Issue link: https://nebusinessmedia.uberflip.com/i/1173860
K evin Hancock is the President of Hancock Lumber Company. Established in 1848, Hancock Lumber op- erates ten retail stores, 3 sawmills and a truss plant. The company also grows trees on 12,000 acres of timberland in Southern Maine. Hancock Lumber is a multi-year recipient of the 'Best Places to Work in Maine' award. The company is also a past recipient of the Maine Family Business of the Year Award, the Governor's Award for Business Excellence, the MITC 'Exporter of the Year' award, and the Pro-Sales national dealer of the Year. Kevin is a past chairman of the National Lumber and Building Materials Dealers Association. Kevin is a recipient of the Ed Muskie 'Access to Justice' Award, the Habitat For Humanity 'Spirit of Humanity' Award, the Boy Scouts of America 'Distinguished Citizen' Award, and Timber Processing Magazine's 'Man of the Year' Award. Kevin also spent 15 years coaching middle school basketball for the Lake Region school district. Kevin Hancock President of Hancock Lumber Company PA N E L I S T 1. Culture makes the difference: Great people are actually everywhere. So why do some companies, communities, and countries thrive while others struggle to survive? It's culture. Specifically, it's a question of whether or not the leaders disperse power or collect it. 2. Change is created first from within: Leaders, managers, and supervisors need to manage others less and themselves more. It's like Gandhi said, "We must BE the change." 3. Become an employee-centric company: Work should enhance the lives of the people who do it! The 'flywheel' of success starts with the employee experience. When employee engagement soars, customers and the corporation thrive in return. In this model, profit becomes an outcome of a higher calling. 4. Listen for understanding, not judgement: The purpose of listening is understanding. The goal is to make it safe for everyone to say what they actually think. For this to happen, the leaders must resist the temptation to 'fix' or 'correct' what people say. The truth is plural, not singular. Every voice counts. 5. The purpose of life is to self- actualize: The purpose of life is for each of us to come into our own, never to be repeated, voice and share it with the world. Work can become a primary place where adults self-actualize. 6. Restraint is the key leadership skill of the 21st Century: Restraint is holding the power but not using it. Overreaching has consequences. 7. There is always more work that could be done: As technology, teamwork, and efficiency grow — work should take less time, not more. 8. Staying in your lane is really poor advice: The growth comes from getting out of our lanes. 9. Employee engagement is measurable: Imagine if this was your company's most impor tant metric. What might change? 10. In nature, power is dispersed: There is no capital or CEO of the forest. Humans are a part of nature, not above it, and ultimately aspire to organize in accordance with nature's most fundamental rules.