An Interview With Chad Silverstein
Clearly define what success looks like on tasks, project and initiatives. By ensuring team members have clear intent on what’s needed, you provide freedom on the how to get there. That freedom drives innovation, provides meaning and promotes strong performance.
Purpose has become the new currency of success in today’s workplace, and leaders who prioritize mission-driven cultures are standing out in the war for talent. To explore this important topic, we are interviewing Courtney Lynch.
Courtney Lynch is the founding partner of Lead Star, a premier leadership development consulting firm that works globally with leading organizations and the New York Times best-selling author of Spark, Bet on You, and Leading from the Front. Notable achievements include her nine years of service as a Marine Corps officer, earning her law degree at William & Mary, serving as an elected official and the Chief Operating Officer of a rapidly scaling technology company.
Thank you so much for joining us in this interview series. Before we dive into our discussion, our readers would love to “get to know you” a bit better. Can you share with us the backstory about what brought you to your specific career path?
Before I became a leadership advisor, I learned to lead by taking on challenge. I served as a Captain in the United States Marine Corps for nine years, managed a high-performing sales team for Rational Software (now owned by IBM) while earning my law degree at William & Mary and then started Lead Star, a leadership development consulting firm. Through Lead Star I’ve worked with executives, managers, supervisors, and individuals from the world’s top brands.
Nothing about developing as a leader is about perfection. While we can also be a better leader, we’ll never be a perfect leader. I’ve made many mistakes and missteps along the way as I’ve grown both as a person and as a professional. It’s our ability to keep stepping that allow us to build the resiliency and consistency needed for success. So many people supported me along the way. Today, my passion is supporting the success of others. That’s the work I do at Lead Star.
Can you share the most interesting story that happened to you since you began working in leadership, culture building, or purpose-driven organizations?
The most interesting story that I’ve experienced is that if you have the will and commitment to develop as a leader, you can achieve way more than you ever anticipated. Time and time again I’ve seen professionals commit to growing their ability to influence outcomes and inspire others- that’s the essence of leadership. When you are fully open to feedback and committed to the journey of betterment, what you seek is very possible. What’s just as interesting is the number of times I’ve seen people a bit closed off to growth and development. It’s as if they don’t believe better is possible, and that becomes their reality.
You are a successful leader. Which three character traits do you think were most instrumental to your success? Can you please share a story or example for each?
Credibility. As a minority in the Marine Corps (out of 180,000 Marines, only about 1,000 are female offices) I learned that you need to meet and exceed performance standards to demonstrate that you are credible and that you can be trusted. Once folks see you are credible, they will follow your leadership.
Accountability. Effective leaders seek to take responsibility before they begin to place blame. In building my company, there are many times when I want to blame circumstances or other people, yet if I do that, I’ll miss opportunities to adjust what’s needed within to achieve better results.
A sense of service. Ultimately leadership is about understanding and meeting the needs of others. The best leaders can put the needs of the team they lead ahead of their own needs. This character trait is essential for leaders who influence outcomes and inspire others. I was the primary caregiver for my grandmother for eight years. This experience showed me what a privilege it is to be of service to someone and to proactively take action to meet their needs. Service is one of the most rewarding aspects of leadership.
Let’s now jump into the focus of our interview. What does a “purpose-driven culture” mean to you personally, and why do you think it’s critical for attracting top talent?
A purpose-driven culture is one where people can flourish. They are supported, developed, trusted and feel they can show up authentically. The culture is mission oriented, and each person understands their role in delivering results and success for the organization. A purpose-driven culture is critical for drawing top talent because strong performers want to be a part of something bigger than themselves and they want to know that their effort matters and is valued.
How did you identify and define the mission or purpose for your organization? Was it inspired by a particular event, challenge, or insight?
We believe better leaders = a better world. Our purpose is to do work that matters to create practical, engaging leadership development experiences that elevate results and strengthen workplace cultures.
Our mission is to become a trusted partner and provider of leadership development solutions to organizations that have the will and commitment to invest in achieving better results through people. We seek to be an amazing place to work that contributes to our team members living authentic and extraordinary lives.
What are the key steps leaders can take to embed purpose into the day-to-day operations and decision-making of their companies?
Leaders can clearly connect the work their team members are doing to the bigger picture mission and purpose of the company.
They also can invest in leadership development and coaching to help prepare team members for increased responsibilities and instill best practices that support greater success and results.
Leaders can also model behaviors like credibility, accountability and a sense of service to cultivate a strong presence of trust within the culture. We all seek leaders we can trust and leaders that provide us hope and inspiration.
What role does leadership play in championing and modeling a purpose-driven culture? Can you share an example of how you or another leader helped reinforce your organization’s purpose?
Leaders are the people that influence outcomes and inspire others within a purpose-driven culture. You don’t have to be the boss to be a leader. You do have to be the team member who supports the success of others, offers support, provides clarity and champions and models credibility. When you reflect on leadership as actions and behaviors versus titles and power, you realize that solid leadership at all levels or an organization is what makes a purpose-driven culture possible.
How do you handle skepticism or resistance from team members or stakeholders who may not immediately understand the value of focusing on purpose?
It’s common for people to think that focusing on purpose is a luxury. In reality, its essential. People value purposeful work. And for an organization to be successful, you need people to give their discretionary effort to the mission at hand. Discretionary effort is the effort people give when they want to. That’s what makes teams succeed. Purpose inspires discretionary effort. I overcome skepticism by showing the results that can be achieved when purpose is present in a workplace culture. Sometimes you can’t explain purpose, yet you can show someone the difference it makes.
