Evergreen Journal by Tugboat Institute

Many people carry the belief that they simply aren't "math people," that ability is something you're born with, not something you build. In this Tugboat Institute® talk, Jo Boaler dismantles that myth and makes the case for a limitless approach to learning, one that applies as much to leaders and teams as it does to students. Jo is a professor of mathematics education at Stanford University and co...

Every founder and generational leader carries an origin story. In this Tugboat Institute® talk, Everett Harper invites us to consider what it means to remember that story, and how the act of remembrance itself shapes the values a company passes on. Everett is the co-founder and former CEO of Truss and a longtime champion of Purpose-driven leadership. Drawing on the history of Juneteenth, and on hi...

Luck is the number one factor for career success, said legendary executive search pioneer Egon Zehnder to a young Claudio Fernández-Aráoz early in his career. After four decades of placing leaders at the highest levels of global business, Claudio has come to agree. But luck, he argues, is only part of the story. The factor leaders can control, and the one that separates good organizations from gre...

Tugboat Institute® Member Kent Johnson is the CEO of Highlights for Children, a family-led legacy brand dedicated to building a more optimistic and empathetic world for children. After an early career in physics and medical diagnostics, Kent has spent the last 20 years leading a media business centered on human development. In this Tugboat Institute talk, Kent explores how their commitment to Purp...

Jim Gilmore is the co-founder of Strategic Horizons LLP and the co-author of The Experience Economy and Look: A Toolkit for Making Better Decisions. As a pioneer in the study of consumer experiences and observational methods, Jim has spent decades helping organizations see the world—and their opportunities—more clearly. In this Tugboat Institute® talk, Jim challenges the modern habit of screen-ind...

Larry Hofstetter is the first non-family president of the 187-year-old Schaeffer Manufacturing Company. As the steward of a business founded in 1839, Larry has mastered the delicate balance of honoring nearly two centuries of history while navigating the complexities of modern disruption. In this Tugboat Institute® talk, Larry explores his framework for cultivating a "winner's mindset" that transf...

Tugboat Institute® member Joe Motz, founder of The Motz Corporation, has spent nearly five decades building a legacy of innovation and integrity at one of the world's most respected turf firms. But after transitioning the company to 100% employee ownership in 2018, Joe faced his toughest finish line yet: a 70th-birthday "bucket list" adventure that would take everything he had. In this Tugboat Tal...

Ashley Russo is a visionary leader, award-winning journalist, and entrepreneur who bridges the gap between industrial legacy and modern storytelling. Through her dual roles as CEO of Magnaplate and President of ASR Media, Ashley has mastered the art of blending the technical precision of manufacturing with the creative vision of media. In this Tugboat Institute® talk, Ashley explores the unique te...

Rob Cordova is a thought leader, adjunct professor, and educator who transforms corporate learning into meaningful and inspiring experiences. Through his research on how our personal backgrounds shape our actions, Rob has developed a unique framework of reflective questions designed to help leaders step beyond their comfort zones. In this Tugboat Institute® talk, Rob challenges us to confront our...

David Surdam is a historical economist and professor at the University of Northern Iowa who studies how organizations adapt under extreme economic pressure. In this Tugboat Institute® Summit 2025 talk, he shares the story of Major League Baseball during the Great Depression, when team owners faced one of the most challenging economic periods in American history. Their adaptation strategies not onl...

Over the last several years, private equity has continued its rapid expansion, reshaping the landscape of business ownership and investment. What was once limited to a small circle of institutional investors now reaches into 401k portfolios, making PE an increasingly dominant force in our economy. While this growth has fueled opportunity for many, it also poses new challenges for Evergreen® compan...

Mark Steele is the president and owner of Craftsmen Industries and a former turnaround specialist for private equity firms. Early in his career, he stepped into struggling businesses and made the tough calls others avoided. In this Tugboat Institute® talk, Mark shares how the opportunity to lead family-owned Craftsmen Industries sparked a profound shift in his career and business philosophy. He ex...

