Roger Penske’s Wisdom

Roger Penske did an incredible job with Superbowl XL… and after reading an article in the Free Press about how he handled all the ins and outs of the Superbowl, it only makes sense why the results were so positive… here’s a few things i’ve been able to glean from Penske’s wisdom and leadership that i believe led to the success of SBXL in the D:

Setting Deadlines and Goals – Penske stated, "The Super Bowl was a critical deadline for this city, and we moved forward, and we need to create new goal posts to get things done."

if you’ve ever read any book about leadership, self-help or personal growth, they all speak of setting and meeting goals… what i appreciated about what Penske was saying is that he stated that the whole city, property owners and business owners (not just the government) need to set these goals and move forward…

Avoiding Politics – Penske stated, "Great vision needs to be backed by full commitment from the private sector and also the government. We must continue to build partnerships for action with a strong commitment to the goals by government, our businesses and, most important, our citizens and our property owners"

while Penske made allusions to the government, it’s plain to see that he was more focused on the private sector… here i see that Penske sees how citizens cannot and should not depend solely on their government to bring about change in a city… here, Penske sticks it to the business owners and property owners… calling on them to create change… John Gallagher, who authored the article, pointed out Penske’s avoidance of divisive politics (which is pretty much the only kind of politics you can find these days)… this kind of tactic is exactly what this city needs and is something that i have been trying to promote in various writings of my own…

People First – Penske implicated that dealing with both homelessness and mass transit must be considered as major priorities for the well-being of the city… i like how he highlighted these issues because they deal first and foremost with the needs of the people who need the most… having the stadiums downtown is a big deal (without Ford Field, we never would have had SBXL) and working on the riverfront is essential, but for any city to really thrive, the needs of normal everyday people must be met… especially those who are less fortunate… it would be so easy for the city to just overlook the homeless and eventually move them out of areas of development… but it appears that Penske has put the needs of real people first… the establishment of a functional mass transit system will also meet the needs of those who cannot afford a car…

Thanking the little guys – at the end of his speech, Penske thanked bouncers, cab drivers, ushers and basically all the little guys who helped make SBXL a positive experience... as i was a volunteer at SBXL, that means something to me and i’m sure it means something to the other 7,999 who helped out… but it’s this kind of attitude that brings unity and ownership to the city… by publicly recognizing the need for the help of all people, big and small, Penske has brought unity to people who aren’t always united and promoted ownership of a city that needs people to really own it…

No finger pointing – while pointing out what needs to be done in the city, not once did Penske point a finger at anyone… he never accused property owners of abandoning their buildings… he never mentioned a corrupt city government… he never took a shot at Kwame… and while he did talk about things that needed to be done, he never did it in a negative manner… in today’s society of mud-slinging, slander and personal attacks, i long for leaders who can leave behind all that fluff and just get down to business…

hopefully the citizens and politicians of our city and metro area can learn from Penske… i hope he sticks around for a long time…