by Ed Machir

Ten years of Jesuit education and a lifetime of involvement with the Society of Jesus, as well as thirty-four years with a world-class organization, PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC), have molded how I think about leadership.

It’s about influence
Leadership, in my opinion, is about influence, not authority. Leadership requires patience and is about inspiring individual achievement.

It’s about caring
“Cura Personalis,” a Latin phrase that translates “Care for the Entire Person,” is a cornerstone to good leadership. (This phrase, and the actions that go along with it, are hallmarks of the Jesuits.)

It’s about unique gifts
Good leadership embodies respecting differences, taking advantage of them, and learning from them. We need to understand the unique gifts, the unique needs, and the unique possibilities of all people. And we have to understand that each and every one of us has a personal life and a professional life. If an organization respects one’s personal life and helps one have success in that personal life, they will have greater success in their professional life. These lives are not mutually exclusive—t they are complimentary.

It’s about challenging and developing
Outstanding leadership is about continually challenging and developing people, ultimately raising them up as good leaders. As John F Kennedy said, “Leadership and learning are indispensable to each other.”

It’s about thinking
The Jesuits and PwC have taught me to think and to reason in an ethical way.
Certainly there are fundamental things we all need to “know”—rote knowledge, if you will. But what is most important is to help people develop more complex learning skills: understanding, application, analysis—in other words, TO THINK!

It’s about embracing change
Leadership is about accepting change, no, embracing change. It is about providing vision and articulating it clearly. And it is about being a good listener—a really good listener! (This is a skill with which I constantly struggle, but on which I continually work.)

Leadership is ultimately about helping people inspire confidence in themselves.

 

 

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Ed Machir, Partner, PricewaterhouseCoopers

Ed Machir, a CPA, is a partner at PricewaterhouseCoopers, where he has spent the bulk of his professional career, closing in on 35 years. In addition to serving clients, he has held various leadership roles in the management of the firm. He has been very involved in the recruitment and development of talent.

He is a graduate of Georgetown University and significantly involved in numerous alumni activities, including undergraduate admissions and athletics. He has previously served as an adjunct Professor in the McDonough School of Business, instructing auditing, and plans to continue this teaching in the future.

He is the father of four grown children and has two grandchildren.

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Ed’s short bio does not begin to do justice to all he does as a leader, particularly a servant leader. And while “servant leader” is a popular term these days, thank God, as it is a good description of how we all should be and our attitude as leaders, Ed absolutely epitomizes the term. He is always looking to help others, is genuinely interested in others, is a giver, and follows through.

Everyone has a very high regard for Ed, with good reason!