Lebenthal & Associates
Be a hands-on executive.
Alexandra Lebenthal describes herself as a hands-on executive because, “I ultimately believe that a company and its leader have a greater loyalty to its employees than the employees have toward them. Being involved as a result of employee regard means active participation in a number of small issues.
“To some, this may smack of micromanagement. Micromanagers override the ability of their employees and are controlling to a fault. While they may succeed, they do so without regard to the talent that exists in an organization. My style, in contrast, appreciates the talents of the employees and gives active assistance to reaching their goals and therefore the company’s success.
“In the span of a few short weeks in the fall of 2001 our employees saw their world outside their window change by witnessing 9/11 across the street, and saw their world change inside when I announced the sale of our 76-year-old family business. Because of the commitment I have always felt toward our employees, and wanting to be an example for them, I called every employee in the days after 9/11.
“After our sale, I spent time walking around the sales floor and then meeting with every employee who would be let go after the deal closed. For those that remained, I was an active leader in the integration, even if some of the details were not one that a CEO normally focused on. Being aware of how change would affect them was my biggest focus.
“There is always an opportunity to become a better leader by treating-every challenge or crisis as an opportunity to recognize when it’s about to happen again. It not only makes you become stronger but also usually means that there was something good that came out of the first problem.
“I think everyone understood that, as a family business, there were a lot of complex issues that sort of went above them. I was tremendously involved; met with people personally. One woman who had been a clerk for twenty years, along with her sister-in-law, ended up crying in my office telling me how nice I was. I checked in with people on their job search, and still do. I sent the resumes of a few people to people I knew that could help them. Regarding the integration, I advocated for people and issues, probably at my expense.
“Bear in mind also that September 11 had just occurred and everyone-here was feeling the effects of that. I wanted to be as supportive as possible. The night before we were all to return to work, I set up a conference call for the entire firm, and was clear in stating that, while we would be back, if anyone could not attend for emotional reasons, that was okay.
“I also set up counseling in the office and made sure that if there were people I knew who needed it but wouldn’t go on their own, that their colleagues urged them to go. I didn’t want them to feel that they had to because I was the boss.
“Two days after we came back, there was an announcement that they were going to do some dynamiting of the walls that were still standing. I told everyone that if they wanted to go home to miss it they could. As time went, some had a hard time, and I still had one-on-one conversations with them, and at that point gently urged that they needed to think about whether they could work down here at all.
“My advantage has always been that I put more pressure on myself than anyone else would, but I think as a family member I’ve always assumed a caretaker role with all our employees. I think they’ve felt that. I think it’s also been a burden for me to have 100 other ‘children’ to watch over. I did have a hard time with this after the sale because I knew I was ultimately saying there is a limit to this relationship.”