The power of people-first leadership
What role do values play in setting the direction of a company? During this week’s episode of Pave It Black, learn how Superior Paving Corp.’s focus on developing remarkable employees through excellence, partnership, integrity, and commitment (EPIC) has strengthened its company culture.
Superior Paving President David White discusses how values aren’t just words on a wall, but a daily practice that shapes decision-making and leadership. Tune in to hear how leading with integrity, fostering self-awareness, and truly caring for your people can transform both businesses and the industry.
Here are some snippets from our conversation with David White. Tune in to the full episode to explore what values-based leadership is and how you can install it at your company. Listen wherever you get your podcasts.
Superior Paving is a tri-family based business. What are some of the most significant leadership changes that the business has experienced over the years?
Some of the most significant, obviously, I would say from generation one to generation two. That’s a big massive transition, right? That takes a lot of nurturing, takes a lot of communication, and a lot of transparency within the families to make sure that it’s something that is able to survive and it is able to be sustained. There was a lot of hard work that was done to make sure that happened correctly. And there’s a lot of hard work that still happens today to make sure we are forging a path forward to make sure that this company remains highly successful and that we’re setting it up for the future. Transparency is probably the biggest thing that we needed to make sure we had when we set it from generation one to generation two, from family leadership.
What are some of the certain qualities that you see other leaders around you that you want to incorporate into your life as you continue leading Superior in the future?
People with strong integrity is something that, when there’s so many different doors you can walk through, to try to get something done or get something accomplished. And the folks that will always without question, choose the integrity door, that is something I’m always looking at and always focused on and something you always want to grab ahold of. I’m always drawn to those people. Another thing I look at with leaders within our industry, ones that are so dedicated to safety. Anybody that talks about safety, and they make it a point and somehow in a conversation, or if they’re up at the podium talking and safety comes out, that is something that I’m extremely passionate. People ask you, what’s the one thing that keeps you up at night, that’s the one. And so, when other leaders are stepping up to the plate and talking about it, I am quickly drawn to them and I want to find them after a meeting and talk to them and learn more about who they are.
Could you expand on how you identify potential leaders within your team and if you have a focus on like nurturing leadership from within?
We feel extremely blessed here at Superior to have just an incredible wealth of talents, incredible human capital here, and our mission statement is to develop remarkable employees. If we are developing remarkable employees and we’re doing it with our values, which our values are excellence, partnership, integrity, and commitment. That’s EPIC, by the way. Then all of the things that are extremely important, like tons, which is our great multiplier. All the different things that everyone measures that are extremely important. If we are investing in our employees, developing them, then all those things just take care of themselves, right?
