1060. From the Projects to President

“I started leading frontline employees at Pepsi. These are men and women who are driving trucks to make deliveries at grocery stores, these are merchandisers who are in the stores merchandising the products and services. I really had to focus on what was important to them. I’ll share a story with you. As I started leading frontline employees– and you know we all make mistakes–I remember one of my employees saying, ‘Look, young man, I think you have great talent and great potential, but there are two things you need to understand: Number One–Never disrespect your employees, and Number Two–You make sure my W-2 grows every year!’ Because when you are dealing with frontline employees, a lot of them are living paycheck-to-paycheck. They are saving money, but they’ve got aspirations about sending their kids to college or helping a parent retire, and every dollar matters. As a leader your job is to make sure you are making decisions so that your teammates can grow their W-2. Isn’t that an interesting point? ‘Help me grow my W-2 every year.’  That brought me great clarity about what my role was as a leader and it changed my focus and helped me evolve even more as a leader. You have to listen more to them, figure out what they need to be successful, and decide how you put them in a position to win–because in some cases it makes a significant difference in whether a kid went to college or not. So I take that as a great responsibility. You know, we talk a lot about what makes a good leader–and it’s something that you never stop learning– but here’s something I can tell you: Listening is a critical part of leadership. It is not talking, it is listening!”

As president of Comcast’s West Division for 11 years, Steve White created a culture defined by the philosophy of Working Together to Win Together. Driven by continuous learning, radical responsibility, and an unwavering commitment to excellence, Steve was responsible for all Comcast Cable operations in the Western U.S., leading nearly 30,000 employees, serving over 11 million customers, and driving annual revenue of nearly $18 billion. Today, Steve applies the same winning philosophy to his new post as president and special counsel to the CEO of Comcast Cable. Steve is the author of “Uncompromising: How an Unwavering Commitment to Your Why Leads to an Impactful Life and Lasting Legacy.”