Bowen Engineering held its second 2009 Leadership Challenge Workshop session, Model the Way, in December. Twenty four Bowen proteges and their mentors attended this exciting two-part event. The classroom session was held at the Eagle Creek Golf Club in Indianapolis, followed by dinner and a special keynote address at the Indianapolis Colts Complex.
The session focused on the characteristics of an admired leader, clarifying and defining values, and unifying teams. Bowen’s session leader was Senior Vice-President Todd Lemen. Mike Browning (IT Manager), Dan Bernath (Project Manager), and Bill Fyffe (Operations Manager) spoke on various topics related to Model the Way. The guest keynote speaker was Bill Polian, President of the Indianapolis Colts.
Polian told the group of ways he tries to Model the Way for his team. He stated that Colts leadership looks for players with three main attributes: desire, values, and work ethic. He discussed the importance of giving everyone a simple target goal to achieve, and he emphasized the value of showing pride in our company’s accomplishments by displaying pictures and banners announcing our achievements.
Todd Lemen says that everyone attending was very excited about having Polian as a keynote speaker. “It was exciting to visit the Colts Complex, and Bill Polian was very accommodating. Everyone really got a lot out of his speech. He has very high values and really ‘walks the walk’. He was a perfect fit for the Model the Way session.”
The Leadership Challenge Workshop is a year-long program divided into seven sessions. The program is designed for the “rising stars” of Bowen Engineering. 15-20 proteges per year are chosen to participate in the program by senior members of management. Each protege chooses a mentor, who provides the protege with practical advice and experience in leadership. The capstone project of the program requires each protege to lead a community service project and report back to the group on the success of the project.
