“What happens when the Business Owner respectively dismisses themselves?” by Steve Marsten

At the recent National Sothertons Conference in Adelaide we had the opportunity to listen to a truly inspirational speaker in Donald McGurk, the CEO of Codan.  Codan is a publicly listed Australian company that manufactures mine and gold detectors as well as high frequency radio and satellite communications technology.

This isn’t the easiest space to compete in. They are dealing with third world governments like Angola and Afghanistan and competing with US and Chinese companies, yet here they are forging profitable business in some of the most challenging nations and markets in the world because the technology is world class!

What we learnt from Donald’s presentation was his internal approach to leadership. Codan has had major profit fluctuations in recent years due to the ebb and flow of contracts - something that many of our company clients here in Gladstone will attest to. Hence, he has often had to explain the results to his board and as a result he utilises a technique which is to “respectfully dismiss himself” each week.

Now many of us have been dismissed or changed jobs, at least once in our lives and nowadays it seems to be the norm rather than the unique. The younger generation are told that they will have 5-8 jobs during their lifetime and 1-3 careers- hence they are a little more primed for it.

When we change jobs, often we take time to assess what lead up to the job change? What could I or should I have done differently or approached from a better angle? What will I focus on more in my next role? He focuses on “above the line” thinking – what are the “right” things that should be carried out? What level of intensity should I inject into this or that task?

He sets his values as the leader of his company and then he goes “all out” to stand by those values. Every time he sees someone within his organisation not exuding the right corporate behaviour that aligns with the values of the company – he calls them out! Every time – without fail. That’s what we tend to get lazy at.

If you are the leader in your business, consider setting Company values that are clear to you and then implement them to the letter while respectively dismissing yourself on a regular basis. At Sothertons we enjoy sharing business techniques that can improve our clients approach to business. Call us for a meeting on 07 4972 1300.