DALLAS — Strong leaders approach their jobs with humility, are willing to accept the blame when things go wrong and give credit where it is due, according to industry executives speaking on an opening-day panel at Food Marketing Institute's Future Connect leadership development conference here last week.
Ric Jurgens, chairman, president and chief executive officer of Hy-Vee, West Des Moines, Iowa, and the association's new chairman, listed 10 characteristics that he said he tries to exhibit as a leader, and that he has seen other leaders exhibit:
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“Treat the job you have like it's your last job,” he said. “If you can be the best you can be at the job you have, you give yourself the best chance to get ahead.” He suggested that workers keep the job they aspire to in perspective. “You have to prepare, but don't let that be the endgame.”
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Don't separate work and life. “I have found through the years that work is an important part of life,” Jurgens said. “I think if you can include work as a meaningful part of your life, you can be more successful.”
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“Work harder to help others succeed than for your own success,” he said. “If you relish the success of your subordinates, your peers and your superiors, then you will relish your own success as well.”
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Avoid negative people “like the plague,” Jurgens said. “Negative people are like drug addicts. They are not happy unless you are a drug addict as well, and so they will suck you down in the quagmire, and they will try and ruin your happiness and your career, and your success, frankly, so stay away from them.”
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Jurgens said that although he admires his two predecessors as CEO of Hy-Vee — Ron Pearson and Dwight Vreedenberg — he does not emulate them. “I have had some of the best bosses I could ever imagine having, but I did not try to be them,” he said. “I think like them in a lot of ways, but I try to stay true to myself and my skill sets, and develop them based on what they taught me.”
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Show appreciation to good performers, and do it publicly if possible. “Tell those who matter that they do,” he said. “It can come verbally in notes and letters, but even better is talking about it in public, in front of a group. Or, for the perfect storm, tell their boss, or tell your boss, that they are really good.”
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Treat everyone the same, from employees to customers to vendors to competitors, Jurgens said. “At Hy-Vee we talk a lot about being helpful, friendly, honest, respectful and dedicated, and in that way, we think we have a greater chance of success, and certainly of happiness.”
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Never be satisfied. “Some of you in the room may be the best at what you do — so raise the bar, and keep improving,” Jurgens said.
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Set a good all-around example. “Work hard, but also find the balance in your life. Find time for your family, find time to exercise and set a good example with your life, not just with hard work.”
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Do the right thing. “Our executive committee often asks, ‘What is the right thing?’ We find that if we do the right thing, we are always well within the confines of the law.”
