Geoff Brenner on Leadership Values

Geoff Brenner, president and CEO of TPC, has held leadership roles throughout his career. Looking back on his life and career thus far, he can easily identify key role models who have significantly impacted his life and leadership.

“I’ve been incredibly blessed. Throughout my entire career, I’ve had really great leaders make really big investments in me. I think about it often and feel compelled to honor them by continuing to develop into a better leader every day. I feel I owe them an ongoing ‘return on their investment.’”

Brenner recalls the impact of his grandfather, a first-generation German American, product of the depression, veteran of three wars, and a hardworking entrepreneur from whom he learned the importance of execution.

“I learned so much from him, just watching him work. He wasn’t flowery with words, but his follow-through was world class. In hindsight, I can see that’s where I picked up a focus on execution. It’s good to dream and plan, but in the end, it’s not about your dreams or words; it’s about your ability to deliver. You have a responsibility—to yourself and those that count on you—to execute well.”

Another key role model in his life was his mother, a young, single parent who worked incredibly hard to provide for her two sons. Brenner credits her with instilling in him a strong work ethic, the absence of complaining, and a willingness to question things and reach his own conclusions.

“I honestly don’t know how she balanced it all; she was so young, she worked at nights, managed every aspect of the household, and made it to every sporting event, recital, and concert. She was always in the audience, cheering for me. She absolutely set the standard in terms of working hard and doing what has to be done, all with a quiet smile and without a single complaint.”   

Lastly, Brenner points to former supervisors and board chairmen. He explained,

“I was thirty-seven-years-old when I became CEO, which is relatively young. I was prepared because my predecessor was intentional about making investments in me and giving me latitude to make mistakes. Once in the CEO position, I have had some of the best board chairmen imaginable. All of these leaders modeled outstanding leadership and were selfless in their willingness to mentor me. They were intentional about helping a young leader navigate a very complex set of issues and significant change. I owe them an enormous debt of gratitude because that kind of intentionality is very rare.”

When asked what values have most positively impacted him, Brenner responded, “Continuous learning, servant leadership, and teamwork are three values that have most profoundly shaped my career and my life.” He explained that the pursuit of continuous learning is a value instilled in him by his family.  Recalling a conversation from when he was a young boy, Brenner said he learned from his grandfather that the most important investment you’ll ever make is your education.

“My grandfather pulled me aside and said, ‘Always invest in learning, because the stock markets are going to rise and fall. Businesses are going to succeed and fail, but what you learn can never be taken from you, and you can always rebuild. Remember that the most important investment you can make is educating yourself.’ I was seven years old when he told me that and his words resonate in my ears to this day.”

Brenner went on to say, “The people that I find most interesting and to be most successful are those that never feel like they know enough… they have an insatiable desire to learn more. Good can always be better. Quick can always be faster. Excellent can always be improved upon. They never become stagnant.”

As for the value of servant leadership, Brenner explained, “I can find no better teaching than that of Jesus Christ. If you want to be the greatest, you must become the least and become a servant. This is a difficult teaching and in some business cultures it can seem counterintuitive. But I believe it to be true. ”

When turning to the topic of teamwork, Brenner described his unique experience in the U.S. Navy SEALs Leadership Under Fire Executive Leadership Program in Coronado, California:

“I had absolutely no idea what I was getting myself into and I had no idea how unbelievably significant the experience would be. I went to Coronado thinking, ‘This will be nice; the SEALs will present a few power point presentations about leadership and teamwork and maybe they’ll make us run down the beach.’ I could not have been more naive. The program, from start to finish, was a thousand times more meaningful than I anticipated. The SEALs’ culture of teamwork and sacrifice is utterly amazing and burned into my mind and heart forever the clearest picture I’ve ever seen of selflessness, teamwork, and how a true leader functions under pressure. It was life changing.” 

When asked to describe the leadership characteristics he looks for in his team, Brenner responded,

“This organization has always had an amazing group of high integrity, engaged, committed leaders sitting on our board. That has created for us a real culture of innovation and service. I think that legacy more than anything else dictates what characteristics we look for in leaders within the company. There’s a constant expectation and appetite for new thinking and innovation, which in turn creates the backdrop of what makes leaders successful here. I look for characteristics such as creativity, transparency, high integrity, teamwork, and an innate desire to beat the odds and do the extraordinary.”

While no leadership team is perfect, Geoff Brenner and his team at TPC certainly are on the right track.