Nicholas Morgan’s Leadership Portfolio
Draft One
Mission Statement
Integrity – To maintain the consistency of my actions, principles, measures, and expectations to ensure people I interact with in my life can rely on the accuracy and truthfulness of my actions.
Growth – I will constantly push the boundaries of my own skills and be forced out of my comfort zone with the intention of personal and professional growth throughout my life as to avoid a state of stagnation.
Humility – Remaining modest and respectful in all facets of life, and retain a proper perspective of myself as a dependant but capable and rational human being.
Accomplishment – I will always strive for excellence in everything that I do, and remain on the pursuit of excellence no matter how insignificant the task presented to me.
Enjoyment – Taking life too seriously has never helped anyone, and having a healthy dose of fun and optimism about life will be an unconscious but necessary part of my quality of life.
Collaboration –I will work jointly with my peers to achieve a sense of teamwork and achieve the goals presented, and recognize situations where I cannot achieve success without the team.
Courage – Having the ability to confront any fears, uncertainty, or intimidation with the clairvoyance that everything will work out for the best, as long as I do my best in every situation.
I will strive to make these values present in my daily life, and live by my own mantra;
Be the person that will hold the door for others, but know when it is okay for you to enter through.
Leadership Style
My leadership style is centered on three main ideas: Teamwork, Performance, and Communication. First, I believe that teamwork is vital to the success of any project or goal that one is trying to accomplish. With teamwork, however, comes performance. The success of others will depend on the competency of the rest of the group, and it is important to me that the individuals I work with strive for excellence in their work and do not settle for the bare minimum. Lastly, communication within a group is the most important part of my leadership style. I need to talk to people, and talking with others is where I am able to reach of a sense of understanding, empathy, collaboration, fun, and persuasion when leading a group. I am open to the ideas of others, but will never hear those ideas if they are not given the chance to communicate them to the group. As a leader, I like to be the focus on the overall target, and encourage others to accomplish our goal effectively through any adversity.
Strengths, Key Qualities, and Areas of Improvement
Strengths - Driven, Courageous, Analytical, Communication, Perseverance
Key Qualities – Charisma, Balance, Integrity, Humility, Empathy
Areas of Improvement – Having Tunnel Vision, Trusting Others, Organization, Delegating Tasks When Needed
Five Leaders
Timothy Morgan – My father is the plant manager at Ohio Nut and Bolt and is on the Board of Directors. One of the things that I admire about my dad’s leadership is the relationships he has with his employees. I am constantly told by his coworkers and the CEO of Ohio Nut and Bolt Co. that my dad has a level of understanding and trust with his employees that many of the other branches of the corporation do not have. The employees at Ohio Nut and Bolt respect my dad because he takes the time to be empathetic towards their situations, which I try and reflect in my own leadership. I try and have my leadership reflect the way my father leads his company, by building relationships and building a level of respect with my peers.
Chris Knapik – My cousin Chris is one leader who I try to emulate the most. He is a bit of a legend in the College of Business, and his resume is a little intimidating. The advice that he gives me as a mentor is invaluable, and it is very important to me that I become the same type of leader that Chris is. He has seen success very early in his career, and the drive that he has is contagious.
Bill Pingley – Bill was my supervisor during my internship at Joesph Industries and taught me a lot about having a managerial role, not just in sales but in the professional world. His style of leadership was very authoritative because many of his subordinates have worked for the company much longer than he has. Bill also brought a level of creativity and innovativeness that I bring to many of my projects that I have worked on during my career. As a leader, he knows how to delegate tasks to his employees to help them work effectively. Another thing that I took away from my time working with Bill was how he was connected with every aspect of the business, not just sales, which is important to the success of the business as a whole.
Steve Jobs – Although I do not always agree with some of the business decisions that Steve Jobs made during his time with Apple, what I do admire is his innovativeness and his strive for perfection. Something that I see in myself that Steve also displayed was the fact that if a task wasn’t done perfectly, it shouldn’t be done at all. His ideas, determination, and unwavering ability to inspire others were what helped him revolutionize many different industries. Overall, I hope to be the type of leader that Steve Jobs was by bringing ideas to the table, refusing to have a “No” attitude, and never losing sight of overall goals.
Jeff Bezos – Many of Jeff Bezos’ qualities as a leader are the same that I see in myself. As the founder of Amazon, Jeff was the one who pioneered “predictive analytics” which has completely changed the way people interact with the internet, commerce, and the world. His innovative thinking, focus on customers, and desire to serve the less-fortunate are things that I see in myself as a leader. Jeff represents the analytical side of my personality and my drive to come up with ideas and creative solutions to problems in every project that I work on.
Leadership Experience
MIS 2010 – As a TA for MIS 2010, I use my leadership to teach the students in my lab and be a model for the MIS major in the College of Business. Being the introduction for many students to the MIS major, it is important for me to show the students not just how to do the assignments, but the real world applications that the content is meant to convey. Although I try and build relationships with my students and be someone they feel that they can come to for help, it is important to me that I present myself as the leader of the class. I have learned the most about my leadership abilities from my experiences as a TA, including catching students cheating, giving one-on-one help, being empathetic towards certain situations, and just everyday agendas I must accomplish in order for the students to retain the information I am presenting.
