1. What have you found most challenging as a CEO or executive of a large enterprise?

Balancing what’s best for employees, stakeholders financial results. Prioritizing projects and resources toward competing compelling business needs and opportunities.

2. How did you become a CEO or executive of a large enterprise? Can you please briefly tell the story?

A combination of working hard my whole life in school, professionally, in nonprofits and volunteering and soaking up all these experiences on the way to build my servant leadership approach. Learning to listen with both ears. Using my naturally empathetic approach professionally. Leaning to give people environments to work at their best, even when the company culture may not have supported it (current company excluded, Gallagher has an excellent culture for this). Learning to put my teams before my own ambitions. Setting up teams for leverage and effectiveness. Deciding very early (in business school) to never put my personal and business ethics aside. Continually thrusting for more knowledge about my organization, industry, technology, project management, business process, business strategy, organizing teams for performance. Letting my results speak for themselves rather than rooting my own horn (some may say this has slowed me down which I’m ok with).

3. How do you structure your work days from waking up to going to sleep?

I get up at 4:30AM to workout and read emails and catch up from the prior day and plan the current day. I try to ensure I have time each day to do my own work and not just bounce from meeting to meeting. Working remotely during Covid has granted me more time.

4. What's the most recent significant leadership lesson you've learned?

Less is more sometimes but not alway.

5. What's one book that has had a profound impact on your leadership so far? Can you please briefly tell the story of how that book impacted your leadership?

If Aristotle Ran General Motors. Validated my existing values and ethics.

6. How do you build leadership capacity in a large enterprise?

Promote from within, recognize and reward all kinds of talent, also bring in outside talent from other industries where appropriate. Don’t hire people just like you.

7. What is one meaningful story that comes to mind from your time as a CEO or executive of a large enterprise so far?

Several of my team members (direct and indirect reports) have told me verbally and in writing how supported they feel with me as their leader.