Leading the High Energy Culture: What the Best CEOs Do to Create an Atmosphere Where Employees Flourish

By David Casullo

Praise for Leading the High-Energy Culture

“If you're looking for a step-by-step guide on how to become a high-energy leader, you've found it here!”
--Tom Croston, Vice President/General Manager of Corporate Shared Services, Gap, Inc.

“Whether its business, sports, or even parenting, successful leaders share one thing in common--high energy! David is right; it can be developed. I find it unique for someone to identify the truly key elements of leadership. David has done this in a way that fosters success in these endeavors as well as those of family, church, and community.”
--Pat Williams, Senior Vice President, Orlando Magic, and author of Leadership Excellence

“Jack Welch identified 'energy' as one of the critical characteristics he looked for in effective leaders but never talked about how they develop it. David Casullo's book provides the road map for how to harness your own energy while energizing those around you. Every leader can increase their effectiveness by implementing the ideas he presents.”
--Patrick M. Wright, William J. Conaty GE Professor of Strategic Human Resources in the ILR School (Industrial and Labor Relations), Cornell University

Leaders and managers today are experiencing an “energy crisis” resulting from the failure to engage and inspire their people. Yet, a handful of leaders have found an endless supply of energy to fuel their organizations. They're the ones who attract the top talent, the most loyal customers, and the public's imagination. They're leaders like Zappos's Tony Hsieh and the late Steve Jobs, who've built cultures energized at every level to innovate, grow, and succeed. Leading the High-Energy Culture: What the Best CEOs Do to Create an Atmosphere Where Employees Flourish is the handbook to powering this kind of workplace with the energy that your workforce already possesses.

A change this big starts at the top. David Casullo, a leadership authority and strategic consultant to businesses large and small, explains the steps for establishing an authentic leadership presence based on your powerful personal truths. Then he shares the secrets for how to communicate your vision in order to create a sense of purpose throughout your organization and beyond, thereby spreading excitement to consumers, investors, and the media. Using his own experience, research, and demonstrated results from the leadership development program that he developed while helping transform Raymour & Flanigan from a small regional company to a billion-dollar furniture retail giant, Casullo outlines the specific steps that let you discover and unlock the latent energy in your team.

Casullo organizes these practices into 10 simple principles, each illustrated and reinforced with firsthand client interviews; real-world examples from businesses such as Ford, FedEx, and GE; and thought-provoking interactive exercises. These principles illuminate the path to creating real employee engagement by giving you an actionable model to:

• Learn what matters to your organization and its people, and align your leadership strategy with these truths
• Communicate clearly, with purpose and passion, to create a resonant message
• Find the leaders in your workforce who give your organization a competitive advantage

Leading the High-Energy Culture uses methods proven to generate results. Beyond the bottom line, however, it will reignite your own commitment and passion by giving you a fresh perspective on how to become an energized leader of a charged-up organization.

• Language: English
• Publisher: McGraw-Hill Education
• Release date: Mar 2, 2012
• ISBN: 9780071781275

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Copyright © 2012 by David Casullo. All rights reserved. Except as permitted under the United States Copyright Act of 1976, no part of this publication may be reproduced or distributed in any form or by any means, or stored in a database or retrieval system, without the prior written permission of the publisher.

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To my grandfather, the most energizing leader

ever to impact me. And to my father, the most

genuine person I have ever known. Both live on

in my heart and soul.

Contents

Acknowledgments

Introduction

CHAPTER 1     The Power of Resonance

CHAPTER 2     Remember the Who That You Are

CHAPTER 3     Remove the Shroud

CHAPTER 4     Study the Legends and Learn the Folklore

CHAPTER 5     Pay Careful Attention to the Alpha Dog

CHAPTER 6     Query the Key Players

CHAPTER 7     Crack the Code to Your Secret Sauce

CHAPTER 8     Promote Your Resonating Culture

CHAPTER 9     Create the Rally Cry

CHAPTER 10   Save the Saved

CHAPTER 11   Rise to Your Leadership Best

Epilogue

Index

Acknowledgments

Energy that resonates is created by One, but is enhanced by many.

To list the multitude of family, friends, colleagues, teachers, coaches, and other extraordinary people who have blessed my life and amplified the energy inside me would be impossible. I am grateful to each and every one of you.

For the support, courage, and clarity to create this work, I feel so deeply grateful to:

My wife, Lori, and our three children Andrew, Jenna, and Sara—you are simply the most important people on earth.