Buckeye Boys State – My junior year of high school I was selected to represent my school at the Buckeye Boys State Experience. Along with 2,000 other representatives from across Ohio, we conducted a mock state, which included electing a governor and putting in place our own laws. I was elected to the House of Representatives by the individuals in my state, and then elected to the Minority Party Lead by the rest of the House. That experience allowed me to collaborate with other representatives from across Ohio who were of the same caliber of personal achievement as myself, which was very refreshing. I was able to lead my party to passing several bills into law, and personally oversaw many bipartisan decisions made by the House. Being a leader of such a large group of successful individuals really showed me that I have the ability to lead effectively and be an inspiration to any group of people.
Business Cluster – During the Business Cluster, there were many situations where I was placed in a leadership role in order for my groups to be successful. Delegating tasks was very important, but also communicating with the peers in my groups was imperative. Many times I had to display managerial skills as to avoid myself or another individual in the group having to do too much work. Although I was not the formal leader of the group, it was important that I step up to a leadership role in order for our projects to be completed in a timely matter, and done to the standards I hold for work.
MedinaFest- I was the founder of the MedinaFest music festival that was a showcase for local bands to play. As the organizer, I put together the event, including finding the venue, setting up the electronics/recording/PA systems, doing the marketing, finding the bands, and deciding which charity to give the proceeds to. The entire experience was very rewarding, and it was one of the first formal leadership positions that I conducted successfully. The two years that the festival was put on, it was a huge hit with the local community, and it was incredible to have such a positive impact through an idea that was completely my own.
Kmart – Throughout high school and a little in college, I worked at my local Kmart Super Center (first one in the world as a matter of fact) and rose to the Electronics Supervisor for the store. Some of my responsibilities included delegating tasks to the other electronics O-1’s for their shifts, conducting training for incoming O-1’s, and being a general source of knowledge for new hires. Being a leader within the company so young really taught me about responsibility and seeing how my hard work can be rewarded and accelerate me to positions ahead of my peers who were working for the company longer and some who were hired at the same time as me. The leadership skills that I learned at my first job were exemplified in the growth in sales in the electronics department during my tenure as Electronics Supervisor.
Differential Advantage
Innovativeness – One of my greatest qualities is being able to think of creative solutions to problems and seeing situations from a different point of view than most people. When working on projects, or just in my everyday life, I am constantly thinking outside the box and thinking of alternatives for certain problems that arise. The applications of this skill come in various aspects of my career, including my work with Xmarks Inc., my work during my internship with Joseph Industries, and current projects that I am pursuing. Many people think and react based on their emotions, which is appropriate in some situations. I have found, however, that the way I approach problems from a center of analysis and logic allows me to stand out from a crowd and really apply my ideas dynamically and in a reactive manner.
Perseverance – Another important quality that I have is my unwavering persistence and perseverance. There have been countless times when I have been denied, turned down, told that I was not good enough, and put into situations where most people would accept failure. I am the type of person who does not think of failures as an ultimatum, but as an opportunity. The constant search for areas of growth allows me to take criticism full heartedly and learn from my experiences. My optimism is a huge part of my personality and helps me deal with experiences that most people would lose hope in. Any success that I have had hasn’t com e easy to me; it has been through a consistent process of self reflection and improvement. My competence is contingent on my areas of incompetence, and my determination to turn those areas into strengths.
Balance – My ability to multitask is another area where I can be differentiated from the rest of my peers. I have always been able to be given a list of tasks, determine my priorities, and manage my time efficiently so that each task is completed effectively. Whether it is juggling homework, grading, working, my social life, or just going through my daily to-do list, I make sure that the balance in my life is constantly maintained. Many people are capable of multitasking, but the difference between those individuals and me is that I am capable of giving 100% effort into every task that I am completing. This is a unique ability that allows me to excel in many facets of my life, and allow people to trust me with responsibilities and know that they will be completed to the best of my abilities.
5-Year Plan
Year 1 – Raise my GPA above a 3.5, acquire an internship for summer as well as other opportunities for further experience through various connections, and expand my network
Year 2 – Maintain my GPA through my senior year, Have an offer for a MIS position ideally during the first semester of my final year, but also be open to possible other offers later in the year. Also, getting my Microsoft and SAP certifications will be an important goal.
Year 3 – Work hard in my position and accelerate through the ranks of whatever company I work for gaining more experience, Maintain networks with college professors and classmates, take on some project manager roles.
Year 4 – Achieve Manager position, OSA certification, begin entrepreneurial endeavors.
Year 5 – Seek various secondary employment opportunities, continue to see entrepreneurial activities to fruition
Mentoring Experience
My relationship with Tyler has come very naturally and has provided me with a great resource and a great friend. Tyler will be going to work in Chicago with my cousin Chris, which is a coincidence that cannot be ignored. Several of Tyler’s strengths and weaknesses co-inside with my own which gives us a chance to learn from each other and share in each other’s successes. Although my overall goal of joining Chris and Tyler at Deloitte seems to be out of reach, I have confidence that I have gained another mentor that genuinely hopes to see me reach my goals, and really it is the more the merrier. I am excited to get to know Tyler more in the future and maintain our relationship once we both leave Athens for bigger and better things.