Five Things You Need To Be A Highly Effective Leader During Turbulent Times
INTERVIEW ON THE PRICE OF BUSINESS SHOW, MEDIA PARTNER OF THIS SITE.
Recently Kevin Price, Host of the nationally syndicated Price of Business Show, interviewed Chad Wasilenkoff.
Chad Wasilenkoff, CEO and Chairman of Helicoid Industries, an innovator in the composites sector, spoke with Price of Business today discussing the ‘Five Things You Need To Be A Highly Effective Leader During Turbulent Times.’
“If your company is facing difficulties during these turbulent times then now is the time to take stock and evaluate what you would have done differently. Maybe you wish you had more liquidity, or less debt, or hadn’t taken on too much growth so fast,” says Chad Wasilenkoff, CEO, Helicoid Industries. “Keep in mind these turbulent times will be done soon and then you don’t want to make the same mistakes again in a few months or years. Hindsight is always 20–20, but then applying that knowledge in the future is its true value.”
“The biggest mistake I often see is companies continuing to do things the same old way and failing to challenge themselves to think outside the box,” says Wasilenkoff. “They focus too much on cutting costs and finding ways to try get a 1% or 2% improvement rather than making a step-change that can result in a 20% or 30% improvement. A great example of this is the medical industry during the pandemic. Companies either focused inward and spent time finding ways to cut costs, while others took advantage of the situation and launched telemedicine opportunities.”
“Another common mistake is leaders that micro-manage their teams which is very common in start-up companies,” says Wasilenkoff. “The CEO wants to have their hands in on every little detail. They seem to think that they can do the job better than the person assigned to that particular task. If that is the case, then they should spend the time to find someone who can do the job better rather than doing the job themselves.”
“Another common mistake that I have seen over and over again are leaders that think they are irreplaceable,” says Wasilenkoff. “Through my career, I have built and grown companies in dozens and dozens of industries. So, I’m constantly forced to learn a new business or industry quickly. Surprisingly it only takes a few months to know enough to make informed decisions since a leader’s role is to set strategy which is based on the big picture and doesn’t require an in-depth understanding of the minutia. Too often leaders are focused down in the weeds where someone needs decades of industry-specific experience to understand. Then they think as leaders they can’t be replaced as that level of knowledge is a requirement for the job.”
As Founder, CEO & Chairman of Helicoid Industries, Inc., Chadwick Wasilenkoff, a Canadian who now calls Southern California home, oversees the commercialization of the company’s core Helicoid technology. Mr. Wasilenkoff is an established entrepreneur and proven leader with extensive capital markets experience specializing in multiple sectors including manufacturing, technology, forestry, mining, and oil & gas. He has held numerous officer and director positions with various publicly listed companies. Prior to founding Helicoid Industries, Mr. Wasilenkoff served as Chairman, CEO, and Director of Fortress Paper. Wasilenkoff oversaw the mill’s transformation to focus operations on the high-margin banknote industry.
An established media presence, Mr. Wasilenkoff has been a guest on national and international broadcasts including Bloomberg TV, CNBC, CNN, BNN Bloomberg, Fox Business News, and the BBC as well as radio, print, and online media. Mr. Wasilenkoff has been recognized as a winner of the Ernst and Young Entrepreneur of the Year, RISI’s list of 50 Most Influential People in the Global Forest Industry, and Business in Vancouver’s Top 40 under 40.
LISTEN TO THE INTERVIEW IN ITS ENTIRETY HERE:
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