Behind the desk: The Warehouse chief executive officer Nick Grayston.
Have you ever wondered what a day in the life of a high-powered chief executive officer is like, or a chairman of a listed company, or a founder of a successful startup?
Behind the desk is a new series starting on Stuff Business with Henri Eliot, taking you inside the day-to-day of some of New Zealand's most successful people - and you'll get a look at their desks too. No filter.
First up, Nick Grayston, chief executive officer of The Warehouse.
British-born Grayston has spent much of his working life years in the United States where he held leadership roles at Foot Locker and Sears.
What time do you like to be at your desk?
I'm an early bird, typically. These days, I'm at my desk before 6.30am. In the past, when I missed traffic in Chicago, I was often in at 5am, sometimes having meetings with other early birds.
Here, I like the opportunity to get ahead of the day – review sales performance, catch up with reading, understand the requirements of my schedule and prepare for the day ahead. Sometimes I Skype with my family in the UK.
Before reaching my desk, coffee and a healthy breakfast is a must to set me up.
Image Credit, Stuff Limited 2019.
Describe a typical day for you.
One of the things I like about my job is that I don't really have a typical day. Last week, I was in India, meeting with our sourcing office there, some weeks, I'm out in stores.
There is a monthly cadence of board meetings, with the week before largely consumed with preparation. Equally, there are regular internal review meetings, assortment planning and strategy meetings, so it's an ever-changing feast.
One of the ways I clear my mind and make room for the all the complexity of the workday is to meditate every day, even if only for a few minutes.
What would you say your management style is?
I've modified my style for New Zealand. My previous nearly 20 years were spent in US business where the approach and business culture is very different. In the US there is an accepted behaviour which invites discussion and disagreement – if you don't speak up, your voice is not heard.
Typically, rules of engagement are to "vehemently disagree and then commit" – everyone leaves the room having debated the subject, expressed their opinions, had input, but then with a clear mandate to execute.
In New Zealand, I've found business culture to be different – it took me a while to understand that people don't always feel empowered to disagree and therefore the commitment isn't always there, and execution slips.
By moderating my style to invite a greater level of robust discussion and by sharing with my direct reports earlier, I've gotten past this for the most part.
I believe in articulating a clear vision for the business through a disciplined strategy process, agreeing KPI's and having a regular accountability discussion around progress.
Do you read management books?
Yes – voraciously.
The best book I read this year is Team Of Teams by Stanley McChrystal. The book has been very influential in my thinking. The experience that he articulates of the failure of the command and control mechanism for the world's most complex machine, the US military, is demonstrated to be a metaphor for the wider disruption that has afflicted legacy business structures in today's business climate.
From this book it is clear to see that hierarchical structure and behaviour is an anachronism and needs to be replaced by empowerment within a framework. Essentially effective management in large organisations is decentralised, and needs to be underpinned by a wider knowledge of the big picture. This can be guided by clear rules of engagement and training to make sure specialists have the ability to support the overarching task or goal.
That said, there are so many books waiting for me to read them and never enough time.
Where is the best place to prepare for leadership; an MBA school or on the job?
There are many routes to success. Typically, a questioning mind with the appetite to suck learning from all available sources is, in my opinion, the route to success.
Would you prefer to be liked or respected?
The two are not mutually exclusive. Even if you don't like me, I'd hope you respect me. That said, not everyone will either like or respect us so one's own moral compass is what we rely on.
What would your key management advice be?
Follow your passion. It's hard work to succeed in your chosen field, so you better love what you do!
What do you do in your spare time?
I never really switch off entirely – I'd rather know what's going on when I'm on leave – but I do believe in being fully present at things like family meal times.
One of the benefits of living in our beautiful country is exploring and I love to get out on the water.
So, overall, how's life for you living and working in NZ?
My family and I love living here.
I feel incredibly privileged to have the life I do. I am hugely excited to have the opportunity to lead such an iconic Kiwi retailer through transformation.
I am passionate about our human urgency to slow and reverse climate change and become more sustainable. The work we're doing in The Warehouse Group, such as our decision to go Carbon neutral makes me extremely proud and motivates me to do more.
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