In an era of rapid change and complex challenges, effective leadership has become increasingly important, but the co-founders of Tridis Leadership believe there’s a significant gap in today’s leadership development. The consulting firm is led by Andrew Pence, a retired Navy SEAL Captain; Jim Brogan, a former NBA player; and Dave Hubinger, a former Nestlé executive.
The three have joined forces to address what they perceive as a crisis in leadership development, utilizing insights from their backgrounds in military special operations, professional sports, and corporate America. An issue they frequently encounter is that while many businesses acknowledge the importance of developing leaders, they struggle to actually do something about it.
“There’s a noticeable disconnect between recognizing the need for leadership development and actually implementing it,” Pence says. The impact of this disconnect can be substantial. According to the co-founders, poor leadership practices can lead to increased employee turnover, resulting in significant costs related to lost productivity and hiring expenses.
Brogan emphasizes the need for emotional intelligence in leadership. “Great leaders have a deep emotional connection to their team members,” he explains. “This connection is what drives high performance and loyalty.” He sees caring as the ultimate competitive advantage.
Drawing from his corporate experience, Hubinger stresses the importance of trust and integrity. “Leadership authenticity is about aligning your external behaviors with your true self,” he says.
The co-founder considers the basis of leadership to be trust, and this applies to anyone. “If you do not trust someone, you’re not going to allow them to lead,” Hubinger adds. “So, I would say it’s a deal breaker—that you have to have high integrity, and you have to be trustworthy.”
Brogan emphasizes resilience in leadership. “Success always has been and always will be in the struggle,” he says. “Avoiding it, not going through it, and thinking it shouldn’t happen to you makes the struggle more intense.”
“Setbacks and struggles happen to everyone, but if you have ambitious goals, they will be frequent and intense,” Hubinger adds. “The level of resiliency needed is often a direct result of how ambitious your goals are.”
As organizations grapple with developing the next generation of leaders, Tridis Leadership offers an approach that combines best practices from the co-founders’ careers, focusing on attributes such as emotional intelligence, ethical decision-making, crisis management, and disciplined prioritization. They feel this approach is particularly relevant in today’s rapidly changing business landscape.
“Leaders need to appreciate crises as something distinct and different and not simply rely on routine leadership habits or problem-solving approaches,” Pence says. This adaptive mindset is crucial for navigating the complexities of modern leadership challenges.
The trio’s upcoming book Bullets, Basketballs, and Boardrooms aims to share their collective wisdom on leadership development. They argue that while leadership principles might be simple in concept, they are often difficult to develop and implement. “We’re bringing these new skills approaches…. The life lessons and the best practices that the three of us have been able to assemble through observation, through wins, through losses [are] significant,” Pence says.
Their message is clear: Effective leadership can be taught, but it requires commitment, authenticity, and a willingness to learn from diverse perspectives. Tridis Leadership aims to equip leaders with the tools to not only survive but also thrive in business.
