Welcome back to my latest blog series on the people of L-Tron. If you missed my first blog on Julianne from the Marketing Team, you can read it here: Meet Our Peeps, Julianne.
Today we are going to learn a bit more about Gayle DeRose, the Chief Operating Officer (COO).
Gayle is honored to have recently been nominated for the Small Business Council of Rochester, NY’s “Business Person of the Year” award.
Here are some of her thoughts and words of wisdom about leadership and achieving company success.
Q: How do you define leadership, and how do you perceive your role as a leader?
A leader is able to influence the people around them and through this influence create outcomes that deliver positive results. The best leadership is transparent, leads by example and is able to bring out the best in those around them. At L-Tron, every team member is given a voice. This inspires growth in both individuals and the company, brings forth new ideas, and encourages collaboration and “intellectual sparring.”
Every team member has a passion and strengths to uncover – a good leader is able to find each person’s unique fit. In turn, an individual’s job might shift, based off of their passions and successes – which encourages individual leaders within our organization. Strong leadership encourages these shifts and works for the good of the company as well as the development of their staff.
Q: What would you like your legacy to be with your company?
I want to be remembered as always being there for my team. I have found the greatest joy in helping our employees succeed. I have loved helping various interns and employees discover exactly what they wanted to do and uncover their true passions. Encouraging personal growth in our employees is extremely fulfilling to me.
Over the years, the company has shifted from a 2 person company started in my Dad’s basement to a multi-million dollar company. As he faced retirement, he passed decisions over to my partner and I. We were able to grow as leaders ourselves. I never want the company to lose our value statement, “Your success is our passion.” Every decision and every new hire supports our value statement, encouraging our customers’ successes as well as our own. Learn more about L-Tron’s beginning and Gayle’s leadership role in the technology industry.
Q: Describe what values you promote within your organization, and example(s) of how these values were used in decision(s) you have made over the past year.
L-Tron prides itself on putting the customer first – even our tagline “Your success is our passion” speaks to our culture of encouraging client and employee growth.
Our value statement focuses on 3 major points:
- Continuous Improvement
- Empowering our Stakeholders
- 100% Quality Standards
Our customer-focused approach has influenced every business decision made over the past year – every decision is ultimately linked to the customer. We maintain a startup mentality at all times. We are agile, and work with a flat management style that encourages individual leaders. Everyone has a voice at the company and is encouraged to share ideas, collaborate and be involved. All our major decisions over the past year – our shift in company culture, our changes in marketing and sales strategy, and our decision to seek ISO 1900 certification – have been in the best interest of our customers. We seek to continuously improve and to uphold 100% quality at all times.
Be sure to check back soon for my next installment in this series!
