The Next Rung

This is a true story of a man’s leap up the corporate ladder in a multinational organization. You might wonder, "What's so special about his story?" You will realize just how special it is when I tell you he transformed from a humble farmhand, a grape picker to be precise, to a lofty Vice President.

The man was Richard Monta?ez. He grew up in Cucamonga Valley, Southern California, sharing a one-room apartment in a migrant farm labour camp with his ten siblings. His family and the people in his community earned their livelihood by picking grapes for the wine industry.

He disliked going to school and was barely able to speak English. One day, his teacher asked the class about their dream job. Some students promptly responded as Astronaut, Doctor etc. When it was Richard's turn to answer, he froze unsure of what to say. Later he said, "There are no dreams in the place where I come from". He dropped out of school in Grade 4 and took odd jobs to make ends meet.

One day in the late seventies, he learnt about a job opening for a factory janitor position at the Frito-Lay plant. The pay was a grand $4 per hour, which was way beyond his farmhand pay scale. Without having any second thoughts he seized the opportunity and as per his family’s wish he aimed to become the "Best janitor at Frito-Lay".

Richard was inquisitive by nature which helped him absorb information readily. Apart from carrying out his regular tasks, he was passionate about learning the organization's internal functions and products in his free time. He tagged along with salespersons and learnt the art of selling. He spent hours at the warehouse, especially in the manufacturing unit, observing the processes with an eye for detail.

While eating at a local street vendor one day, Monta?ez realized Frito-Lay had no products catering to the Latino community. He had earlier collected a few samples from the manufacturing department, to which he tried adding chillies and a few secret ingredients. The result was a great new product, the spicy Cheetos, which he was confident would have an excellent market.

In the 1980's he watched a corporate video announcement from CEO Roger Enrico encouraging all 300,000 employees to take the lead & act like an owner. Montanez, thrilled & motivated by the speech, found the CEO's contact details and called his executive assistant.

Mr. Enrico’s office. Who is this?

Richard Monta?ez, in California


You’re the VP overseeing CA?

No, I work at the Rancho Cucamonga plant.


Oh, so you’re the VP of Operations?

No, I work inside the plant.


You’re the manager?

No. I’m the janitor.

After a few minutes of silence, the CEO came on the line. He liked the initiative taken by the janitor and informed him to prepare a presentation in 2 weeks. Montanez was elated when he heard that the CEO and his management staff are flying down to listen to him. Along with his wife, he rushed to a nearest library to learn about marketing strategies and how to prepare presentation materials. He managed to deliver a successful presentation, and that was the turning point to his life. CEO promoted him to a Vice President, which meant that he no longer had to sweep floors!

Generally, most companies don't need superstars. They need curious and disciplined people, and this story is an excellent example that it can come from anywhere. The more employees are given control over their projects/products, the more ownership they feel, and the more motivated they are to do their best work.

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Richard Montanez started teaching an MBA class, and it's ironic that a man who never finished high school was teaching MBA aspirants.

One of the students had some doubts:

Student: Where did you get your degree? All my professors have degrees. 

Montanez: University of Cucamonga. 


Student: Where is that? 

Montanez: Never mind, private school, you couldn't get in! 


Student: Well wait a minute all my professors has PhD's and what about you

Montanez: Look I have a PhD too, I've been Poor, Hungry, and Determined.

According to Montanez, much wisdom is earned when one experiences these three things: Poverty, Hunger & Determination. Innovation is born out of poverty’s necessity, and fear dies a natural death when confronted by hunger. These two are a formidable combination which results in determination.

Btw, he is a strong advocate of education. He frequently says,

"Look how far I have got without education and now think how much farther you can go with an education".

This story is truly inspiring and the lessons it teaches are invaluable. Additionally, another priceless attribute that we should inculcate is the art of listening. Youngsters lack the ability to sit down and listen to elders. They may not be CEOs or hold any fancy degrees, but they all have great stories to tell, and within each is a lesson no school can teach us. Overcoming tough times without the means we have at our disposal is no small task and they have done it. Their life stories would be a fascinating learning experiences if we could just listen.

This is what Montanez did.

Someone: Where do you get your ideas?
Montanez: By listening to people!

Successful people are, in general, great listeners.

Be curious, develop your listening skills, take ownership and be determined to become the best in whatever you do.

Good luck.

References:

How 'Flamin' Hot Cheetos' transformed immigrant janitor without a high school degree into a corporate executive