Phil Martin—for his professionalism, his intellectual curiosity and debate, his example as a leader, and his friendship, all of which got me through this process. You’re a fine man!

Scott Weighart—for his incredible ability to take concepts and help others think about them deeply and understand them clearly and for his genius for creating material that promotes true learning.

My brother—for his leadership of the family during this difficult period. You have always been my hero.

Neil Goldberg—for his inspirational leadership and phenomenal business sense and for giving me the opportunity to formally learn how to help build great leaders.

All my closest friends from business, for all their love and encouragement. It’s easy to write about energizing leaders when you have them as dear friends and witness them in action daily.

John Sauer—the one man whom I know who lives the credo, The true measure of a man is how he treats someone who can do him absolutely no good. I’m passing it forward, John.

Ken Lizotte—for giving it to me straight when I decided to become a published author, and for helping me achieve the goal.

My mother and father—for their ultimate example of lives well lived.

And, finally, to Suzanne and Drew—for their willingness to share their wisdom, experience, and their home, and for their encouragement throughout this process. I am so blessed to have both of you as mentors and partners.

Introduction

In your hands … is the future of your world and the fulfillment of the best qualities of your own spirit.

—ROBERT F. KENNEDY, FORMER U.S.

SENATOR AND ATTORNEY GENERAL

In my 27-year career in business, and even before this, growing up in a small town, I’ve always been drawn to leaders who energize me—truly great leaders who share a seemingly intrinsic quality that envelops their being with pure energy in such a way that people around them find themselves energized as well:

Neil G., CEO of a billion-dollar retailer, who assumed the reins when it was a small family-held business and grew it through his passion, commitment, and amazing business mind.

Kathy I., CEO of a multibillion-dollar empire dedicated to working mothers. She completely transformed her personal brand, which was enormously successful, because she believed in something deeper and more important. She energizes the very people who might otherwise resent her because her personal truths are so authentic and compelling that working mothers cannot ignore the power of her passion.

Greg H., managing director for the premier wealth management company in the world, who builds successful talent within the organization by taking a genuine interest in each person’s development. He recalls how his father was always involved with his circle of friends when he was growing up, caring for their well-being, offering encouragement, sharing wisdom at the perfect time. This impacted his friends, but it impacted him more. He carries this torch now with his team and with his family in spite of the enormous demands of his profession.

Ed F., a vice president of sales, who took a languishing sales force in a lackluster distribution business and breathed life into it every day with his enthusiasm and desire to win. His ability to coach and inspire salespeople stemmed from something innate in his being.

Suzanne B., an entrepreneur, who built her business from nothing to a multimillion-dollar enterprise and learned along the way how to create, sell, and deliver a world-class portfolio of professional services. Her toughness is outdone only by her love for learning and genuine concern for those she attracts to her team with her vibrant energy.

Paul M., a high school social studies teacher and head football coach. His personal belief that great accomplishments are not reserved for others is a lesson he learned from his dad. He challenges himself as a leader to look for the gift in each of his students and athletes, whether they are exceptional or not. Then he helps to instill confidence so they will each have the courage to pursue their own blessing.

Kevin C., the chief technology officer for a rapidly growing municipal township in Colorado. Kevin’s personal values so resonate with the unique mission of the town government he leads that he is able to consistently attract and retain top IT talent to his team. The extraordinary growth of the town stems, in part, from his leadership within this remarkable small government. Through Kevin’s impassioned leadership, this small city government has become nationally recognized as one of the top U.S. Digital Cities in its category and as the recipient of a Best on the Web award.

Iris N., the director of executive education at a New England college. Mentored by an inspirational leader, Iris found within herself the courage and conviction to help women business leaders develop the skills and confidence to lead at the highest levels in their organization. Iris’s energy amplifies the energy of all those involved in her organization’s renowned Executive Education program, allowing them to compete with much larger, better-funded universities.

Michael O., the chief administrator for a small-market hospital that was on the verge of extinction. Michael believes that patient care begins and ends at the point of contact with the nurses, doctors, and staff who face the public. He leads from the front lines where these talented people work. His personal truths were formed at an early age on the farm where he grew up, and honed in the grocery business where minuscule margins are the reality. The fine line between success and failure, he learned, is determined by the quality of service that the people under his leadership commit themselves to deliver.

These leaders are real. They are special. And, unfortunately, they are rare.

