CEO Intern Cast Diary

It’s interesting to observe different leadership styles.  Some people lead using a well-defined and straightforward system of stated goals and enforceable expectations. Others lead through negotiation, empowerment, and subtle guidance. Still others lead by deliberately stepping back and letting others take a more vocal role. After all, not everyone can be at the helm for a team to function properly. And of course, there are those who lead through intimidation and threats. Part of the fun (among other things) of teamwork is watching the gradual definition of everyone’s unique working and leading style.

When I lived in Paris, I loved to sit in outdoor cafes and people-watch over coffee. It’s an intriguing exercise because the subjects are so unique. The petite man with the gray cashmere scarf, purple cufflinks, and a trimmed mustache—was he rushing off to close a deal? Meet his wife? Finish his novel? Stock up on fresh figs? Accept a top-secret assignment? And the graceful girl with the Pierre Hermé box of macarons in one hand and a baguette in the other—was she meeting friends for a picnic? Using macarons as a bribe? What was really in that baguette?

The intrigue comes from the knowledge that you will never actually meet these individuals, thus allowing for imagination, with a dash of whimsical, to run rampant.

On a team, this is not the case. As we learn more about each other, speculation and room for the imagination are replaced by confirmation of first impressions, surprise by the realization that half those impressions were completely off, and the gradual solidification of feelings of like or dislike, often followed by unconscious (or conscious) compartmentalization and categorization. Oops, sorry those words are so big!

The challenge of working together is not letting personal preferences hinder group progression. As a team, we can’t leave anyone behind nor can we instantaneously change anyone’s working style and personality. We can only try to embrace differences and highlight commonalities, leveraging each other’s strengths to move forward.

What is damaging to a team is when personal bias clouds professional judgment or when a heavy hand usurps reason and rationale. It’s easy to have the loudest voice in the room, but how that factors into the greater picture is a different story. Considering the fact that we’re all here to work towards a common goal without outside incentives, it’s easy to overstep the fragile boundaries of cooperation and democracy and deteriorate into tyranny. Melodramatic, huh? Just making sure you get your daily dose =)

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One of the most challenging things about this summer is working together as group CEO. I’ve worked in teams all of my life, and I love teamwork for the diversity in perspective and talent that it enables. However, there’s a big difference between vertical and horizontal structure when it comes to group dynamics.  For example, when I was head of the Europe division for Harvard’s International Business Club, I had seven managers reporting to me, and I in turn reported to the club president. We worked together as a group to generate ideas and to divide up tasks, but I was in charge of keeping the division moving forward, organizing the year-long agenda, and making the final decisions. My responsibility was to make sure the group was moving forward and making significant and positive strides towards realizing the club’s greater mission.  This also meant that I reported to the club’s president and that if our division was not doing well, I bore the blunt of the responsibility for under-performance. This system of point people equally allocated authority, responsibility, and accountability.

In most corporations in America, the structure is similar: CEO, COO, CFO, and CIO. Typically, the CEO is responsible for the entire firm. The other officers report to him or her and are responsible for their respective areas within the firm: operations, finance, and information technology. Each level of power comes with a proportional level of responsibility.

As CeoInterns, we individually and collectively are the CEOs, COOs, CFOs, and CIOs of 300 Below. We’re not merely responsible for our individual performance but accountable for our group effort and the results they produce. This means that each day, we not only work with how to improve the company, but are also faced with the perpetual challenge of how to best leverage the team’s individual talents without relegating anyone to a specific role. We’re all here to learn about all aspects of running a firm. Yet we come from different backgrounds and have different strengths and weaknesses. The challenge is now to balance learning and growing with effectiveness and performance.

Moreover, as power is evenly distributed so is responsibility diffused. I think there is a subtle level of hesitancy at being overbearing, but this hesitancy cripples our ability to move forward with optimal speed and efficiency. Because no one person is responsible, there is a conflict of interest between appearing tyrannical (both to the team and on camera), fueled by the disincentive of not having individual responsibilities to account for, and the desire to learn as much as possible, to make the most out of this experience, and to bring positive change and impact to 300 Below.

