Since we emerged less than two years as a stand-alone public company, one word has defined CST Brands: change. In that time, we:
- Separated from our former parent, Valero Energy Corp., and entered public-company life May 1, 2013.
- Built and opened 62 new-to-industry stores in the United States and Canada, more than the total of all stores built in our prior five years as a subsidiary of Valero.
- Acquired the general partner of CrossAmerica Partners LP, giving us an advantaged financial structure in the master limited partnership.
- Along with CrossAmerica, acquired more than 150 stores, including Nice N Easy Grocery Shoppes in New York; we also are in the final stages of purchasing Hudson, Wis.-based Erickson Oil, with its 64 Freedom Valu stores.
- Added more than 1,400 employees.
From the outside looking in, the change—and growth—may seem frenetic, and it has taken talented people to negotiate the deals. But success in the deal itself is only the start. As we extend our retail networks, success will come from our employees staying focused on our singular, overriding mission to “Delight More Customers Every Day.” Behind that mission are our stated core values of strategic thinking; entrepreneurial spirit; innovation; and, perhaps, most important of all, servant leadership.
Servant leaders care for their communities, and our employees practice this daily. Nowhere was that more apparent than at our inaugural Corner Store Country Run 5K race series last year. Our employees, families, suppliers and customers turned out in force for the eight country-themed 5K races, raising more than $1 million for local children’s charities.
A Fierce Loyalty
We recently introduced our core values to the CST organization. Servant leadership is the opposite of the traditional command and control management style. To me, servant leadership is a fundamental organizational principle centered on motivating and inspiring employees to reach further than they thought possible. A servant leader sees potential where others may not. Servant leaders are selfless and show empathy to their employees. They don’t just command their employees to execute the task list; they work alongside employees to ensure success.
Gen. Colin Powell, a luminary among servant leaders, describes leadership as that which takes an organization beyond the limits of what the science of management would say is possible. He describes a leader as someone people will follow if only out of curiosity because they trust him or her to do the right thing, and because they’re excited and intrigued to see what’s around the corner.
Last year, we launched a servant-leadership training program for our operations leaders in the field. This year, we are expanding it to new teams and adding a 360 performance review for many of our senior managers, which will solicit performance feedback from direct reports, peers and supervisors. We’re also adding the servant-leadership model to our new store manager training programs. Over time, performance assessments will include leadership feedback. By creating a peer-based review structure, my hope is to foster a culture where everyone feels invested in our collective and individual successes.
Spirit of Service
One of our key programs that we initiated in 2013 is “Corner Store Time,” under which each of our back-office employees is required to work in the stores two days a year. Our leadership team, which includes me, must work five days a year in the stores. It lets us meet face-to-face with store employees and see servant leadership in action.
One of my favorite stories involves Scott Everett, who manages one of our Houston-area stores. Scott’s employee Carl was a customer in Scott’s store for more than five years before he asked Scott for a job. Although Carl had no retail experience, Scott liked his spirit and brought him on board. To me, one aspect of servant leadership is looking at the totality of the person. In this case, Scott was practicing my vision of servant leadership.
Carl rode his bike 13 miles each way to the store. He was never late, and he always was ready with a smile. Come winter, Scott learned that Carl was homeless. Without pause, Scott got Carl a motel room until Carl could find his own place. The following spring, Carl was riding home from work and was hit by a car. The customers in Scott’s store jumped to Carl’s side to take care of him and buy him a new bike. Carl was back at work in a matter of days, in time to get his one-year-anniversary pin. Carl will follow Scott because Scott will not only do the right thing, but he also will do right by his employees.
This spirit of service generates loyalty among our customers while attracting new ones every day. It is this style of servant leadership that will ensure CST’s success.
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