Adam Echter is a partner at Simon-Kucher and a global expert in pricing strategy. A thought-leader and consultant, Adam brings decades of experience helping companies shape strategies that drive both profit and purpose. In this Tugboat Institute® Summit talk, Adam challenges the myth that purpose and profit are mutually exclusive. He lays out actionable pricing strategies that align with Evergreen...

Tugboat Institute® member Ashli Desai is President of Larry Walker Associates, an environmental engineering firm focused on water quality management. After founder Larry Walker's departure, the company remained family-owned but was led by non-family executives. This divide between ownership and leadership created challenges in communication and alignment among the family, leadership, and employees...

In business as in life, longevity often invites assumptions. When we hear about a company that has thrived for over a century, it's easy to picture a large, slow-moving, and rigid organization. But surviving, and thriving, across generations requires quite the opposite: adaptability, agility, and a willingness to evolve. Jayne Millard embodies this mindset as the fourth-generation leader of Turtle...

Business leaders often rely on rules of thumb, simple tools designed to guide decisions in complex environments. But when followed too rigidly, even the most trusted rules can create blind spots. In this Tugboat Institute® talk, Dave Whorton explores this tension and offers a fresh perspective on how Evergreen® leaders might think differently. Dave is the founder and CEO of Tugboat Institute and t...

In business as in life, there are trade-offs. This is an accepted part of the business world as well, and is usually accepted as an unavoidable truth. This includes pairs like Profit and Purpose, or Profit and Paced Growth, which can sometimes appear to be at odds with one another. But what if this didn't always have to be true? Marianne Lewis proposes a leadership strategy that can help resolve t...

The last five years have seen an ever-tightening talent pool and, therefore, increased competition for great employees. It seemed that it was a pandemic-related phenomenon at first, but demographics tell us that in fact, this is here to stay for many years. Coupled with this tight labor market, employees have become more particular about what they are looking for in their work, and they have becom...

On May 6, 2025, Another Way: Building Companies That Last...and Last...and Last, by Dave Whorton with Bo Burlingham was released to the public. Their book tells the story of Dave's journey from Venture Capital's epicenter in Silicon Valley to founding Tugboat Institute®, an organization dedicated to bringing together, supporting, and championing Evergreen® leaders and their Purpose-driven, Private...

Tugboat Institute® member Ford Mennel is the fifth generation leader of his family company, The Mennel Milling Company. In their 139 years, the company has been through many phases, some marked by prosperity and expansion, and some by stagnation and risk. Through it all, the series of family leaders who have shepherded Mennel have succeeded in building an Evergreen® company that is strong, continu...

Dave and Dan Thrasher grew up in the house that served as the first HQ for their parents' basement waterproofing company, which they had started and grown slowly over decades. By the time the two brothers stepped into the business, their parents had grown it to about $4 million in revenues. In the 20 years since then, Dan has taken over leadership of Thrasher Group, Dave leads the newer company, S...

Sonja Lyubomirsky is an experimental social psychologist at University of California, Riverside. She has been studying the science of happiness for decades and her work has included consulting on projects like the film Mission: Joy, featuring the Dalai Lama and Bishop Desmond Tutu.  In this Tugboat Institute® talk, Sonja poses the question, "Is it possible to become happier?" and shares the findin...

How do creativity and productivity thrive simultaneously in a business? The creative and the business mindsets are often very different in their approach to problem solving and innovation, yet in most professions, success in each area is necessary for companies to grow and thrive. So what are the conditions that make space for both?  Paul Seck is a landscape architect and Partner at MVVA, a leadin...

Tugboat Institute®'s Gary Kunkle spent many years advising companies around sustained growth and then completing a PhD thesis on the true drivers of sustained growth. Through this work, he has built up an impressive store of data and insight. Gary leads Tugboat's Paced Growth Team Training and our Executive Team Training Series and has helped many Evergreen® leaders and executives understand their...

Most company leaders can attest to the fact that finding a way to be a present spouse, parent, and even friend while building a business can be extremely challenging. But it is critical for creating a life and lifestyle that are good and sustainable. People often talk about "balance," but sometimes balance is simply not possible. So seek harmony instead. In this Tugboat Institute® talk, Paul Mears...