Inside The Edge
About
The Executive Chair
The one question you always want to ask a successful person in a senior leadership role is “How did you get there?” In developing your own career, you learn more from hearing what worked – and didn’t work – from senior leaders and hearing their wisdom than from any other source.
We are embarking on a series of interviews with leaders who exemplify success for us. In their words are insights that can give you direction for moving your own career forward.
To read a summary, written by Michael DeVenney, of the past 12 interviews this year - click here.
| Jim Bracken - Challenge Yourself to Break Barriers |
Bluteau DeVenney and Company (BDCO): What did you do to move to a leadership role?Jim Bracken (JB) I worked really hard. I have gained experience in different roles. Over the years I have broadened into areas well beyond my original trade. I am actually a Chartered Accountant, but it has been a very long time since I have had anything like a traditional accounting role. I always made a point to seek roles that allowed me to take on something different and unique. Before coming to Nova Scotia I oversaw the development and construction of a wind farm in British Columbia, which is not something that would typically be expected from a Chartered Accountant. (BDCO): What is one thing that developing professionals need to do more of?(JB): I think developing professionals need to think of themselves as owners and shareholders of the business in which they work. They need to think about promoting the value of the organization, and think how what they're doing contributes to the organization’s success. They need to go beyond the tasks and think how they can really advance their organization's objectives.
(BDCO): What experience helped you the most in your career and why?(JB): I think any experience that takes you beyond what you normally do is a significant experience. For me that experience was when I moved from a traditional accounting manager role to one where I was overseeing the regulatory management of a company. That role gave me a very broad perspective and exposure to of all of the difficult issues the company was dealing with, all of its long term plan and strategies. It was a great experience and prepared me for leadership roles in other areas. (BDCO): What was the greatest challenge moving your career forward?(JB): Initially it was overcoming being stereotyped. I purposely graduated from an undergraduate program and became a Chartered Accountant as a way of getting a post graduate degree. It was a means to an end. It wasn't ever something I thought I would want to do for the rest of my life. I got the designation as a way to broaden my business education. Becoming a Chartered Accountant was a very strong educational experience, and I still rely on the training and experienced I received in what I do today, but it does lead people to pigeon hole you at times. My first job after leaving the auditing firm was in the food and beverage industry, and in the company I worked for even people within finance were pigeon holed. In that company there was a very clear distinction as to who could do what. Chartered Accountants did accounting, and in order to do forecasting and planning you had to have a MBA. As a result, one of the first challenges I had in my career was break that barrier in the organization in order to move out of that accounting role and getting more involved in finance. I think I was the first Chartered Accountant there to take on forecasting. I have continued to break barriers since, which is how I was able to have the opportunity to lead the construction of a wind farm. (BDCO): What is the greatest strength of your approach to leadership?(JB): I listen extremely well and I am constantly learning from others. I try to listen to all perspectives before I come to conclusions and make decisions. I think I also have a fairly high degree of self awareness, and I think that's very important in a leader. We have to realize that we're not all perfect. We all have strengths and weaknesses and even our strengths can be weaknesses in certain situations, so it's good to be self aware. It's important to understand how people perceive you, how your communication is being received, and how you naturally deal with certain situations so you can adapt accordingly to be most effective. (BDCO): What has been the biggest surprise you have had since attaining a senior leadership role?(JB): I don't think there was any big surprise, but I do find it interesting that even in a senior leadership role you are still constantly learning. You're never all the way there. You're still always learning about yourself, your business, and your industry. It's a continuous process. It's not as though all of a sudden you get to this position and everything is easy. Leadership is hard. One thing I may have been a bit surprised about in getting to know other leaders and colleagues is that we're all fallible. We all have imperfections. I think as a junior person in an organization you sometimes feel that your leaders are god-like, but they all struggle with different things. (BDCO)What is the greatest benefit to you in attaining a senior leadership role?(JB): Being able to have an influence on an organization. The more senior you are obviously the more ability you have to add some value and make a real difference in the organization, as well as peoples' lives. That's extremely rewarding. That's what makes the stress of leadership worthwhile. (BDCO): What is the next achievement you want in your leadership career?(JB): Leadership is a role in which I am constantly learning. My next level of achievement is to further broaden my leadership skills particularly in the areas of having impact beyond my own organization; to be able to more significantly and directly impact the industry and stakeholders. (BDCO): What is the biggest challenge you face in achieving results in your work?(JB): I think the biggest challenge is the same for anyone in a leadership role, and that is recruiting and developing senior people. People that you can count on. People that are going to help you lead the business. No leader, no matter how great they are, can do it alone. The key to success is selecting and developing strong people. It's not as though that is an impossible task, but it is always a challenge. (BDCO): What is your greatest opportunity/goal for providing value for your organization?(JB): I think selecting and developing the right people. My job is to make sure the right people are in the right places and that they are all working together as a high performance team. One other thing that is specific to our business presently is working well with our regulator. We are regulated by the Nova Scotia Utility and Review Board. I think one of the unique values that I can add to our organization is helping to understand that relationship really well. They are a very important stakeholder in this business and it is therefore very important that our relationship with them is well managed and productive. (BDCO): What added support or capability would help you most in delivering on your goals?(JB): I can't think of anything off hand. It's all on us. I don't think that there is anything that is entirely out of our control. We control what we can control, and what we can't control we manage. Think about where you are now in your career and what you can take from Jim's observations. We would love to hear your comments about what are your key takeaways from our conversation with Jim. Tell us your progress – we want you to succeed. ______________________________________________________________
Heritage Gas Limited is a Nova Scotia-based company formed for the purpose of operating a full regulation class natural gas distribution franchise for Nova Scotia. You can find out more about Heritage Gas www.heritagegas.com. |
I have worked with Jim in Calgary and Halifax and one thing that I can say from my time and experience with him can be summed up in one word: genuine.
Everytime that Jim has to deal with one of his employees, he is genuinely interested, concerned and involved. You can tell when one is faking sincerity, and Jim is definitely NOT one of those people.
I look forward to continue to work with Jim; he is an inspiration and a breath of fresh air for Nova Scotia.