Pursue a Purpose-Driven Life: Interview with Daimler Executive Joanna Cooper
I recently went one on one with Joanna Cooper. Joanna is Daimler Truck North America's General Manager, Mount Holly and a member of the Women in Manufacturing board.
Adam: Thanks again for taking the time to share your advice. First things first, though, I am sure readers would love to learn more about you. How did you get here? What experiences, failures, setbacks, or challenges have been most instrumental to your growth?
Joanna: I hail from Detroit, Michigan. My parents relocated from Louisiana to create a better life and worked to make that life possible for my sisters and me. Through hard work, they layered our childhood with principles and activities, exposing us to many new experiences. These experiences cultivated me, unbeknownst to them, with how to say 'yes.' Through a series of 'yeses' I've been fortunate to find "what" I love to do, and I also know that I am living out my purpose. That makes all the difference.
In the throes of the economic downturn - coupled with making some risky young decisions - I searched for a career after my brief life as a real estate investor crashed and burned. I had my resume on all the job search boards, and one day a recruiter called me and said he had this perfect job at Detroit Diesel Corporation. Little did I know about this subsidiary of Daimler AG that was five minutes from the home I grew up in. So in January 2008, I had three interviews in one week, and in pure corporate fashion, I waited to hear something for months. Finally, after a final interview, I started working for Daimler - now Daimler Truck on May 28, 2008. I always tell people that Daimler found me, I didn't find it. So I began my journey as an associate buyer in the purchasing department.
An early mentor turned dear friend Ted Dreisinger told me that when I got my chance to hide and hone - to learn all I can about the business; he also reiterated the willingness to 'say yes' - remaining open to new possibilities. So I did and continued to take on new opportunities whenever I could, whether assisting with a project, taking on a hobby, or learning an unknown commodity. I invested in learning and growing and worked my way into more complex roles.
In 2012, I said yes to doing a 3-year assignment in Esslingen, Germany. Not only did I get to continue learning, but I also grew up and grew more into "who" I am. After three years, it was time to make the next decision. I knew I wanted to do something different, and I evaluated positions with the elements I enjoyed while meeting that desire. I accepted a position back at Detroit Diesels as a program manager for the DT12 transmission. During that time, I liked being in the plant with the people much more than I enjoyed sitting at my desk doing PowerPoint presentations. An old boss, who was just an onlooker then, asked me one day to "let him know when I wanted to come over to the dark side." He saw something I had seen in myself but couldn't articulate/position it then.
In January 2016, I sat down with my first real mentor, Jeff Allen - the plant manager at the time. I had been meeting with him quarterly since I returned to Detroit. He has his own stories and impressions of our first meetings, but at the end of 2015, I asked him if he would be a mentor. He said yes! We went from quarterly meetings to monthly. In that first meeting, he asked me a question that changed my life: "where did I want to be in 20 years?" My answer: "Your job." And we put together my first career timeline. That timeline has been in a frame in my office ever since. In June of that year, I said yes to the dark side, and a promotional opportunity to become the Business Unit Manager for Axle Assembly production and found my what and my why.
After several years of rotating to different responsibilities, I got an opportunity to become the Director of Production at Mt. Holly - another "yes." As changes within our organization occurred, the job I said I wanted during that mentoring session six years before opened up, albeit in a different location. I went for it- once again saying ‘yes’! I was selected as the Plant Manager of Mt. Holly! Keeping that timeline visible both directly and indirectly influenced my growth. I never tried to be fulfilled where I was, and I wanted more. Since that first mentorship session, I have worked on getting to where I wanted to be. We don't control the timing of our opportunities, but we do control our preparedness. That journey makes all the difference.
Adam: What is your best advice for those working at big organizations on how to best climb the corporate ladder?
Joanna: Networking and building cross-organizational relationships and equity is essential when working in large organizations if you want to advance. Another reason saying 'yes' is so important is that it equips you with building the acumen to understand the business holistically and where it is trying to go and enables the opportunity to build valuable strategic and personal relationships that develop organizational agility and political savvy to navigate professional spaces. Most of the relationships you build early on are with many of the same people you will have to work effectively with as you grow in your career.
Adam: What is your best advice for entrepreneurs and those working at small businesses on how to cultivate relationships with and sell to large companies?
Joanna: Relationships are fundamental, and relationships take time. People want to do business with those they know and like. In the words of Minda Harts, 'stuff happens after 6 pm'. If you're scheduling intentional time to network and invest in new connections, it'll be easier to cultivate the relationships/partnerships for optimal success.
