Mr. Brad "Brick" Connors honored us with a talk this morning. But, before I get into the specifics, I have to say that I would give my left arm to have a nick name like "Brick". How cool would that be? Now that's out of the way, I'll continue.
Brad is currently the City Manager for the City of Port Hueneme having been picked for that position this past February, 2020. His background is quite impressive having been a onetime fighter pilot flying the F-18 Hornet who commanded Naval Base Ventura County. In his past life he was also a business leader in the aerospace industry, an author (Fighter Pilot Parent) and sports coach. He played lacrosse in his younger days.
Brad started by saying that he has spoken at many events in his time but that this was the first time he has ever done so in the parking lot of a Junkyard. Welcome to Simi Sunrise Brad! As noted above, Brad took over as City Manager in February of 2020 and we all know what happened in March. Talk about trial by fire.He said his military training kicked in immediately. Leadership Culture is his thing. Having been on combat missions in the course of nine deployments, he knew how to deal with a crisis situation where a decision needs to be made with little to no information. He said what he learned early on in his military career was that, typically, the first report is always wrong; the second report is a lie to cover up the first report; the third report is a hybrid of sorts between the truth and the lie; and the fourth report is when you start getting the picture. And the first pandemic reports were quite alarming.
He recounted that his training taught him to push down the emotions created by the crisis and to think things through calmly. Many leaders he felt did not know how to react in a crisis and reacted with emotion. He said that Port Heuneme had to do things differently due to its small population of 24,000 and a staff of only 140. Staff couldn't go home and get their work done through Zoom meetings. So he built a Risk Management System and put a Risk Package together with business survival being of the utmost importance. He started that process by creating relationships with the businesses in the City, something that wasn't there prior to the pandemic. Successful businesses within the community, in Brads's view, is the life blood of a City. If the businesses are successful, the City will be successful.
He talked about how the police, elected officials and government in general was under attack and that there are many different views and agendas in a community. When you focus on the Leadership Culture and take care of your people, these various views and agendas come together with a common goal. Everyone is encouraged to be a leader and this creates an environment in which success for everyone is the goal.
If you are interested in Brad's book, below is a link:
