Les constantly pursues the extraordinary.
He is the improbable combination of collaborator and leader, open-communicator and trusted confidant, team player and individual contributor. He approaches decisions and challenges by gathering diverse inputs and data to make high-quality decisions that drive superior results.
Les operates from the premise that relationships form the foundation of effective operational leadership. Closely paralleling the lean business movement, he lives by the mantra: do, learn, evolve.
His diverse career, an unquenchable thirst to learn and his “native language” (numbers and metrics) provide him with the operational tools to add value to a wide variety of organizations and enterprises. For the past decade, Les has deployed these tools in the realm of entrepreneurship and education:
- • currently advising/mentoring small companies - especially educational entrepreneurs - honing their strategies as they dream of conquering the complex and the unknown
- • serving as a Trustee of a non-profit higher education institution conferring masters and professional degrees
- • co-founding a company dedicated to the celebration of human achievement on social media
- • leading the effort to build a next-generation system to help non-native workers in Global 2000 companies learn English
Education is the key to unlocking the full potential of human endeavor. Entrepreneurship is about applying all that you have to create a new future. Both are lifelong passions for Les.
Collaborative
Les is first and foremost a team player. He contributes his business and operational expertise, ideas and "can do" spirit to any team he joins. Simultaneously he has great respect for others' expertise and ideas and isn't afraid to lead into the unknown.
As a team leader, Les begins by attracting and retaining the best people and clearly articulating what success looks like for every member of that team. The work of leaders, however, is to engage people to do their best work. As a leader, Les believes in setting high standards and holding people accountable for their commitments. Les' secret sauce is his positive attitude and his ability to encourage and cultivate engagement and participation.
Professional
Les relentlessly pursues the extraordinary in everything he does. He knows the difference between good enough and perfection, but at the same knows when to go for the magic 3% that differentiates the "great" from the "OK".
Les is a professional and takes great pride in his work and the teams that he has lead. Forthright, no-politics communications and a deep respect for individuals and attentive listening have helped Les win team awards and kudos. He is guided by the inevitable truth that trust is earned not given, is never built in a single encounter, but can be dissolved in a nanosecond.
Dynamic
With Les, you get a leader that anticipates and leads from vision, but is always willing to evaluate new information and evolve as needed. Les' entire career - juxtaposed against the back-drop of the rapidly changing technology environment of Silicon Valley - infuses him with the ability to thoughtfully embrace change and lead others through it.
In today's fast-paced world, every facet of an enterprise has the potential to be quickly transformed. Sometimes organizations have the skills to tackle these challenges today, but may not have what it takes to win tomorrow. Les' experience with every stage of growth - from seed-stage start-up to "plateaued" mid-stage companies and public companies - gives him the perspective to adapt his skills, styles and leadership to what's needed.
San Francisco Bay Area, California
(408) 242-4986
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