Bold Leader Interview

That headline was one of the last things Brad Hewitt, President and CEO of Thrivent Financial, said to me when we sat down together for a conversation. It came after a fast hour of “Brad-isms” as he dubbed them, and I have to say, this was one fun conversation. Not quite what I expected – which is always the best, right? Bold leaders surprise, and the conversations are always rich with ideas. Growing up in “Lutheran” country, I’ve known of Thrivent and the predecessor organizations my whole life.  Watching the process to move the organization from a Lutheran focused membership…

Chris Malecek, an Aveus Advisory Board member, suggested I interview bold leader Sara Gavin, President of Weber Shandwick North America. I’ve known Chris and relied on his always clear, on point advice for decades. All that time, Chris has worked with and for Sara. So when he suggested her for this series, I was thrilled. Sara and I have known each other for almost as long, but neither of us could recall the last time we’d spoken, let alone crossed paths. I’ve known from our intersecting circles that she is a great leader. This conversation confirmed that she is also…

Think of change leadership as ‘stealth’ organizing. You know those great experiences when you meet someone for the first time and immediately the conversation feels natural, with common values and principles popping to the forefront in the first few sentences? That is how I felt when I met with MayKao Hang, President and CEO of the Amherst Wilder Foundation, at the recommendation of another bold leader I recently interviewed. By background we have little in common, other than we are both professional women who live in Minnesota. My family and roots are in Minnesota. MayKao’s roots are in Laos. I…

Ben Freakley, Lieutenant General (Ret), is the first military leader I’ve had the opportunity to interview for this bold leader series, and boy did I get lucky. Now Special Advisor to the President of ASU for Leadership Initiatives, a Senior Advisor to The McCain Institute for International Leadership and former Eagle Scout, one of the first things Ben said to me when I asked him about his path to bold leadership was, “I think it started when I was about 11 and joined the Boy Scouts. I have learned to be a leader, and by your definition of bold leader,…

I’ve had the privilege to work with a lot of great leaders in my career.  As I applied the additional lens of “bold leadership” to that list – Damien Harmon easily rose to the top. Damien is VP of Operations at Bridgestone Retail Operations, and as I spoke with him, an important element of bold leadership emerged – and that was the notion of humility.  Damien shared that when you are humble, you are naturally able to make your purpose and message much higher than yourself.  It’s not about being right; it’s about having extreme focus on customer outcomes, and knowing you…

Has anyone reading this post NOT heard of “the Y?” The YMCA? How many of you have a story about how “the Y” in some small or great way touched your life? I’m guessing most, if not all, of you. Glen Gunderson is the President and CEO of the YMCA of the Greater Twin Cities (Minneapolis and St. Paul, MN and surrounding communities). While the Twin Cities ranks 16th in SMSAs, ranked by population, this Y ranks in the top 5 in membership and revenues nationally and as one of the largest in the world. We can measure the reach…

The ancient Greek aphorism “know thyself” was on full display as we visited with the very self-aware Maureen Spivack. Maureen is one of those folks that immediately establishes instant credibility. Some of it is from her 30 plus years of investment banking experience with E & Y, Merrill Lynch, UBS, Morgan Keegan, KPMG Corporate Finance and now as Senior Industry Partner for healthcare at New State Capital Partners. The rest of her confidence and warmth is revealed in how attentive she is to others in the room – clearly a skill she has honed over her years and thousands of…

Dr. Penny Wheeler skipped directly from her obstetrics/gynecology medical practice to chief clinical officer and then to president and CEO of Allina Health. Allina, just to give a few stats, employs over 29,000 people, has over $4.1 billion in annual revenues, and each year has more than 7 million care interactions. In other words, Dr. Wheeler leads a very large, complicated, dynamic healthcare organization. “I’m of no illusions that I know everything or have all the answers” was her remark when reflecting on the leaps she has taken into new areas and ever-widening scopes of responsibility. BOLD leaders, fitting the…