Leadership Curveballs, Blind Spots and Black Holes, Episode 7
Because of the pandemic, and the unique challenges it is presenting for business leaders, we’re continuing our special series of extended In the Fire segments featuring executives who are managing through the biggest curveball many have seen in their lifetimes, COVID 19.
In this episode, we’re featuring Nancy Michaels, Director of Business Development, Silicon Valley at GCI, a commercial general contracting firm, who shares with us how the pandemic has affected her role as a leader, her biggest challenges, and her thoughts on “what’s next.”
Podcast Transcript
Hi everyone, this is Bobbie LaPorte, your host of Executive Aid Stations, Leadership, Curveballs, Blind Spots, and Black Holes. Each week we help busy leaders navigate through a complex and versatile time with practical solutions for real-life challenges.
Today’s episode is not an unusual format because of the pandemic and the unique challenges it is presenting for business leaders. We’re conducting a series of extended in the fire segments, featuring executives who are managing through the biggest curveball many have seen in their lifetime. COVID-19 and today we have a very special guest joining us, my friend, Nancy Michaels. Who’ll share with us how the pandemic has affected her role as a leader, her biggest challenges, and her thoughts on what’s next.
So let me first tell you a little bit about Nancy. Nancy Michaels is currently the director of business development for GCI Contractors in Silicon valley. And previously, she held the same title at Skyline Construction Nancy’s professional success has largely come from her focus on building strategic relationships that support meaningful work across the growing organizations in her community.
She is definitely a relationship person and a connector. She approaches everyone. She works with clients, partners, peers, team leaders, team members with empathy and consideration. Nancy has been an executive sponsor and leader for a number of women’s professional groups in the real estate and construction industry, which is how I first met her.
She has shared with me her many challenges and approaches to the COVID pandemic. So I was really pleased when she agreed to join us for this special edition of our podcast. So Nancy, welcome to our Leadership, Curveballs Blind Spots and Black Holes podcast.
Really happy to have you here.
Thank you, Bobbie, it’s a privilege.
Well, it is for me because I really admire that the work you do and the leadership you provided, and I know that we’ve sort of emailed about some of the challenges you’ve had during the pandemic, which has been different, as we said before, we started for everyone.
So, absolutely.
So let’s start with my first question, which during this time, what has been your biggest challenge during the COVID-19 pandemic?
I think for me, the biggest challenge is, I joined GCI in January of 2020. I took the last ten weeks of 2019 off when I accepted this new position. I had ten weeks from January 6th until we sheltered in place on March 17th to get to know my new team, reconnect with clients and relationships that I have cultivated over my ten years in the construction industry.
And then, in a very short amount of time, everything changed. And I really found myself having to think out of the box and how am I going to continue to get to know my new team. How am I going to continue to build relationships and introduce my existing relationships and expand those relationships and now bring in opportunities for GCI?
And I actually started reading a book about two weeks ago called Together. It’s written by the 19th surgeon general of the US, a doctor. I can’t remember his last name. I’ve seen him recently on TV. Yes. So, and I just started reading the book, and it’s really illustrated to me that neurologically, we all need that human connection.
I think the biggest challenge is that it is now lacking, and I’ve done virtual coffees, I’m doing virtual get-togethers. And what I’m really trying to do is get-togethers where I am adding value for the various people that are on these zoom happy hours.
And, you know, trying to really also add value and provide information to people in my circle, whether it be a commercial real estate broker, an architect and interior designer, a construction manager, I have had to pivot and be nimble, which is one of GCI’s values and to stay relevant, and try to provide valuable information to the people in my circle. It has, by far, been my biggest challenge.
Exactly. And I think it has, for many of us, I’m curious. I want to talk a little bit more about that because your role is business development. Correct. So for current clients or, you know, contexts you have, who, maybe it’s a little. Easier in some ways, right?
To keep that connection, even though you don’t have the physical connection with them, but it is in terms of brand new clients, bringing your brand to clients, and GCI, how have you changed your approach there? Because obviously, they don’t already have a connection and relationship with you. Right? So now you’re trying to build it from scratch
in a virtual.
Correct. And that’s really where the strong relationships I have had over the last, almost ten years, and the referral business of having an architect who has worked with me previously and who knows me as an individual contributor per se. It has really benefited, has benefited me and GCI. We have had some new opportunities with new clients because of those relationships.
And it’s in, in my business. It’s not only establishing the relationship that matters. It’s nurturing it and cultivating, you know? And never taking it for granted. And I think that is something that I really enjoy. The people that are in my circle, whether it’s an architect and interior designer or a construction manager, there’s trust, there’s credibility, there’s they know that I am going to be responsive, that I am going to be.
That I am going to listen that I am going to understand the opportunity, and I am going to do my absolute best to find the right team for that opportunity. And GCI. That is what GCI has predicated its success upon is a long-term relationship. And they have also, in the last six or seven years, expanded the markets that they are in to some markets that are considered essential.
Those have benefited us as well as a long history of serving the life science community. We have several very large clients in the life science arena that even when the pandemic hit, I was so impressed with the leadership and the swift response to developing a whole new set of health and safety guidelines to respond to this pandemic, to be able to remobilize right on certain campuses.
