A Leader Who Walks the Walk!

I met Jim Turley, the CEO and Chairman of Ernst & Young, several years ago. He was on one of our television shows and he had just taken over the leadership of his firm. I respected him because he was a leader who didn't just 'talk the talk' but also 'walked the walk.' He is now Chairman of Catalyst and a great proponent for advancing women in the workplace. Recently, Jim and I spoke. Here are some of his insights:

On Respect

Jim: An individual can't demand the people around him to respect him. They have to demonstrate the respect first and they will then earn the respect in return. So I think that the leadership of an organization needs to demonstrate that respect, and cascade it throughout the organization.

On Listening

Jim: I think that the good Lord gave us two ears and one mouth for a reason. We're supposed to listen twice as often as we talk. And I think that many people in leadership forget that--they start thinking that it's their role to have all the good ideas instead of actually encouraging the people around t hem to come up with great ideas and to shape the future of the organization. You only get those ideas pulled through if you listen carefully.

On Catalyst

Jim: One of the things that Catalyst is doing pretty effectively right now is looking at global issues in an increased way. We've got people on our staff that are working in a variety of geographies around the world. So we're starting to look at the global aspects of gender quite heavily. I think at the end of the day it's all about leadership, it's all about women in leadership, and it's something that you can expect Catalyst to continue to be at the forefront of.