Great Quotes by TEC Members

• Bob Atwell, CEO, Nicolet National Bank

"The CEO is uniquely unqualified to solve his own problems."

"Dealing with the elephant in the room is necessary for both good leaders and good businesses."

• Jeff Rafn, CEO, Northeast Wisconsin Technical Institute

"I want to help everyone get to being an 'A' Player."

• Tim Weyenberg, CEO, The Foth Group

"The best way to take control of the organization is to give control up. It allows unencumbered growth."

• John Hemken, CEO, TBL Holdings

"Character-Building stinks."

• Ben Grigg, CEO, Aarrowcast

"As a Follower, you're never wrong. As a Leader, you're rarely right."

• Randy Rose, CEO, Enzymatic Therapy

"It's critical to move from Fixing Problems to Leading The Organization."

• Mitch Weckop, CEO, Skyline Technologies

"Change is like pulling a band-aid from a hairy arm. It's much better to zip it."

• Sam Khoury, an operations consultant to a TEC member:

Principles of employee engagement: -- Perform ... 100% of the time! -- If you make the same mistake twice, there is a penalty. -- Reports have to be succinct, very succinct. Did we or didn’t we? What info do we need to have to make a correction. -- Tough Love. Firm, but Appreciative! -- If I’ve asked you to provide me something, I’ll respond to it almost immediately. That means I adjust my schedule to be available when you will be providing it to me. -- If I show I CARE, they’ll walk over coals to make it happen.

The result, said the TEC member, is both Focus and Precision improved, as then did Attitudes.

• Jeff Shefchik, CEO, PTi Trucking

"Salespeople are coin-operated."

• Lee Bouche, CEO, Employee Resource Center

"Little pigs are cute. Big pigs get slaughtered."

Takeaways from a Green Bay Chamber panel on Marketing

• Biggest Gift: Ask "How can I help YOU?" Then, Listen!

• Have a Blog. Be seen as a "thought leader" voice in your space. People will come.

• Get past the Press Release flood by calling or emailing the appropriate editor to expect it, and explain briefly why it's important. It will implant it in his/her mind.

• If you have a public crisis, provide information immediately: What happened. Why it happened. What you're doing about it.

• People don't care WHO you are, until they know what you can DO for them.

• Get your whole team involved in marketing discussions so they're invested. Then, they'll think about it more continuously.

• Have different marketing thrusts for each marketplace you have: Prospects. Expanding Client and Prospect horizons. Keeping Clients and Prospects informed, up-to-date.

On the BUSINESS of the Green Bay Packers

By Andrew Brandt, former chief negotiator for the Packers to a St. Norbert CEO B'fast & Strategy session:

• The football side is very immediate. The business side is not. My job in negotiating player contracts was to be the caution. We never want to pay retail, to let the contract status get to the point where the player has the most leverage. Also, we want to have players in the pipeline because free agency is typically not a productive use of dollars ... with exceptions like Reggie White.

• Aaron Rodgers: "Off the charts intelligence, a natural leader, perfect temperament, great sense of humor, great arm, and quickness."

• "Look for individuals who influence positively the character of the team. People like Aaron Kampman, Donald Driver, Greg Jennings, James Jones and Charles Woodson. Character makes a difference in this league."

On Servant Leadership

By Tom Thibodeaux, who teaches the topic at Viterbo University in Milwaukee, to a Festival Foods-sponsored audience in November:

• Slowing down allows great thinking.

• Can your employees tell if you're "All In"? Or not?

• Leadership is holding people accountable for achieving a greater good!"

• The greatest gift you can give someone is your 100% attention!