Michael Lovern
CEO
Brandito, LLC, Henrico, Virginia
Number of direct reports: 6
Nominated by: Nick Raible, Alex Palmer, Krissy Keener, Margaret Worten, Kevin Mullaney
Nominators Alex Palmer, Victoria Kellam, Nick Raible and Kevin Mullaney celebrate their boss, Michael Lovern (far right).
Michael’s cool factor: “Mike has a phenomenal way of building culture,” says nominator Nick Raible, an account executive. “Mike wants to celebrate the work that goes into each project, win or lose. We all support each other inside and outside the four walls of Brandito—it’s a special place. That type of culture absolutely starts at the top.”
After working in the staffing and consulting industry for six years, Michael Lovern founded distributor Brandito in 2009. His employees credit him with creating a thriving business that attracts high-quality talent, and they consistently praise his leadership, values and interest in them as people first. “Michael is an awesome leader,” says nominator Krissy Keener, director of operations. “He always considers what is best for his employees before making a decision. Not only is he an advocate for achieving professional goals but he also challenges us to think about our personal goals too. He values a healthy balance between work and home life and that is very important.”
Her colleague, account executive Margaret Worten, says Lovern made her feel valuable again by hiring her and giving her the most responsibility and freedom she had ever experienced. “Mike’s confidence in me continues to play a critical role in my growth. He is able to pinpoint fundamentals that I can improve upon without ever making me feel inadequate. Mike works hard and plays hard and allows us to do the same.”
One-On-One With Michael Lovern
Most important lesson learned as a boss:
You have to be patient and transparency is always the best policy.
Philosophy for successfully managing people:
You have to stay true to your core principles, but realize that each person has to be managed in their own way. Everyone has their own personality and will respond to positive and negative feedback differently. If you use a blanket approach, you will never be able to make a positive impact and motivate everyone. As a manager, your goal can’t be to always make everyone happy but you can strive to develop people professionally so they feel challenged and successful in their roles. That will naturally create a solid culture.
To create a positive team culture:
A positive culture is built with a combination of all the things I previously mentioned. It shouldn’t only be about managing people but also about challenging everyone to be their best professionally. I encourage my employees to learn from each other, from me and from the people they respect outside of the organization. I like to set clear expectations with each of them but encourage them to make their own decisions. When employees are effectively managed and challenged, when they work well together, and understand your core principles, then you will have a positive and contagious culture.
Best advice for other people managers:
Be transparent, set expectations, challenge them, develop them and listen.
Best boss ever:
I have had a number of great bosses and mentors in my career. I have always believed in learning from others and there are a number of people whom I can credit with my success. Some helped me early in my career and some continue to be mentors today. I believe that the most successful people in the world are willing to listen and adapt based on what they learn from other successful people.
