Garry Ridge had already been a CEO for two years when he enrolled at the University of San Diego in 1999 to earn a master’s degree in business leadership.
Ridge, who ran the versatile products company WD-40 from 1997 until his retirement in 2022, believed at the time that he needed to change himself to make the company and its employees more successful, he said on Simon Sinek’s “A Bit Of Optimism” podcast on Nov. 25.
Ridge had recently immigrated from Australia and wanted to spread WD-40 around the world, he said. Before returning to school, he was a “succinct, bright, leave” type of leader, he added. “I really thought I had to be in command and control. And I quickly learned (in school) that my job wasn’t command and control.”
Instead of running the company with an iron fist, Ridge took a more personal approach to leadership, which he said he credits to then-professor Ken Blanchard’s guidance, aiming to help employees feel more included and empowered.
“Our purpose was to create positive, lasting memories…so what changed in my mind was that I couldn’t do this alone,” Ridge said. Currently based in Poway, California, he serves as a leadership coach for other CEOs. “If we were going to expand to 176 countries around the world, and we did, and the sun was never going to set on the people in our organization, I needed to make sure they felt safe enough to make decisions and be courageous.”
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As a coach, he said he has seen other CEOs struggle with the same control-forward leadership style he once had. “They see successful people who have huge egos, little empathy, want to micromanage, think they have all the answers, and don’t really value learning. And they think that’s the way to go,” Ridge says.
To improve her so-called “servant leadership” skills, Ridge said she challenged her own thinking and constantly reminded herself to put others first. He has been walking around for “months” with “compliment someone” written on his hand as a reminder that his job is not for him, and he has refused private parking and an office “four times larger” than his employees’ workspace, the report said.
“The product of the will of the people and the strategy equals the outcome,” Ridge said. “If you spend time on people, purpose, values, and learning…more people will be engaged, passionate, and get up every day to execute your strategic plan…it’s that simple.”
For workers, a boss who supports employees and leads with empathy, flexibility, transparency, and accountability is a green light, Deepali Vyas, global head of fintech, payments, and crypto operations at Korn Ferry, told CNBC Make It in October 2024.
To determine whether your future boss possesses these traits during a job interview, Vyas says you can ask, “How does your current team describe you and your leadership style?” A response that says, “I give them enough lead to implement their ideas and I help them when they’re really in trouble,” rather than a response that says, “People listen to me,” can show that they’re flexible and trusting, she said.
“A good manager is one who uses a good balance of emotional intelligence and isn’t too strict,” Vyas says.
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