center from the OU Medical Center in Oklahoma City, OK where she held the position of Coordinator of Organizational Development. Her experience includes leadership and ethics training, seminar facilitation, as well as employee hiring and orientation processes. Heather is a DDI-certified (Development Dimensions International) facilitator and a member of the American Society of Training and Development. She holds a Bachelor of Science in Education and Health Science and will graduate in May with a Masters of Arts in Organizational Dynamics from the University of Oklahoma-Tulsa. Heather resides in Fayetteville with her husband Dustin, a corporate pilot, and two loving pets.
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Jennifer comes to the Center from the Tyson Management Development Center in Russellville, AR. She is an experienced facilitator and curricula developer. Prior to her work at Tyson, Jennifer served as the Director of Forensics/Lecturer for Clemson University in South Carolina. Additional qualifications include Workforce Development Facilitator Certification, AchieveGlobal Master Trainer designation, and Myers-Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI) Qualification. Jennifer received her Bachelor of Science in Education from Arkansas State University and her Master of Science in Organizational Communication from Murray State University. In her spare time, Jennifer enjoys spoiling her two cats and fourteen nieces and nephews.
Introducing InSights
In early September, Greystone Estate played host to twelve supplier team leaders in the Soderquist Center’s first ever InSights program. Over the past year, our frequent dealings with suppliers to Wal-Mart led us to realize that there were unmet developmental needs amongst the supplier community due to the uniqueness of their jobs. As a result, we developed InSights – a two day program where leaders of supplier teams can congregate to address the distinctive issues within their industry.
Participant feedback pointed out two main highlights to the event. The first was the individual and collective profiles that the participants received through the Birkman assessment tool. The Birkman Method has been developed as “a self-report questionnaire eliciting responses about perception of self, perception of social context (others), and perception of career opportunities."* The assessment gave each participant a greater understanding of who they are and how they operate. The second highlight was a visit from Don Soderquist. Don joined the group for an evening to share some of his experiences and knowledge with the group as only he could. During his time, he specifically addressed the importance of establishing clear values within the supplier team environment.
Another unique aspect of the event included a panel discussion consisting of Bob McCaslin, retired Kraft Foods executive; Steve Schotta, President of Global Management Consulting and former Vice President of Global Business Development at Kimberly-Clark; and Paul Olinger, owner of TreeHouse Sales & Solutions, Inc. and retired Wal-Mart and Sam’s Club Buyer. Participants were able to learn from the wisdom of these industry veterans.
Additional topics discussed throughout the event included effective leadership techniques, characteristics of effective and integrated teams, methods for developing team member for growth and retention, and the importance of shaping the culture of teams.
Ed Huber of Clorox commented about the program, “There are few places that can offer a values-based curriculum that can strike a balance between individual development and business application. SCLE delivered on all accounts.”
For more information, visit our InSights page or contact Laura Smith at lsmith@jbu.edu or (866) 752-7180.
Upcoming InSights event dates:
March 8-9, 2007October 4-5, 2007
* http://www.birkman.com/method/What_Method.php
Soderquist Fellow Highlight: Ray Malouf
The Soderquist Center is dedicated to developing tomorrow’s leaders. One way we are pursuing this goal is through the Soderquist Fellowship. Each year a handful of graduate students are selected to join our team as Project Coordinators, handling logistics for our staff and customers. During their time with us, the fellows gain priceless experience and the opportunity to learn from some of the greatest leaders and companies of our time.
Ray Malouf, a second year fellow, currently serves as a Project Coordinator for Design and Delivery. During his time at the Center, he has had an array of experiences with various projects and customers. One project that Ray has been intimately involved in is The Soderquist Center’s partnership with Phoenix, Arizona’s Collaboration for a New Century (CNC).
CNC was founded in 1999 by Jerry Colangelo, owner of the Phoenix Suns, and Reverend Bill Starr. The Soderquist Center has joined forces with CNC to improve Arizona’s state of caring index as measured by the United Way. Arizona is currently ranked 49th out of the 50 states. CNC recently created the Arizona LeaderForce (AZLF) which consists of approximately 18 business and community leaders. The main goal of AZLF is to increase investment and involvement from the community in proven programs that support low-wage working families. The participants are split into 6 groups and assigned one nonprofit agency. The teams will address the specific needs of the agencies over the next year.
