Leadership & Balancing Dualities

Earlier in March, we had a lesson in leadership with an Industrial executive giant, Dave Cote. Best known for his time as CEO of Honeywell, Dave has come back to the public markets as the Executive Chairman of Vertiv. We were fortunate to spend time with him, and his easy demeanor allowed our conversation to span a wide variety of topics, each proving more insightful than the last. We touched on how the birth of his son “scared the bejesus out of him” and his use of humor as a leadership tool. The conversation naturally gravitated to his expertise on the topic of managing conflicting dualities and his mantra of “keeping fixed costs flat” and why many don’t use it because it’s “too hard.” 

We’ve put together the best parts of the conversation as it relates to motivating employees, engendering independent thought and inculcating a sense of ownership in a company that is not founder-led. 

While not highlighted in this video, we’re very pleased to have partnered with Dave on his next journey with Vertiv as he utilizes these key lessons to help Vertiv continue to grow revenue, expand margins and FCF – all while re-investing in R&D and preparing the balance sheet for accretive M&A. We believe Vertiv is in a stronger position today because of Dave’s leadership (and the organization’s response to Covid-19), and there is a long runway for the stock ahead.

If you’re interested in learning more about Dave, you can read a blog we penned last year about his book, “Winning Now, Winning Later.” We look forward to updating investors on Vertiv in the future with more research.

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