In June 1972 I started working for a leader by the name of Max Coppom. Max was the founding CEO of what was then known as West Nebraska General Hospital, and he’d hired me to be the vice president, administration.
I had a very positive first impression of Max during the interview with him, and that impression quickly grew into a deep respect and appreciation for him as a great, inspirational leader.
Since those long-ago years working under Max’s leadership, I myself have served in senior leadership positions for more than 45 years. But again and again my mind has returned to that period early in my career and the many lessons I learned from the inspirational leadership of Max Coppom.
Last week I shared this Simon Sinek quote on LinkedIn:
“The role of a leader is not to come up with all the great ideas. The role of a leader is to create an environment in which great ideas can happen.”
The quote, which has resonated with my LinkedIn connections, got me to thinking once again about Max’s leadership. Max was definitely an “ideas man.” But he didn’t just come up with all the ideas himself, he created and nurtured an “idea environment” where many voices were welcome and encouraged to join in, get excited, and make things happen!
I wrote about Max in the preface to my book Be An Inspirational Leader: Engage, Inspire, Empower. Here is an excerpt from that preface:
My office was little more than a converted storage closet, with just enough room for my small desk and a couple of chairs, but I didn’t mind. My tiny office was positioned just outside of what you could call the “executive suite,” where just inside the door sat the secretary’s desk in a small alcove to the right, facing Max’s office on the left. Between the secretary’s desk and Max’s office door was a small open area just big enough for a couple people to stand. It was in that nondescript space between desk and door that some of my fondest memories of Max were formed.
As it happened, on a number of occasions I stepped into that space in front of the secretary’s desk for one reason or another, either looking for Max or intending to speak to the secretary, and Max would come out of his office and we’d stand there outside his office door and start talking. These impromptu conversations almost always turned to Max’s incredible vision for the hospital and the community we served. Whether it was something he was working on right then or something he was dreaming of for the future, Max’s passion poured out as we talked, and I just soaked it up. By the time we concluded whatever discussion we were having and I returned to my office, I would be so excited and inspired I could hardly contain myself! It was truly exhilarating. After those conversations it would take me a full hour or two to come back down from the clouds! I was completely engaged and inspired, ready and eager to help make Max’s vision a reality.
To this day I can remember exactly how I felt and how I and my colleagues thrived in the environment that Max created in that hospital. Not only were we engaged and inspired to help bring his ideas to fruition, we were engaged, inspired, and empowered to put forth our own ideas and see them to fruition as well. Max Coppom created an idea environment, and that has deeply impacted my leadership throughout my entire life and career since!