Much of this conflict is a result of our unfamiliarity with each other and with different working styles. While we’re united in our cause and long-term direction, we come from such diverse backgrounds that there’s a natural ramp-up period in which we first and foremost get to know one another. Unfortunately, the short timeframe that we’re working within necessitates a condensation of this process. Already we’ve made significant strides towards group accountability. At our Monday afternoon group session, we agreed to call each other out and to be unafraid of making quick decisions at the expense of appearing autocratic. As Charles put it, “If I walk in without a shirt on looking absolutely stupid, I want you guys to be comfortable enough to call me out immediately and say, ‘Hey man, put on your shirt.’”

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We finished our preliminary valuation of 300 Below around 4 PM yesterday and left work immediately afterwards to head back to the cabin. With the possible exception of Gabe (who doesn’t like to sleep during the day), we all crashed for a solid round of napping. It’s funny how easily sleep is cut out of the equation for a productive day. When the going gets busy, sleep is often the first to go. Throughout high school and college, pulling all-nighters seemed to be a competition of sorts.

“This week has been so brutal. I’ve only gotten 8 hours of sleep in the last three days.”

“Oh yeah? Well I just pulled two all-nighters in a row... I win!”

Granted, that is an exaggerated and extremely pathetic snapshot of college life today, but there was a subtle stigma attached to getting a full eight to nine hours of sleep a day. Because if you’re sleeping that much, you can’t possibly be working hard or making the most of your time.

But with those conversations on how little we sleep also come trading tips on how to fall asleep in class without the professor noticing, swapping tales of waking up from a nice nap to find yourself the center of attention (having snored, drooled, etc), and laughing over illegible notes that taper off to a squiggle.

Ironically, in all our calculations of productivity, the lack of productivity that results from little sleep is rarely factored in. When you’re handed the reins to a firm and made CEO for eight weeks, it’s hard to not want to hit the ground running and use up every second of your day to the fullest extent. But understanding our physical limitations and being able to view productivity from a long-term perspective is an important lesson to learn.

Looking around at the sleepy faces around the conference table yesterday, we consciously made the decision to put sleep back on the agenda.

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I have a HUGE bruise on my arm. We went shooting yesterday at the Decatur Gun Club, and it was my first time shooting trap and skeet. I’ve shot moving animated ducks and bobbing cardboard silhouettes with air rifles and video game play-guns, but never before have I used a real rifle. We tried out two—the over and under and the semi-automatic. While there is less recoil on the semi-automatic, I prefer the over and under because it feels more stable. Armed with 50 12 Ga. shotgun shells each, we took to the field and shot for a good two hours in the morning sun. It was great fun, and I had about a 30% hit rate. Around noon, I tried a double (both a high and a low house). I didn't know it at the time, but the gun shifted position and dropped from my shoulder pocket after the first shot, and the recoil subsequently punched me in the arm on the second one.  Around this time, my arm and I agreed it was time for a break.

I currently have a bruise the size of a small egg on my arm, but the experience was well worth it. What doesn’t kill you only makes you stronger, right?

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There’s been some tension within the group recently. So Monday afternoon, we sat down after lunch for a group therapy session. It was a good time to do it: the tension had been building up steadily in the past week, and we chose a strategic time of day when everyone was feeling relatively at ease and slightly sleepy from a big lunch.

Expecting perhaps a bit of bloodshed and at least a couple of Jerry Springer-worthy moments, I was favorably surprised by how level-headed and professional everyone was. Without compromising honesty, we navigated around blow-ups, aired our feelings, and made Monday afternoons the official group therapy time.

We spent the past three days delving into the financials of 300 Below, identifying our top customers by year since 2001, and conducting industry research. The Chairman (and original CEO) of the firm Peter Paulin came back from his trip to Washington DC yesterday, and we presented to him our recommendations on doubling the firm’s revenue.

Presenting to the CEO and founder of a firm about how his own firm is doing is a pretty interesting experience. The presentation initiated an extremely interesting dialogue on existing customers, compensation structure, and growth initiatives. How much time should we spend on industries that have proved fruitful in yielding good customers, and how much time should we spend researching industries yet untapped by the firm? This is one of the questions we’ll tackle as our next step.

