Here we go again, unfortunately — a tribute to another distinguished Directors & Boards author who has passed on. Robert Lear, a former chairman and CEO of the F&M Schaefer Co., died on July 9.
When I first published Bob in 1984 he had retired from the big beer brewer and was an active director at such companies as Church & Dwight Co., Clevepak Corp., St. Regis Corp., and Turner Construction Co., among others. He was an early thinker on how boards should be "value added."
We reconnected in 1996 on another article, this one on how to be a successful leader of a highly leveraged company. Almost 80 years old then, he was still keeping his hand in as executive-in-residence at Columbia Business School and a board member of Welsh Carson Anderson & Stowe, a private equity firm.
Perhaps even more pertinent now as when he made them in our pages 13 years ago, here are three of Bob's pointers on necessary elements for succeeding at a turnaround:
• On who to hire to lead the turnaround: "You want somebody who has had experience with trouble. Some companies really haven't had a lot of trouble. Someone who might have gone through life working for IBM in the old days didn't have any trouble. They had access to a lot of money, research departments, marketing departments. What you need in the [leveraged] environment is somebody who's had a record of making his own way, overcoming problems, and meeting formidable challenges."
• On what to look for in a turnaround leader: "On measure that is hard to anticipate in hiring someone is the amount of courage that person has. You can look back at his track record and that is helpful. But you can't really know whether someone is going to have the courage and the conviction to make the hard decisions, to make the big cuts, to seal the deals that have to be sealed, to take the chances that have to be taken to avoid catastrophe. You just don't know until he's done it."
• On the role of the board: "In your darkest hours running a turnaround situation, you need the support of the board. You need someone to talk to, someone to back you up and give you support when you need it. When I was recruited to run F.M. Schaefer in a turnaround, the board was a weak board. They were friends of the Schaefer family and were all beholden to the company. I had no one to talk to. I had to change the board to get the support that I needed. I've never forgotten that."
We won't forget Bob Lear here at Directors & Boards, and I know that over his long career he touched so many lives and passed on so much wisdom in his corporate and academic commitments. His name will endure at Columbia, where he has a classroom named in his honor along with an endowed professorship. His wisdom will endure here in the Directors & Boards archives.
1 comments:
I apologize for the late post on Bob Lear's passing.
I knew Bob Lear in a number of ways. First, as a caddy at the New Canaan Country Club in Connecticut (i.e., as Mr. Lear) and then as a student at Columbia Business School (as Bob Lear) and then as a friend/Columbia alum (as Bob). He would always call me, like many others, by my last name.
I too spent time in the beer business and as a director of public and private companies. While we talked a lot about consumer marketing and running companies, Bob was very helpful in teaching me about being a corporate director, given his 'good-governance' affiliations (e.g., NACD) and his passion for corporate governance in general. He felt very strongly about the role and importance of boards as key stewards of a company's performance.
In reflection, Mr. Lear/Bob Lear/Bob was the epitome of a great mentor and Executive-In-Residence as well as a fundamentally good person. Ever enthusiastic, he listened, counseled, asked good questions and was a motivator. He helped you think for yourself. Bob also had a great sense of humor.
He wasn't a bad golfer either! I know he loved to play his mid- morning Saturday "men's game" with his friends (other major captains of industry) and then on Sunday afternoons play his "family game" with his wife and other couples. He was always a pleasure to caddy for, if not for his game then for his kindness, respect and business or life tips.
Whether golfer, professor or mentor, Bob was a good guy. He left his mark on me, the Columbia business school and on the world of corporate governance. I suspect most people he knew would have similar sentiments. You can't say that about many folks, but you can definitely say it about Bob Lear.
He is and will be missed...
Scott Barnum
CBS MBA '82
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