Garry Peterson is more than just a consultant. Sure, he’s got the experience for it, after having worked with brands like Marriott Hotels, Radio Shack, Toyota, General Motors, Nationwide Insurance, and Huntington Bank, but Garry’s expertise stem from more than that. His instincts are spot-on when it comes to reworking corporate operational and management structures, something that may have been gained from his time spent as a Vietnam War-era Drill Sergeant, or perhaps from founding Orlando Business Coach, Midwest Business Coach, and Peterson Advisors Group.
In addition to leading the next RiseU workshop on June 21st (more details on this coming soon!), Garry has shared with us his leadership philosophy and the six leadership abilities that he focuses on to make sure business owners sleep better at night.
Leadership Philosophy
My Leadership Philosophy is based on the fundamental ideology that core values (those attributes that define the culture), core focus (purpose, cause, passion and niche) and a general sense of organizational purpose (what we are about) determine how people interact and respond to situations in a consistent and effective manner. People behave based upon assumptions that are generated through individual socialization, and the very elements that drive behavior are the result of values, attitudes, thinking and feelings that are the bank of individual experience.
To become an effective leader, a clear and concise operating philosophy must reinforce the core ideology for the greater good of the individual, the student, the team and the business entity. Just as we strive to take the business entity to the next level, we must seek an approach to guide our students and those people within our reach to the performance level of their true capability.
Organizational Behavior has taught us that we cannot change anyone, just as we cannot motivate anyone. What we can do is to provide reasons for one changing oneself. To become an effective leader, we must determine the business priorities, individual and group needs, and then provide the tools, the information and the reasons for changing. Once we establish belief in the individual that he or she can do it, then the person provides the desire to change, which makes it happen…
There are Six Leadership Abilities that are the focus of my teaching and mentoring efforts:
- Simplify – Is everything within your operation as simple as possible to understand and to act upon, so less is truly more?
- Delegate – Are you or any of your key people able to let go of certain responsibilities and focus on everyone’s unique ability?
- Problem Solving – Are you solving daily and weekly problems as they arise for the long-term greater good of the business, focusing on root causes?
- Conflict Resolution – Do you have an approach to resolving conflicts in a systematic, fact-based manner that moves team efforts into commitment?
- Structure – Is the right process in place, one that aligns skills with customer needs, and has the right people in the right seats doing the right job right?
- Accountability – Are the proper metrics in place to assure that each individual, department and the company itself, are meeting performance expectations?
If those in Leadership positions set the examples via their behavior, following the above criteria, leadership development is virtually assured, and business growth is much more likely. Without strong, functional leadership in place, you cannot respond effectively to one key question...
