Issue link: http://palletcentral.uberflip.com/i/1177710
Howe Wallace is a veteran pallet industry leader and the founding CEO of PalletOne. Below is a summary of the key leadership characteristics that have been central to his success. TEACHING AND COMMUNICATING: These characteristics work closely together since your skill at communicating impacts your ability to teach. Becoming an effective communicator takes years of practice and commitment. Howe has written a blog almost every day since 2005 for the purpose of internal communications. "I'm trying to make sure that people understand what I'm thinking and what I'm trying to get is a collective organizational thought process going." He draws on a combination of athletics, business, and the Bible as foundational sources for teaching. Howe emphasized that "If you don't communicate well, people make things up and they'll create their own truth. Communication is a way that we get to the bottom of problems." LEARNING: Adapting to change requires the willingness to learn new knowledge and skills continuously. That's why the choice to be a lifelong learner is so critical. "We have to be continually adding to our knowledge base. I take advantage of reading and studying and looking around for new ideas and helping to formulate that into our structure." COMPOSURE UNDER PRESSURE: We live in a world where things seldom go as planned, and adversity is a constant companion. "It took me two or three business cycles to learn that, this too shall pass. Just keep on plugging to do the right thing here and do the best we can and let the situation sort itself out." BEING A GOOD ROLE MODEL: The truth is that our actions speak louder than our words. "You certainly have to model what you intend to have done. You can't say one thing and do another." COURAGE: The best leaders have the same worries as everyone else but choose to put their desired outcomes ahead of their fears. Howe emphasizes that "courageous communication is the willingness and ability to confront that awkward, uncomfortable thing." Also, it's important not to personalize things. "Make the problem the boss, not the person." HABITS: Effective leaders know that most of our daily thoughts and actions are driven by habits. "Habit building is what we try to do from safety to quality, and to embed those habits in such a way that they build on success. There's nothing like putting a good habit on top of the next habit, then maintaining them because the brain thrives on habits." Nick Wenner is the VP Operations at Pallet Service Corporation. He's a second-generation employee with 16 years in the business. Below is a summary of the key leadership characteristics that he sees as key to his success: KNOW YOUR LIMITS: Leaders need a high level of self-awareness and self-honesty. "All we can do as effective leaders is to control the controllable, and we leave the rest of God. We're limited in our capabilities, and we've just got to understand what those are and work within them." palletcentral.com PalletCentral • September-October 2019 13 "If you don't communicate well, people make things up and they'll create their own truth. Communication is a way that we get to the bottom of problems." Howe Wallace CEO PalletOne iStockphoto/wildpixel Choosing the right people: "Surround yourself with people that love you, that care about you, and that hold you accountable. People that are strong, where we're weak, are like-minded, and challenge us in certain areas." Nick Wenner VP Operations Pallet Service Corporation