Are you a leader who’s running yourself ragged, trying to micromanage every employee, every meeting, and every detail of your company’s growth? Stop it! There’s a better way, and today’s show will change your life!
Karen Walker is a consultant, speaker, and author who is focused on helping senior leaders create internal strategies that support external growth. Decades ago, Karen helped lead the then-fastest growing company in American history, Compaq Computer Corporation, from startup to $15 billion in annual revenue. After working at Compaq for 14 years, she left to begin One Team Consulting. She now helps leaders to grow their companies with outcomes including IPO’s, acquisitions, market share increases, and dramatic leader development. In this episode, Karen shares what it was like to be Employee #104 at Compaq and how she was able as VP of Operating Services to spur creation of more than $15 billion in value, her top 5 strategies to help leaders build bigger and better companies, and why today, more than ever, we need to carve out time to think and how to do it.
Unprecedented growth at Compaq
Karen started as an industrial engineer at a Fortune 500 company but became intrigued by the startup process. She interviewed and was hired at the new company, Compaq, which went on to do $111 million in business in their first year! This growth took them from 100 employees to 17,000! Karen’s job was sorting out physical infrastructure with facilities, and making things happen. She oversaw expansion from Texas into Singapore, Scotland, Germany, and the Netherlands.
Karen’s evolving role
No one expected tremendous growth at Compaq, but they had the perfect market fit at the perfect time. The assumption was that they were building hard drives, but in reality, they were building the first portable computers for business. Karen hired an amazing team and learned new skills along the way. It wasn’t unusual for them to hire 500-600 people in one month, but they had to have options and maintain the flexibility to deal with the downside. One such downside was office politics, but Compaq’s leadership found ways to implement rewards and consequences for behavior. Their people were not driven by power or politics as much as achievement and the adrenaline rush. Karen and other leaders were committed to stamping out the rise of politics in the workplace.
Making the leap
A new CEO came to Compaq, with a different vision for the now-giant company. The goals and values of the organization changed, and this led Karen to think about branching out on her own. Her job had changed drastically over the years, to now running a huge team of people and having a $50 million expense budget each year. She missed helping people be clear about their what and why and helping them execute. She found it difficult to pivot at the very senior level, so she prepared for about six months to make the transition to starting her own company.
No Dumbing Down
Karen’s book is all about helping an organization maximize internal strategies for external growth. Dumbing down is why many A-players will leave an organization, which is what Karen experienced. There is good intention behind teamwork, but people get their expectations raised, and then fall back into the same old behaviors, habits, and office politics. High performers usually walk out, because they can’t work at their full potential.
The umbrella
As a senior leader, you’re “the umbrella,” keeping everything out of and off of your team, but the trick is not to let it sap your energy. Being inclusive of diverse small groups means you have to pay attention to process and not just the content. Moving fast toward the goal is what we usually see rewarded, but the action has to be sustainable, repeatable, and in alignment with the organization’s values – otherwise, you’ve done yourself a disservice.
Pitfalls for leaders
The main problem Karen identifies for leaders is not creating enough time to think. Leaders are pulled in every direction, and they see the noticeable problems, but blind spots always crop up. Karen says, “Control your calendar, or someone else will.” Leaders need to block out time to look at the big picture. Karen advocates 50-minute meetings to allow 10 minutes for taking notes and debriefing. If a meeting doesn’t help you do your work, then it’s a waste of your time!
Five strategies for bigger, better companies
Karen has identified five areas where CEO’s and senior leaders are missing the boat on what it takes to grow. Dumbing down, doubling back, and playing bumper cars are the first three that she explains. Becoming a utility means you can standardize processes so they can repeat themselves. This gives leaders time to levitate and think about the big picture. Dealing with the “so what” means you have ways to support your good intentions.
The dangers of a short-term mindset
Leaders often get caught up in the short term, because we want to say yes to everything, but then we have to follow through with action. There is also the adrenaline kick we love from getting things done, rather than just thinking about it. Remember that an organization will take as much from you as you will give, so there are always more things to do. Don’t let the short term and the urgent distract you from bigger projects. “Important doesn’t always mean urgent.”
Create trust
As Karen knows, it’s difficult to manage a large organization that grows fast. There are many moving parts, so it’s key to create a place of trust and alignment with values. Losing trust means losing clients. Karen encourages us to give these leaders some slack when we hear about them in news stories and not expect perfection from CEOs.
Taking time to think
Karen intentionally creates time to think. She found the way she wanted to live, being congruent, thoughtful, and aligned. She found a Zen Master in NYC more than 20 years ago, and it’s her Zen Buddhist practice that allows her the time to think. Attending two silent meditation retreats each year gives her time to clear her brain to have space to think. She explains how these retreats fit perfectly into her introverted personality.
Highlights of this episode:
- 7:44 – How values shape the vision
- 10:08 – Stamping out corporate political BS
- 12:04 – Making the leap into leadership development
- 19:25 – Doing the hard work
- 21:17 – Karen’s book, No Dumbing Down: A No-Nonsense Guide for CEOs on Organization Growth
- 25:21 – Being “the umbrella’
- 27:17 – Misunderstandings about growth
- 32:02 – Common pitfalls for leaders
- 36:51 – Five strategies for leaders
- 38:40 – The dangers of short-term and urgent mindset
- 43:20 – Karen’s observations of leaders
- 48:00 – How Karen creates time for herself
- 51:15 – Fem Five
Resources Mentioned:
- Karen’s Website: www.karenwalker.us
- www.karenwalker.us/nextfem Check out Karen’s gift for NF listeners of a free chapter of her book
- Find Karen on social media: @karenwalkerus
- Elements of Power: Lessons on Leadership and Influence by Terry Bacon
- Design the Life You Love: A Step by Step Guide to Building a Meaningful Future by Ayse Birsel
- No Dumbing Down: A No-Nonsense Guide for CEOs on Organization Growth by Karen Walker
- Silicon Cowboys movie on Netflix and iTunes
The Fem Five:
1. Favorite book to recommend for women?
- Elements of Power: Lessons on Leadership and Influence by Terry Bacon and Design the Life You Love by Ayse Birsel
2. Favorite self-care hack?
- “Taking care of myself with silent meditation retreats”
3. Best piece of advice and who gave it to you?
- “Ask for what you want and notice what you get” – from my psychologist many years ago
4. CEO or thought leader you’re into right now?
- Business Consultant Dorie Clark and Judy Woodruff of PBS
5. One piece of advice you’d give your five years younger self?
- “Just because you can, doesn’t mean you should. Every problem doesn’t have to be solved.”
Last Time on The NextFem Podcast
Step Into Your Moxie – with Alexia Vernon
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