We remobilize in April on some really critical projects for companies that are responding to COVID-19 trying to find a vaccine.
So I have in a very short amount of time. GCI has demonstrated one of its core values, which is to be nimble, responded just magnificently. In my opinion, they also provided some very valuable information for people like commercial real estate brokers and architects and interior designers on what they thought the cost impacts may be; guidelines on cost impacts just from a pure construction site standpoint.
And then we came out with another document on all the touchless appliances that now are going to be required in many buildings. So to help, the strategic relationships they have with big developers in the area.
So it’s given me great confidence in my new team.
Extraordinary circumstances.
Yes.
It’s exciting to be, supporting biotech. It’s very exciting.
And it’s definitely your reputation in the market. You know, the fact that you’re able to get referrals and you build trust with people definitely goes a long way towards building those new relationships.
During this time, we talked a little bit, at the beginning, about your team, and you’ve referenced them during the first part of our discussion. I know you had time with them before the pandemic hit. So you did have an opportunity to get to know them face to face a little bit. So how has that changed now that you are now in, operating with a team?
A very diverse team in a virtual way.
One of the things that really attracted me to GCI back in 2019, my first interview was with the president of the company, John Hellman, and he talked about how the leadership team leads and how they use a methodology called traction by Gino Wickum, I believe is his name, but John also talked about the company’s core values in that first meeting, which are to be grateful, to be fair, to be nimble and have a passion to deliver.
And those values truly resonated with me as a human being, particularly in the general construction business that the passion to deliver and to be fair. And I have seen time and time again with the repeat business that GCI has an unwavering commitment to execution. And I sit on calls every week with two of the vice presidents, the vice president I report to and another vice president.
We have two vice presidents in the organization, and I meet weekly with both of them. And it is so evident in our discussions at our sales meetings on how much value they put on execution, on it being all about the team. There’s an acronym I love, and it’s together each achieves more. And I feel as though this organization fully embraces that and I.
You know, during this time, my approach to my relationships really is about, how can I help you? How can I serve you? And is there anything we have been offering to help commercial real estate brokers with, like estimates, should they have an existing client that has a requirement? We are more than happy to be of service to you. So that’s really, I think, the leadership that I witnessed every day at GCI motivates me. It inspires me, and they really not only talk the talk, but they walk the talk.
It’s really nice to be part of an organization that’s values-driven. Isn’t it?
Yes.
It is a difference. Makes a huge, huge difference.
So before we wrap up, tell us, how are you thinking about what’s next now that we’ve been, I don’t know, like three months into this now, and businesses are reopening. People are going back to the office, kind of moving into a different phase here based on your experience in this, you know, shut down this virtual mode, how are you thinking about your work and your team in terms of what the next phase will look like?
Well, at the last town hall that we had, John Hellman, our president, talked about the absolute number one thing that GCI is driven by are the health and safety of its employees. And with respect to our offices, we are being more cautious, and all the offices, our office in the city, our office in South San Francisco, and in Mountain View, have all gone through a decontamination process, and the return to the office is going to look different for our organization because we do not have the luxury of redesigning all of our offices.
So it’s going to be a matter of staggering. If there’s a critical project face-to-face meeting that needs to happen, those will obviously be prioritized. But we also, I think collectively, everyone has embraced still being able to be productive with the use of technology.
And many of our clients are also taking a cautious approach. It’s going to be rolled out over time. And I, in my role, as much as I yearn to get back into the office and be side by side with my colleagues. It’s going to be done; I’m not sure what the date is.
Our office in Mountain View actually has grown significantly, and we were in the midst of a tenant improvement of our own when COVID hit. So we are wrapping up expanding our office in Mountain View. So, I would love nothing more than to be side-by-side with my colleagues, but right now, we’re doing every Thursday at 4:30, we have a happy hour where we are able to connect.
And in the meantime, there is so much when I think of what’s next, I think, all the people that have been laid off during this horrible pandemic and economic event. I am doing my best. There are some really talented people in my circle that have unfortunately been a casualty of COVID-19.
I am doing everything I can to try and help them with introducing them to other people that may have job openings. And just again, it’s really trying to figure out how we can be of service to others and help and be positive. I will say for myself, I have definitely tried to keep my routine as normal as possible.
And I started meditating when I had my ten weeks off in 2019, that has been essential for me. And it’s fully helped me exercise you, and I are both big on. I’m not a triathlete, but exercise has been a huge benefit to me; I’ve continued to work out very fortunate that I have a trainer that stands on my driveway, and I’m swinging a 35-pound kettlebell now. So that keeps my mind in a good place.
Right, we know the body-mind connection.
Absolutely.
Nancy, thank you so much for taking time today, sharing your experience and how you’ve been managing during the shutdown and particularly in a new job. We really appreciate you being a guest on our podcast and sharing your insights and advice.
And I’d love to thank our listeners. We hope this week’s episode of Leadership, Curveballs, Blind Spots and Black Holes has given you some practical solutions and insights to the challenges that you face as you navigate your own leadership journey through the new normal. Be sure to join us next week for another episode. And in the meantime, stay well.