To be continued….

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It’s interesting to find how applicable cryogenic technology is. After pitching to tractor drivers, barbers, golfers, and Nascar drivers (all within three days), I’m beginning to see how diverse and unlimited a market we have. Last week we met with John, 300 Below’s metallurgist, and he walked us through the science of deep cryogenic treatment as well as some of its applications. Because it’s a safe treatment that improves both the functional and operational life of industrial tools, weapons, engines, instruments (basically any ferrous material with at least a 0.4 % carbon level), the applications are virtually endless.

f freezing dead people when we hear the word “cryogenics.” There’s actually another word for that- “cryonics.”  Which means no, we’re not in the Ted Williams and Han Solo business.

We’ll be diving into the financial reports today to gain a better understanding of the company’s past and present revenue streams and fixed and variable costs. With that information, we can identify areas of inefficiency and brainstorm sustainable methods to boost sales. The more I learn about the company, the more excited I am for the opportunity to take 300 Below to greater heights.  

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Nancy Xu, signing in with a great deal more brain cells than I had when I was writing my previous post. The weekend came at a great time: I was able to recharge and catch up on a three-week-long sleep debt, read a little, take care of emails, and foray into the world of culinary arts by making my first pan of roast potatoes on Thursday, followed by scrambled eggs on Saturday and a salad today! Exciting stuff, I know. In fact, it really is, since I have never spent more than ten minutes in front of a stove. Imagine the excitement—and surprise—of making something edible that others can eat without having to pay a visit to the Poison Control Center.

Granted, for full disclosure, edible is probably a loose interpretation of the word. Half the roast potatoes were undercooked (but the other half wasn’t!), I ended up eating all the scrambled eggs (thereby absorbing the risk myself), and the salad was mehh at best. But still.

Cooking aside, the past few days have been filled with firsts. I attended my first women's futures tournament (Decatur is one stop on their tour), watched a tractor pull for the first time (and made some pitches and business contacts at the county fair where it was held), and witnessed the devouring of two horseshoes (open-faced cheeseburgers topped with cheese fries). With the exception of the horseshoes, we’ve been doing a pretty good job of having fun and doing business at the same time.

Full workday tomorrow, so I’m heading to bed. Happy Father’s Day! Over and out.

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Hello! It is Day 4 in Decatur, and I have to say, being CEO is a tough job: going to lunch at the Rotary Club, playing pool at the Paulin's house, grocery shopping for our week's meals, bringing coffee and pastries for the employees, watching Kung Fu Panda, ordering personalized 300 Below polo shirts ... the responsibilities are endless. Hard life, but someone has to do it.

However, it hasn't been all work and no play. In the last two work days, we've met all the employees at 300 Below, both collectively and individually, went on the air with the local radio station to promote the show, completed a follow-up interview for a newspaper, cleaned up and catalogued capital inventory, discussed and voted on a proposed joint business venture, touched base with Mr. Paulin on the firm and its history, set into motion discussion with a potential employee, and set up an operative framework for the rest of the week. The fun apparently is also endless.

We’ve been fortunate enough to see all aspects of the business and get our hands dirty in the day-to-day tasks (both figuratively and literally- ask Nick!). In addition, we’ve been able to meet and immerse ourselves in the local community of Decatur. We heard about 30-year wedding anniversaries, 29-year wedding anniversaries, lay-offs, and the births of new grandchildren at the Rotary Club luncheon. In between meetings, we squeezed in a visit to the barber for a haircut and an impromptu sales pitch, only to find that the razors were already cryo-treated. We rounded off our meeting with the local radio talk show host with a round of vodka, a plate of pickles, pepper, and salt, Russian style a la Benni, and toasts in Spanish, Russian, and English, all with a healthy dose of Midwest.

Whew, and it's only Tuesday! To use a cliché, we’ve definitely hit the ground running, and this is shaping up rapidly to what I’m confident will be an excellent summer.

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