The Top 5 Traits That Make A Great Leader
At ecoAmerica, one of our main priorities is empowering leaders to build support for climate action. There’s a reason leaders are such an important part of our strategy. Whether they’re the head of a corporation, a church, or a community group, strong leaders share certain traits.
- They are able to effectively communicate what needs to be accomplished, and how it should be done. By clearly sharing their vision, they ensure everyone is working for the same goal.
- They can draw on past experiences in order to meet new challenges and be decisive when something unexpected occurs.
- They work tirelessly and lead by example. Showing their commitment builds respect and makes their team want to work harder too.
- They inspire confidence by staying calm and keeping everyone moving towards the common goal.
- They focus on the positive, which helps those they lead stay motivated and upbeat.
In this Citybizlist interview, our own president, Bob Perkowitz, explains his approach to leadership. After a number of years as head of Cornerstone Brands, he founded ecoAmerica and applied the marketing skills that had made him successful in the corporate world to climate communications. He’s a firm believer in the power of research, which helps ecoAmerica target people who are concerned about the climate, but aren’t sure what to do about it. As Bob says, “We need to connect clearly, and on values – not on scientific data.”
As ecoAmerica has grown, we’ve expanded our goals and are working to build leadership on climate change and sustainability across the country. Earlier this year, we launched our MomentUs initiative, which provides leaders in the health, business, faith, communities, and higher education sectors with the resources they need to inspire climate action in their organizations. To join us or learn more, visit momentus.org.
A Conversation with Bob Perkowitz, President, ecoAmerica
Offit Kurman, Attorneys at Law
“Climate game changer”
Wrangling consensus and mobilizing action on climate change just could be the ultimate challenge. But Bob Perkowitz, President of ecoAmerica, goes big on everything. He’s also an extreme distance cyclist with a plan to ride across all the continents on the planet. Bob’s already polished off North and South America, Australia, Europe and most of Asia. Africa and Siberia are next. We weren’t surprised when Bob pointed out cycling is an environmentally friendly way to explore the world.
Bob “retired’ when he was 50 years old, but he hasn’t slowed down. After a successful career in the consumer products, equity investing, and direct marketing fields, Bob shifted to the non-profit world. He now works to build leadership to address climate change and sustainability at ecoAmerica. He quips, “I used to sell people things they want but don’t need. Now I sell people things they need but don’t want.” The management and marketing skills he used most recently as President of Cornerstone Brands, the parent company of Frontgate, Garnet Hill, Smith and Noble, Travelsmith and four other retailers, instilled a focus on customers, service, and results that serves him well as President now of ecoAmerica.