Lesson 63: Compromise
Compromise is key for stakeholder management. Last year, I planned a trip to Hawaii for my family. 14 people between 2 cities took a lot of compromise. Setting the date, shopping for lodging, reserving the luau, surveying people’s budgets, and communicating the plan.
One day, I learned my younger cousin could no longer come because she had a soccer tournament. It was tempting to ask myself, “Do you think Granny is going to notice if one of her grandchildren is not there? Other grandchildren will be there.” But ohana means family and family means nobody gets left behind or forgotten. Therefore, we moved the trip so everyone could come. While it seemed easier to march forward with my plan, compromise built teamwork with my stakeholders.
This MBA is a training ground for becoming a CEO, and CEO’s need to know how to compromise. This week, I spoke with Jerry He (Booth ‘04) about his experience as a CEO. Today, Jerry is Chairman and CEO of Harvard Apparatus Regenerative Technology, Inc. and before this role he was Chairman and CEO of Bright Scholar Education Holdings Ltd (NYSE:BEDU). What do you do in your first 100 days as a CEO? I asked Jerry. “You do not go around firing people…you meet with your team and find out who is competent and can contribute to the vision.” Jerry has been CEO of several large organizations and still he emphasizes people. If someone creates value in the business, you have to learn to compromise with that person to build teamwork.
Outside of my classes, I spend a significant amount of time networking to find people who will create value on my journey to acquiring a small business. I spoke with an investor last week to update them on my progress with ETA. She shared how few people their firm invests in so they can focus on developing successful entrepreneurs. That caught my attention because her firm chooses quality over quantity when working with entrepreneurs. This compromise prioritizes creating value on the entrepreneur’s journey, which aligns with my mission.
My mission is to increase representation for Black leaders at the executive, investor, and board level. This mission is about capturing the potential of Black executives, investors, and board members to create value in businesses. When choosing investors, I look for people willing to be my teammate as I learn how to function in all three roles. Moving forward, my commitment to understanding and practicing compromise will inform how I build my network and select partners who who recognize the immense value proposition of diverse leadership. We will build a team that does not leave people behind for the sake of a plan, but rather compromises to fulfill the mission.
This is Lesson 63: Compromise. Next week is Lesson 64: Coaching.
