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OCTOBER 2015 •
PPB
• 37
What is your philosophy
for successfully managing
people?
Scott:
Understand people’s
personal and professional
goals. With that information
in hand, then give people a
clear path on how their goals
can be achieved in tandem
with achieving the company’s
goals as well.
How do you create a
positive culture with your
team and those who report
to you?
Scott:
I have an open-door
policy and foster an environ-
ment of constant improve-
ment at all levels of our busi-
ness. I lend time to individu-
als to express new ideas and
actually explore the possibili-
ty of their potential as
opposed to quickly dismiss-
ing them as bad ideas. We
celebrate company wins as a
team, awarding and recogniz-
ing people on a frequent
basis who go above and
beyond. Also, I’m willing to
get involved in any aspect of
the business.
What advice can you share
with other managers to
improve their people-man-
agement skills?
Scott:
Listen to your people.
Do not immediately dismiss a
new idea even if it goes
against your own personal
views. Give people the
opportunity to try new things
and make mistakes. Take
time to get to know your
people and what motivates
them.
Teddy Scott
Vice President of Sales, AZX Sport
(UPIC: AZXS9472)
Tonawanda, New York
Number of direct reports:
15
Cool factor:
Teddy makes employees feel involved
in the project as a whole, not just performing that
specific function.
Nominator:
Chris Hampton
“Teddy leads by example,” says Director of Sales Chris
Hampton, who’s reported to Scott for six years. “There are so
many times he could ask for a quick task to be done but he
takes the time to bring us in and get us excited about the
potential if we succeed at this task. I’ve never seen him ask
anyone to do anything he didn’t try first.” Hampton character-
izes Scott as a glass-half-full guy who is charismatic and posi-
tive, even in the most challenging situation. “He always comes
from the perspective of the big picture. He designs contests
and rewards in super innovative ways, and the best part about
working on these challenges is the hype Teddy creates to get us
all over the finish line—from killer videos to motivate us to
supportive emails and phone calls to generate excitement.
Teddy drives the culture of partnership and ‘can-do’ attitude.
It’s easy to follow his example.”
“Give people the
opportunity to
try new things
and make
mistakes.”