This book is for you whether you are a highly accomplished leader, perhaps the CEO of a large company, or an emerging leader who wants to understand how the best leaders infuse valuable energy into their organization. This book will tap the power of their resonating energy inside you—an asset that when leveraged will propel you personally to new heights of leadership success. As important, when your amplified energy flows through your organization, your business and your people flourish. This book is a step-by-step process that explains how to drive your amplified energy into your culture to make your organization a high-energy culture.

The intensive, experimental five-year leadership development program I was involved with demonstrated that this phenomenon is possible with any leader so inclined to develop himself. I know this because through our own Leadership Development Institute we saw people who were committed to their own development transform themselves into great leaders. This means you can, too.

Energy emanates from one extraordinary leader and resonates through other leaders, permeating the entire organization.

In every organization—a business, a department within a business, an athletic team, a volunteer organization, a government, a school, a hospital, or a family—resonance begins with the leader and must be sustained by the leader. Although the energy is innate, the leader creates resonance through the clarity of his personal truths, the atmosphere in his organization, and his powerful, timely, and effective communication. Only when the leader’s behavior and words are aligned with his core personal truths does energy begin to resonate and have a stimulating effect. To prolong the effect, resonance must be intentional and pervasive and be deeply embedded throughout the organization.

Embedded resonant energy becomes powerful, and the organization in which it is present reaches the pinnacle of its potential and becomes a high-energy culture. When resonant energy permeates the culture of an organization, starting with the leader and flowing through other key members—internal and external—it creates a synergizing effect. This effect brings out the potential of all the individuals it impacts within the organization—customers, employees, vendors, investors. The leader of the high-energy culture is able to marshal the collective intellect and capability of all stakeholders and align them with his impassioned vision. In this culture, people are self-motivated to do their very best. Commitment in the high-energy culture is extraordinarily high. The people in this atmosphere of high energy flourish. The continued development of each individual in the high-energy culture has a higher return on investment than in organizations where this phenomenon is not at work, giving the high-energy organization an enormous competitive advantage. The synergy that results thus becomes the driving force for sustained, consistent high performance.

There is enormous economic value to this high energy!

There are other significant benefits too. In business, the energized culture creates marketing gravity and draws customers to the company. There is an attractive force to this energy. It attracts the best talent, because these people want to play on your winning team. Investors and bankers are more inclined to capitalize these businesses. They feel the energy and sense something special is going on. Vendors recognize this as well and act to ensure that they are the chosen supplier to your unique culture.

School systems that possess this energized culture enjoy teachers and administrators who extend themselves beyond the call of duty to assist students beyond the school day, contribute selflessly to curriculum review and development, voluntarily attend professional development activities, and constantly seek to improve instruction. They don’t work by the clock but by the calling that is their profession.

Leaders who understand the power of their own energy and who act to leverage it are special and noteworthy, but this is not reserved only for others. You have within you similar power to create a high-energy culture of your own. Your leadership potential is unlimited.

This book is for you, a leader in a position to lead an organization who wants to understand how this energy inside, that already exists, is tapped, amplified, and made to become enormously powerful to you as an impassioned and potentially extraordinary leader.

WHAT THIS BOOK WILL SHOW YOU ABOUT HIGH-ENERGY CULTURES

I am a practitioner. All the concepts are drawn from observations and actual experience over my long life and career. The power of the energy that resonates from leaders with the qualities I describe in detail is most vivid when I reflect on my life. Some examples I have experienced firsthand, some I have studied, and others I have researched. The people I have known who possess this aura of energy have inspired me to be my very best, have challenged me to reach higher, and have seen something inside me that I did not. Their behaviors, their actions, and their energy flipped a switch inside me that turned up my motivation to succeed. By nature I am self-motivated, and yet these people and their effect made me supremely motivated.

Here you will learn the 10 steps you, as a leader, must take to create the powerful energy that will transform the organization around you. It is a process that is simple to understand, but like most skill development, more difficult to master. Each step in the 10-step process builds on the prior step.

Step 1. Remember the who that you are. This first step is critical to the process. It begins inside you. You must do the important work necessary to identify, clarify, and confirm what is important to you first.

Step 2. Remove the shroud. Once you have rediscovered what is important to you, it is time to drum up the courage to commit to act on what is important to you.

Step 3. Study the legends and learn the folklore. After you understand your most important truths and have recommitted to acting on them, it’s time to look outside yourself and to look back into your organization. Here we explain the importance of historical research. Who were the founders of your organization? What mattered to them? Why? What are the important stories that are folklore in your organization? What is important about them? You will learn how to apply what you glean from this new and different perspective, a historical one.