The most valuable and hardest thing to build is curiosity. As you develop skills and experience in your role, it will become easier to fall into the trap of "how things always have been done." The more success you gain, the more you become an example of the accomplishment others are trying to build. Curiosity allows you to build your competitive edge and performance capability.
Focus on building rapport through a collection of meaningful moments. It can start at a conference or trade show or through an introduction through a mutual connection who can vouch for you. Plant the seeds and invest in building the relationship.
Provide cost-free value before putting your interests and goals ahead of the game. It'll go a long way to developing those partnerships that will give the gift of prosperity for years to come.
No meaningful relationship is forged overnight. Take. Your. Time.
Adam: What do you believe are the defining qualities of an effective leader?
Joanna: Authenticity. Courageousness. Trust. Integrity. Visioning. Empathy. Being ACTIVE, getting things done. Self-leadership precedes the quality of your team leadership.
Adam: How can leaders and aspiring leaders take their leadership skills to the next level?
Joanna: Any effective leader should relentlessly pursue self-development, cultivating curiosity to mine the unique perspectives that lead to the edge in executing performance.
Adam: What are your three best tips applicable to entrepreneurs, executives, and civic leaders?
Joanna: Whether you're an entrepreneur, executive, or civic leader, here is my recommendation:
Understand the Vision: Know your business and where it is going. Understand the purpose - the why. This knowledge will enable you to anticipate necessary maneuvers on the road ahead.
Translate Vision into Strategy: Understand where to make decisions, how to manage progress, and award small wins. But also arm yourselves with the endurance, energy, and patience to stay the course.
Execute Today: Pay attention to the needs of the day. Pay attention to what is happening all around you and inside of you. Maintain the mindfulness to perform today while holding space for what will come.
Bonus, I have to add the fourth - Be courageous! Leadership in any form takes the courage to be yourself and travel the paths least charted.
Adam: What is your best advice on building, leading, and managing teams?
Joanna: Building effective teams is a combination of effectively assessing your team's current landscape - strengths and competencies - and identifying the profile/gaps needed to achieve your future perspective. When it comes to leading and managing teams, first, people want to know who they are working for, so you have to let people see "you." This is hard because it means we must have the courage to be vulnerable. We also have to be the Chief Marketing/Communications Officer of the Vision and path of where the team is going.
Next, you have to be the true north - defining the future, enabling the path, and setting the expectations, so the team understands what success looks like. Finally, you must have the patience and resilience to see results unfold and maintain mindfulness while paying close attention to the landscape ahead to make the necessary adjustments to remain on a clear course to the future.
Adam: What is the single best piece of advice you have ever received?
Joanna: "The company will do all it can to change "who" you are; it's your job not to let it." Andreas Gorbach, currently the Head of Truck Technology and a Member of the Board of Management for Daimler Truck, said this to me. I asked him for his best leadership advice as I started my journey. He drew an image on a note sheet I carried, and it was part of the summary I took with me. I even redrew it and framed it as well. It takes courage to show up as you identify every single day. Still, that courage translates into actually finding and walking in your purpose, fueling the energy needed to take the journey ahead - especially through the volatile, uncertain, complex, and ambiguous times we find ourselves in today.
Adam: Is there anything else you would like to share?
Joanna: This will sound cliche, but pursue a purpose-driven life. Saying 'yes' has unlocked the pivotal moments that have lit the path to where I am today. The next 'yes' is not necessarily going to mean your end. Let go of the need to figure everything out, but be willing to find comfort in the discomfort of holding space for what's to come. I promise the sweetness of the journey will be far more rewarding than the destination.
Adam Mendler is an entrepreneur, writer, speaker, educator, and nationally-recognized authority on leadership. Adam is the creator and host of the business and leadership podcast Thirty Minute Mentors, where he goes one on one with America's most successful people - Fortune 500 CEOs, founders of household name companies, Hall of Fame and Olympic gold medal-winning athletes, political and military leaders - for intimate half-hour conversations each week. A top leadership speaker, Adam draws upon his insights building and leading businesses and interviewing hundreds of America's top leaders as a top keynote speaker to businesses, universities, and non-profit organizations. Adam has written extensively on leadership and related topics, having authored over 70 articles published in major media outlets including Forbes, Inc. and HuffPost, and has conducted more than 500 one on one interviews with America’s top leaders through his collective media projects. Adam teaches graduate-level courses on leadership at UCLA and is an advisor to numerous companies and leaders. A Los Angeles native, Adam is a lifelong Angels fan and an avid backgammon player.
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