Prioritizing Relationships: A People-Centric Approach to Leadership

I asked Shea Treadway to join us at The Leadership Lounge because he might just be the most people-centric leader I know. Given the hundreds of executives I’ve worked with and coached over the past two decades that’s saying something. I find him inspiring in his innate ability to create strong, enduring relationships and get the best out of his teams.?

Shea is Senior Vice President of the distribution channels for Benefits and Protection with Principal Financial Group ? where he leads more than 1,000 employees. He is a 20-year veteran of the insurance industry and holds a Bachelor of Arts in political science from Yale University and a MBA from University of Michigan Ross School of Business.

Q: You’ve recently moved from a 20+ career at the same company to a new role. How has that transition been for you?

A: I was lucky to be in that rare situation. In my two decades at my prior company I developed so many meaningful relationships and friendships that became an important part of my professional and personal life. I was able to? know the company well, with a deep understanding of how it operates and how to get things done.

Making the decision to go to another company was not easy. But I was presented with an opportunity to take on new challenges, to stretch myself, to learn a new business, and to get uncomfortable. That was compelling, and that’s what I signed up for at Principal. Diving in, learning, meeting people and getting to understand the business has been really exciting and fulfilling.?

Q: How did you approach your first 6 months as a new executive??

What I’ve found to be most important is to double down on the people part. Of course you have to get up to speed on metrics and? numbers and how the company operates. But in my first few months I decided to spend an outsized portion of my time getting to know the team and our partners and understanding what people hope to accomplish, and what relationships are important internally and externally. My philosophy is that if you double down on the people-side of things the rest will follow. Whereas if you don’t, it can be really hard to catch up to build relationships. I’ve seen recently promoted leaders lock themselves in their office to try to figure out the business, and it doesn’t work.?

Q: What is your favorite, most impactful leadership practice?

I certainly don’t have all of the answers and I’ve made my share of mistakes, but I’ve learned a lot over the years. I’d call out three things. The first is to make sure everyone gets coaching. Whether a rookie employee or a 30-year veteran, there are always ways they can be coached to learn and grow. You can either coach them yourself or engage a professional coach to support them, and I do both.? Not only does this make them more effective in their work, it also brings a meaningful career value that keeps them excited, engaged and committed to the organization.?

The second thing is candid feedback. It’s vital, but it’s not easy to give. You need to understand how each person best listens to feedback. It’s important that you don’t soften the message, and that you don’t start feedback with a big build-up. Just be direct. If I don’t share my feedback when I notice something that a teammate or leader can do to be more effective and successful I’m failing them as a leader.

Finally, don’t solve every problem your employees bring to you. Those moments are learning opportunities. I have days where I am super busy and I just answer questions and solve problems myself because it’s faster and easier. But then later I realize I missed the opportunity give them the benefit of learning how to solve the problem themselves.?

Q: How do you deal with ambition in your teams, particularly when there are limited opportunities for advancement??

It can be difficult to satisfy everyone's ambitions. I try to find ways to get people exposure in different parts of business, find projects they can work on where they can get to know other senior leaders and take on new challenges. People build meaningful professional experiences when they gain exposure and develop new skills and that positions them well for future opportunity.

Q: One of the hardest things about leading is deciding what NOT to do. How do you manage that??

We create an environment that fosters and encourages ideas, and that leads to an overabundance of proposals. But out of 100 “big” ideas we typically pick 5 or 6 of them to put our muscle and resources behind, and drive those to success. It stinks to say no to good ideas, but it’s important to encourage creativity and innovation and create a culture where you reward great ideas even if they don’t get selected or make the cut.

While we have to limit the number of large initiatives we take on, I encourage experimentation on a smaller scale. This can be as simple as coming up with an alternative to the way we’ve always done things. I try to emphasize that when my team tries something new and it doesn't work, we don’t consider it a failure. We make sure to debrief the outcomes so we can learn and determine how we can approach it differently next time.?

Q: How do you think about your leadership in this moment that feels tumultuous to so many?

There are a lot of impacts to our businesses and our partners right now, and the industry is shifting rapidly with legislative action, technology enablement, and private equity firms investing in technology companies and distribution partner businesses. With all that movement, as a leader, I aim to keep us focused on those we are trying to serve, the small and mid-sized business segment (SMB), which is made up of companies with less than 500 employees. The reality is that if you look at any snapshot of our economy, the impact of SMBs on its health and growth is tremendous. We focus on helping to ensure SMBs have what they need to attract employees, deliver business value, and deal effectively with new issues as they arise amid the uncertainty.? That keeps us relevant and allows us to have an impact on the people and businesses fueling our economy.?

Q: How do you find purpose and meaning in your work?

Fortunately, my work brings inherent purpose and meaning through the products and services we provide and the customers we serve. We are in the business of trying to make sure as many American business owners and employees as possible have access to financial security. That in and of itself is really rewarding.

After several decades in the workforce there are, of course, things I want to accomplish in my career. But in my opinion, our legacy as leaders is about the kind of impact you make on others. Nothing makes me prouder than to see the people I’ve led run larger businesses and find greater success. I hope to do more of that in the second half than I did in the first half of my career.?

Q: With relationships being so central to how you operate, how do you maintain connections with the important people in your life?

My view is that the relationships I’ve developed in the past are just as important as the relationships that I’m building now. I make it a priority to keep in touch with people I’ve worked with. The people you meet and the relationships you build make a big impact on your career, so they deserve to be taken seriously.??

It’s just tough to keep my network active and maintain relationships with a busy family life and a demanding career. I’ve found that I have to be really intentional. I regularly make a point of jotting down the names of 4-5 people - from college, business school, my career, or events I’ve attended - and contact them just to say hello. Usually it’s via text or leaving a voicemail. I’m sure to let them know that I won't be offended if I don’t get a return phone call or text. I just want to let them know I’m thinking about them and would love to touch base to catch up at some point.?