Ok, let’s talk strategy. Based on your experience, can you share “5 Steps to Build a Purpose-Driven Culture That Attracts Top Talent”? If possible, please include examples or stories for each.
1. Define the values of your organization. People need clarity. Lead Star wasn’t ready to scale until we had clarified our values. Once we did, we were much more prepared and able to grow because we were clear about what fit looked like on our team and why we were working hard.
2. Honor the purpose and the why of the people who work in your organization. The first step to doing that is getting to know people beyond the surface level. By taking time to understand the people that work with and around you, you build the bonds that strengthen teams and results.
3. Reward what you want to reinforce. Bonuses for results are common. Bonuses and incentives for living organizational values and being missioned focus are less so. It’s great to reward results yet also make it a point to reward the behaviors that connect to cultivating and nurturing a purpose-driven culture.
4. Be as flexible as possible as broadly as you can without hurting performance. The more people can express their authentic self at work, the more they can choose how and when they work, the more they can clearly see how their work connects to overall organizational success, the more productive and positive your culture will be.
5. Clearly define what success looks like on tasks, project and initiatives. By ensuring team members have clear intent on what’s needed, you provide freedom on the how to get there. That freedom drives innovation, provides meaning and promotes strong performance.
Can you share a specific example of how embracing a purpose-driven culture helped your company attract exceptional talent or achieve a significant business goal?
Because the nature of our work is so positive and, in many ways, so personal to the leaders, teams and companies we support, we attract exceptional talent in people who feel compelled to support others in growing their leadership abilities. During our interview process, the moment we explain our belief that better leaders= better world and that we noticed that leadership is undertaught in our society and are doing something about it by creating learning experiences for people to grow as leaders, we can see a candidate’s sense of purpose activate. They bring a fresh sense of animation to the conversation and typically begin sharing their personal “why” and commitment to developing leaders. By putting our purpose-driven culture at the center of our recruiting process we can attract and screen top talent.
What advice would you give to leaders of smaller companies or startups who want to build a purpose-driven culture but don’t know where to start?
I’d encourage them to begin now so that their impact will scale as their enterprise grows. I’d be quick to tell them that no organization is too small to not have a purpose-driven culture. It’s much easier to grow a culture that is intentionally purposeful than it is to change a culture where a sense of purpose is missing.
What are some common mistakes leaders make when trying to create a purpose-driven culture, and how can they avoid them?
Common mistakes can be working to rush the definition of your values, mission and purpose. You can begin doing meaningful work in valuable ways without every aspect of your culture being indexed. Sometimes it takes time to develop your culture organically. Then, once it’s in a positive, purposeful place you can examine it for what’s allowing that to be the case.
How do you ensure that your organization’s purpose evolves and remains relevant as your company grows and the world changes?
The key is to pay attention to your market. If you sense your customers or stakeholders’ needs are shifting, it’s important to see how you can adjust to best meet those emerging needs without compromising your core values. A strong sense of purpose, like a constitution, can evolve and still retain its value. While your purpose won’t change, how you meet it is always evolving.
What trends or shifts are you seeing in the workplace regarding purpose, and how do you think these will shape the future of business?
Segmented DEI efforts are moving toward a focus on inclusivity and organizational belonging. This means greater efforts and attention to inclusion that touches all team members.
I’m also seeing a greater focus on the leadership imperative. Strengthening your leadership skills as you climb the corporate ladder is no longer viewed as optional, it is a crucial investment that helps managers nurture the skills and sense of purpose of their colleagues.
Following the COVID era, we are still seeing a large focus on work/life integration and flexibility. Being able to complete your work in a variety of ways drives high performance. Freedom and flexibility contribute to strong performance. Rigid workplaces curtail the discretionary effort, the effort people give because they want to and feel connected to their company’s purpose. That discretionary effort is what allows an organization to excel.
In your opinion, how does having a purpose-driven culture impact not just employees, but customers, clients, and the broader community?
The happier and more engaged your team members are, the better they will serve your customers and clients. And the more they will share the responsibilities of being a community member. A purpose-driven culture inspires engagement, joy and fulfillment at work and beyond.
You are a person of great influence. If you could start a movement that would bring the most amount of good to the most amount of people by building purpose-driven workplaces, what would that be? You never know what your idea can trigger. 🙂
I would start a movement of service before self. If each of us could become more aware of the needs of others for just 15 minutes each day, the perspective and value that would add to the workplace would be extensive. We can get very focused on our world, our “to-do” list, our needs. When we hold ourselves accountable to recognizing and meeting the needs of others and take proactive steps to serve and support our team members, great things happen.
How can our readers further follow you online?
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/cdlynch/
This was great. Thank you so much for the time you spent sharing with us.
About the Interviewer: Chad Silverstein is a seasoned entrepreneur with 25+ years of experience as a Founder and CEO. While attending Ohio State University, he launched his first company, Choice Recovery, Inc., a nationally recognized healthcare collection agency — twice ranked the #1 workplace in Ohio. In 2013, he founded [re]start, helping thousands of people find meaningful career opportunities. After selling both companies, Chad shifted his focus to his true passion — leadership. Today, he coaches founders and CEOs at Built to Lead, advises Authority Magazine’s Thought Leader Incubator.
Courtney Lynch of Lead Star On How to Build a Purpose-Driven Culture That Attracts Top Talent was originally published in Authority Magazine on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.