By Alex Tenenbaum
On March 22, Gerald Faust, Ph.D., will speak in Bozeman on the lifecycles of business and how leaders can navigate the critical transitions that often spell disaster or defeat. He’ll then lead a discussion with those attending, helping them to develop actionable strategies for their own companies. Business leaders across the state and region are invited to attend.
“Business is the grand problem-solving activity,” said Faust, whose tools and techniques have prospered companies in many industries, including American Airlines, Buck Knives, Inc., the National Ski Areas Association, and Dominoes Pizza.
Hosted by Vistage International, an organization of 14,000 CEOs worldwide, Faust will present at the Blue Ocean Innovation Center, Bering Sea Room, in Bozeman from 8:00 a.m. to noon.
Vistage CEOs rate each speaker they hear from, and in 1986, they voted Faust the “US Business Resource of the Year.” He has remained in the top five every year since, and in 2010, Canadian CEOs named him the speaker of the year.
Faust began his business consulting career while still a professor at the University of Illinois, and then at the University of Texas. He left higher education to start Courseware, Inc., and in 1975, the engineering and project management firm Bechtel asked him to study several multi-billion-dollar projects around the world and build strategies to develop managers to oversee them.
He served as president of the Adizes Institute, which forged new methods to help organizations navigate the many difficult transitions that lead to “prime,” which Faust defines as controlled, profitable growth with strong brand and market share, solid leadership, and high-functioning teamwork.
In 1983, he established the Faust Management Corporation, through which he has consulted for hundreds of companies whose annual revenues range from $3 million to many billions of dollars.
“What I see a lot of people do is try to manage their growth and development on the fly. They just get consumed by daily operations,” Faust said. “I show people how to effectively manage their company’s future, separate and distinct from operations.”
Outside of his many consulting and speaking engagements, he currently serves as Chairman of the Board for VQ Orthocare.
Faust said he’d hoped to remain in Bozeman to pursue his passion for fly fishing, but he’ll have to fly out immediately to speak at the NFL Players’ Convention.
Business leaders interested in attending should call Becky Smith, Vistage Chair, at 406-586-5094 to RSVP.
