Ripple Effect: Leadership Interview Series

The current business landscape is dynamic and ever evolving which requires strong leadership to inspire and motivate their teams, provide clear direction, and a shared vision for the organization. The desire to know more about these tenets is the driving force behind our 2024 Leadership Interview Series: Ripple Effect. We want to step inside the daily lives of our newly realigned Senior Leadership Team and discover insights and share tips on learning, changing, and growing as a leader – which will hopefully create a ripple effect of positive influence for those following along.

This week, we spoke to Director of the Strategic Services & Solutions Business Unit, Troy Sutherland, who provided advice and direction for those looking to develop their leadership skills, encourage creative thinking, face challenges, and communicate effectively.

What is your role at HexFed?

Director of the Strategic Services & Solutions Business Unit

How do you encourage creative thinking within your team?

Understand what your team is passionate about and look for ways to cultivate that passion into opportunity. The first step of that is listening to your team and getting to know what they like to do and where they are looking to go in their career.

What is the biggest challenge facing leaders today?

Remote work. It's a blessing and a challenge at the same time. Working with a geographically dispersed team makes constant communication even more key for the team to understand what is going on with the program and organization and what the strategy is for the future. It also makes team building challenging when you don’t have the ability to go out as a group, so finding creative ways to build camaraderie is key as well.

What are you doing to ensure you continue to grow and develop as a leader?

Listening to both my leadership and my team. I can learn leadership approaches from not only my mentors, but also from those I mentor as well. Leadership should be tailored to the mission and/or the team executing that mission, so hearing approaches from multiple types of background and experience levels helps me understand what has worked in the past so I can use it in my career as well. Learn from your own experience as well as others experiences.

What leadership advice do you have for individuals not in supervisory roles but looking to advance this skillset?

Seek out new responsibilities and growth in your current position. Take initiative on projects, demonstrate reliability, and seek opportunities to collaborate and influence outcomes positively. Develop your communication and problem-solving skills, and don’t hesitate to volunteer for leadership tasks or mentorship roles. Leadership is about influence and impact, regardless of your formal title. Find a mentor to learn from.

What advice do you have for emerging leaders?

Focus on continuous learning, empathy, and effective communication. Understand that a significant portion of communication is listening. Be open to feedback, be adaptable, and lead by example. Build strong relationships with your team which is key to fostering trust and collaboration.

Thank you @Troy Sutherland for participating in the Ripple Effect: Leadership Interview series! Stay tuned for future articles featuring other members of the Hexagon US Federal Senior Leadership Team.