Step 4. Pay careful attention to the Alpha Dog. Next we look to the present, but again outside of ourselves. Who is the clear leader in your organization today? Who has authority and the ability to strongly influence others? To whom does everyone look for direction in difficult times? What matters to this person? Why? Are there others? Observing the actions of these important leaders in real time has great value to you. We will explain why.

Step 5. Query the key players. This step is about the truths within your organization as viewed by the people who matter most to it. What do they believe is important? Why? This is the critical litmus test that allows you to check what you have observed about yourself and key leaders historically and currently against the current beliefs of those others who are the peer leaders and are integral to the day-to-day operation of the organization. We will use a technique that builds trusted relations with your people as you learn the perspective of these important stakeholders.

Step 6. Crack the code to your secret sauce. Here we explore a fascinating process for defining your culture’s secret sauce in a way that will amplify the now resonating energy and leverage it to drive economic value into your business. You will focus your thinking on why your culture is different. What are the common threads that you now understand that make your organization special? If your organization seems to lack that secret sauce, then we will help you figure out what the missing ingredient might be. This is a critical step to your being able to broadcast your powerful energy.

Step 7. Promote your resonating culture. Here you will learn to leverage your most important leadership tool, your communication ability. This step is about defining the message, capturing the story, and taking all that you’ve learned about yourself and your culture and putting it into a body of work that becomes a treasure trove of powerful words and phrases for you to tap into, on demand. This anthology holds the ingredients for amplifying the energy within you and within those around you.

Step 8. Create the Rally Cry. The most powerful messages are the simplest ones. However, simple is hard! Here you invest energy in refining your message and increasing its potency by simplifying it.

Step 9. Save the saved. Speed is the key to success. To quickly realize the benefits from all your hard work, it’s important to recognize the disciples who can take your message and spread the energy through your organization rapidly. To drive change and to move your organization in the direction you envision, you must identify and focus on these key people.

Step 10. Rise to your leadership best. The final step is ongoing because the economic climate changes rapidly. The process must be fluid and dynamic. Maximizing the energy within your culture requires you and the leaders around you to continually develop yourselves and become effective coaches to develop others. As a coach, you must constantly adapt to circumstances and flex, while remaining true to the core principles and beliefs you now understand. This is the key to effective change leadership, an enormously important competence in business today.

Each step, it turns out, has at its core a principle. When you tap in to your own energy and follow these steps to charge up your organization, you and everyone impacted become powerful because you are tapping in to fundamental truths—Providence moves too.

There is one elementary truth the ignorance of which kills countless ideas and splendid plans: that the moment one definitely commits oneself, then Providence moves too.

—W. H. MURRAY, SCOTTISH

MOUNTAINEER AND AUTHOR

The entire process is captured in Figure I.1. The idea of this visual representation of the process is to fill time and space with your own innate and amplified energy. The relationship between time and space has been recognized as a significant physical principle since Einstein’s theory of relativity was first published in 1905. By combining space and time, physicists, including Einstein, have been able to uncover the workings of the universe, leading to the release of previously unimaginably powerful energy—nuclear energy, for example. This book’s chapters detail each step in the process that will allow you to release your own powerful energy.

FIGURE I.1 | THE ENERGY CONTINUUM

Starting with Quadrant I, your reflections on your past and self-introspection will help you determine your personal truths—the who that you are. Once you have gained key insights into your personal truths, we move to Quadrant II to an external perspective—organizational truths—again from both a historical and current perspective. In Quadrant III, we begin the work of tying together what you’ve learned. This is where resonance begins to have a profound effect. When the work in Quadrants I and II is done correctly, you begin to feel the energy as it is amplified inside you. Finally, in Quadrant IV you begin to define it. Here, you will use the only tool you have as a leader to propagate this energy, your communication skills. This is where your energy manifests itself in power! This diagram will serve as your road map throughout the process.

The exercises at the end of each chapter are cumulative, chapter to chapter. If you apply yourself fully, your fundamental truths as well as your organization’s truths will emerge, and the two will merge, causing resonance. You will begin to feel a renewed sense of purpose as you clarify and recommit to acting on your personal truths. You will channel this energy through powerful communication that will energize others and move them to action. Finally, you will create an atmosphere of energy in your organization that will propel it forward faster and more successfully than you could have imagined. The power of resonance will help unleash the full potential of everyone around you and put your organization on the road to outstanding, distinctive, and