Leadership Conversations | Lessons from the Top with Meg Crofton and Jeff Hurst
We’re honored to share this conversation between Ceresa CEO and Co-Founder, Anna Robinson, and two exceptional business leaders (and Ceresa Mentors!), Meg Crofton and Jeff Hurst, who with honesty and vulnerability, give us an insiders’ view of the ups and downs of a challenging year as leaders. Both share how their leadership skills served them well and how they had to adapt to best serve their organizations and most importantly, to take care of themselves. Watch the on-demand replay below or read our take on their top leadership lessons.
Lessons from the Top
Bringing your true self to work - full of authenticity, empathy, and realistic optimism - will help you and your team. [Min: 16, Min: 42]
Don’t fixate on needing to have the answer for your team; instead, be inquisitive and ask what’s the plan, how it can be made better, and how you can help. [Min 22]
In decision-making moments, when neither time nor data are available, lean into what feels right and what’s aligned with company values and mission. [Min 33, Min 57]
To be the best leader or friend to others, you first have to be a leader and best friend to yourself. [Min 23]
Taking care of yourself requires a plan, and using data can help keep you on track. [Min 26]
Balance is a journey, not an end state, and is best evaluated over time horizons. [Min 27]
Don’t put off personal goals for professional goals. [Min 30]
Take the opportunity to redefine the rituals of leadership in the virtual workplace by rethinking the role of the leader in a meeting, encouraging more open conversation, and connecting on a more direct level. [Min 32]
To best support diversity and inclusion, do the work to figure out how to be an ally and collect feedback from diverse voices while creating the space needed for authentic and meaningful conversation. [Min 45]
Harness and nurture the optimism and innovation coming from younger leaders, and don’t dismiss the value they place on the “soft skills” of leadership. [Min 60]
Meg Crofton
Meg is a 35-year veteran of The Walt Disney Company. She retired from her position as president of Walt Disney Parks and Resorts, U.S. and France in 2015. Meg is currently engaged in board service and serves on the board of Cracker Barrel Old Country Store (NASDAQ: CBRL), Tupperware Brands (NYSE: TUP), and HCA Healthcare (NYSE: HCA). Meg is committed to giving back through volunteer service. She has served as an executive leader on the following boards: Board of Trustees for Rollins College and the University of Central Florida (the second largest university in the United States), the Central Florida Economic Development Commission, the Mayor’s Commission to End Homelessness, the executive committee to build the Dr. Phillips Center for Performing Arts, and the Board of Orlando Health (a $2B not-for-profit hospital system).
Meg earned both her bachelor’s degree in marketing and her MBA from Florida State University. She was inducted into the FSU College of Business Hall of Fame in 2008 and recognized with the university’s Distinguished Alumni Award in 2013. Meg and her husband, Rich, now reside in Northern California and she continues her dedication to what she calls her “heart work” -helping leaders realize their full potential. She is a frequent featured speaker on topics such as change management, customer service, employee experience, culture building and digital transformation. She also mentors leaders on strengthening their personal brand, team leadership and interpersonal communications. She encourages them to see that their authentic combination of all of these attributes drives business performance. Meg’s ability to listen and to understand an individual’s unique strengths and potential, in combination with her willingness to share her own leadership stories and lessons learned, offers growth insights for aspiring leaders.
Jeff Hurst
Jeff serves as Vrbo President and Co-Lead of Expedia Group’s Marketing division which incorporates all of the company’s consumer marketing activity. In this role he is directly responsible for retail analytics and strategy, local marketing and partnerships, Vrbo and Portfolio brands (Orbitz, Travelocity, Hotwire, Carrentals.com, Cheap Tickets, eBookers, Wotif, lastminute.com.au, MrJet).
Most recently Hurst served as Senior Vice President and General Manager of Vrbo. Prior to that he was Vrbo’s Chief Commercial Officer managing the division’s global commercial performance, leading the general management teams and overseeing supplier partner success. Hurst joined Vrbo (at the time known as HomeAway) in 2010 as the Global Director of Strategy and Planning and assisted the company in completing a successful IPO in 2011. In 2012 he transitioned to lead HomeAway’s commerce initiatives as the Global VP of e-commerce. He also served as HomeAway’s Chief Strategy Officer, where he helped oversee the company’s sale to Expedia, Inc. Prior to HomeAway, Hurst was a consultant at McKinsey & Company where he worked with consumer brands on corporate strategy, M&A and pricing. Hurst has a master’s degree from the Stanford Graduate School of Business and a bachelor’s degree from the University of Texas at Austin. As a frequent vacation rental traveler with his wife and two children and a vacation home owner, Hurst cares deeply about the vacation rental industry and applies these experiences to his day-to-day role.