Ray is responsible for providing logistical support to CNC and The Soderquist Center as well as facilitating the interactions between the teams from AZLF and the agencies. He has also had the opportunity to travel to Phoenix numerous times to assist in the partnership. Through his involvement in the project, Ray has experienced tremendous personal and professional growth.
“This experience has challenged me to gain a greater sense of confidence in my own abilities as I have had to coordinate very complex and detailed program logistics. Furthermore, as we have developed this curriculum of capacity building and leadership development for others, I have been a firsthand recipient of the leadership training. Throughout the course of this program, I have specifically learned the importance of social initiatives and how business leaders can have a positive affect on their communities through awareness and action.”
maloufr@jbu.edu
More about Collaboration for a New Century
Leadership Week 2007
The Soderquist Center for Leadership and Ethics will host “Leadership Week” on the campus of John Brown University, Feb. 19-23. This will be the seventh year the Center has sponsored the event.
The week is highlighted by two speakers, C. William Pollard, former CEO of ServiceMaster and father to John Brown University President Chip Pollard, and Andy Wilson, CEO of The Soderquist Center and former Vice President of the People Division for Wal-Mart Stores, Inc. Each will speak in the Cathedral of the Ozarks at 10:30 a.m. on Tuesday and Thursday, respectively, as part of the chapel program. A luncheon for area businesspeople and special guests by invitation only will be held on Tuesday. Pollard will be the featured speaker at the luncheon. He will also speak in several undergraduate and graduate business classes at JBU.
“Leadership Week has become a great tradition here at John Brown University,” said Director of Leadership Development at The Soderquist Center, Wendy Soderquist Togami. “We have been fortunate to hear from local leaders like Susan Barrett, CEO of St. Mary’s Hospital; best selling authors such as Dennis Bakke, author of Joy at Work; corporate leaders such as Don Valencia, formerly of Starbucks Coffee; and world leaders like Benjamin Netanyahu. Pollard brings a wealth of business acumen as well as common sense knowledge about one’s faith and one’s work.”
Pollard joined ServiceMaster in 1977 and has served not once but twice as its CEO. His first term as CEO was from 1983 to 1993, a period characterized by major change, including the introduction and growth of the company’s consumer group. In 1999, Pollard returned as CEO and served for sixteen months until the process of electing his successor was completed. During his leadership, ServiceMaster was recognized by Fortune magazine as the #1 service company among the Fortune 500. ServiceMaster was also identified as a "star of the future" by the Wall Street Journal and recognized by the Financial Times as one of the most respected companies in the world. In 2004, Pollard received the Rev. Theodore M. Hesburgh Award for Business Ethics at Notre Dame. He is the author of a best selling book, The Soul of the Firm as well as Serving Two Masters: Reflections on God and Profit and also has written for or contributed to other books and magazines including The Leader of the Future, Leading People, “The Quest for the Entrepreneurial Spirit,” and “The Leader Who Serves.”
Wilson provides leadership in all areas of The Soderquist Center, managing Center resources and serving to fulfill the vision of Center. He is also an adjunct professor for John Brown University, teaching a graduate course entitled 'Leading Change'.
Prior to his tenure with the Soderquist Center, Wilson spent 25 years as an innovative leader at Wal-Mart Stores, Inc. He dedicated more than 10 years as Vice President and Officer of Store Operations, supervising over 100 stores and 10,000 associates in the Southern, Southeast and Western regions of the United States. Most recently, he served for 6 years as Vice President of People Division (HR) for all domestic store operations, including over 700,000 associates and management staff. He assisted in Succession Planning, HR People Measurement Systems, Training and Development, Compensation and Benefits Systems and Executive Coaching. Wilson speaks globally on the issues of Leadership, Ethics, Retail Store Operations and Human Resources.