"Welcome change, foster growth, empower your team."
Mark McCullough brings more than 25 years of invaluable experience in international logistics and freight forwarding to the table.
Renowned for his visionary approach, he anticipates industry and customer needs with remarkable precision, seamlessly implementing solutions. As the driving force behind Gebrüder Weiss’s expansion across North America, Mark oversees the establishment of newly opened cross-border ports, addressing the growing demand for nearshoring services.
His leadership was particularly evident during the global pandemic, where he successfully guided Gebrüder Weiss through unprecedented challenges in the logistics industry, showcasing resilience and adaptability.
Check out more interviews with entrepreneurs here.
WOULD YOU LIKE TO GET FEATURED?
All interviews are 100% FREE OF CHARGE
Table of Contents
We are thrilled to have you join us today, welcome to ValiantCEO Magazine’s exclusive interview! Let’s start off with a little introduction. Tell our readers a bit about yourself and your company.
Mark McCullough: I have more than 25 years of experience in international logistics and freight forwarding. I’m known for my visionary ability to anticipate industry and customer needs and implement solutions seamlessly.
Currently, I lead the Gebrüder Weiss expansion across North America, which includes overseeing newly opened cross-border ports to support customer demand for nearshoring.
Notably, I’ve led Gebrüder Weiss through one of the toughest challenges the logistics industry has faced in multiple generations – the global pandemic and its unending series of pressures on the supply chain.
Gebrüder Weiss, where I serve as CEO, is a global freight forwarder with a core business of overland transport, air, and sea freight and logistics. It holds the distinction of being the world’s oldest transport company with a history that dates back more than 500 years.
Our family-owned company employs more than 8,400 people worldwide and boasts 180 company-owned locations. Our business presence in North America includes headquarters in Chicago and offices in Atlanta, Boston, Dallas, El Paso, Houston, Laredo, Los Angeles, Miami, New York, Salt Lake City, San Francisco, Montreal, Toronto, and Vancouver.
We’ve implemented a wide variety of environmental, economic, and social initiatives and are considered pioneers in sustainable business practices. Our emphasis on superior customer service pairs customized solutions with a single point of contact to provide our customers with focused, reliable, and economical solutions.
Can you share a time when your business faced a significant challenge? How did you navigate through it?
Mark McCullough: One of the significant challenges Gebrüder Weiss faced was during the Covid outbreak when 90% of our warehouse workers had to go into quarantine. It was an unexpected situation that demanded immediate action.
The executive team and I stepped in to navigate through it, working double shifts in the warehouse to cover the gap. This hands-on approach showcased our commitment to our team and reinforced our sense of unity and determination.
It was a test of our adaptability and resilience, and by working closely together, we managed to keep operations running smoothly during a challenging time.
How has a failure or apparent failure set you up for later success?
Mark McCullough: One experience that stands out was during the 2008-2009 financial crisis. As a Branch Manager at the time, we weren’t as invested in sales as we should have been, so our customer pipeline dried up, leading to a significant business slump. This experience taught me the importance of preparing and planting seeds to build your network, even during the best times.
In fact, our branch won an award for the most growth in 2009 after that challenging period, highlighting how setbacks can lead to greater success with the right mindset and strategies.
This lesson has been a foundation for my leadership approach, ensuring we continuously plan for different scenarios. When the pandemic hit in 2020 and I was leading Gebrüder Weiss through the crisis, I was much better prepared because of this “failure” from the past.
How do you build a resilient team? What qualities do you look for in your team members?
Mark McCullough: Building a resilient team involves cultivating a culture of empowerment, trust, and adaptability. I look for team members who possess qualities such as adaptability, a positive attitude toward change, and effective communication skills.
Collaborative problem-solving and a willingness to take ownership of challenges are crucial. Empowering team members with the knowledge and autonomy to make decisions, even if they result in mistakes, fosters a resilient environment where learning and growth are prioritized.
In addition, our focus on diversity and inclusion ensures a variety of perspectives, enriching our decision-making and problem-solving capabilities.
How do you maintain your personal resilience during tough times?
Mark McCullough: Maintaining a balance between work and personal life is key. It’s common for people to lose a sense of balance and prioritization when times get tough, but in my experience, this is counterproductive.
I prioritize spending quality time with my family to recharge and maintain a positive mindset.
Surrounding myself with a strong support network of mentors and peers provides different perspectives and encouragement, helping me stay focused and resilient. Gebrüder Weiss is a family-owned organization and a belief in balance is part of our company culture.
What strategies do you use to manage stress and maintain focus during a crisis?
Mark McCullough: I’ve experienced many types and sources of stress in my nearly 30 years in the shipping business, and I’ve developed techniques to manage through it.
With customers, I find that proactive communication, such as anticipating the next question or potential issue, helps put clients at ease and, therefore, reduces your stress.
If a situation escalates, I find taking a break and doing something completely different is better. You can become so intensely focused on a particular issue, project, deadline, etc., that you miss the easiest path or answer right before you. Taking a step back allows you to see it from a different perspective and perhaps find a different solution.
How do you communicate with your team during a crisis?
Mark McCullough: Communication with the team during a crisis is vital. I ensure transparency and clarity in all communication. To accommodate the Gebrüder Weiss team across North America, I hold in-person and virtual meetings to discuss the situation, share updates, and address concerns.
Providing a platform for team members to voice their opinions and ideas fosters a sense of unity and encourages innovative problem-solving. Email communication is vital for disseminating the crisis response plan, emergency contacts, and regular updates, providing a comprehensive framework to keep everyone informed.
I acknowledge the challenges while highlighting the positive steps we’re taking to overcome them. In general, we are very focused on strong communication processes and channels, so when/if a crisis hits, those effective communication methods are already in place.
What advice would you give to other CEOs on building resilience in their organizations?
Mark McCullough: Anyone who is a new CEO, manager, or leader wants to start strong and make a difference for your company, your employees, and your customers. When I was first appointed CEO nearly ten years ago, I had a list of 20 things I wanted to tackle right away, and I set out trying to tackle them all immediately and simultaneously.
I was engaged with every aspect of the business, every department and every product, yet I wasn’t seeing the results I wanted because I was spread too thin. I had to learn that prioritizing those tasks and taking on three of the 20 that were most impactful as a start led to better results.
In time, you realize that the fastest results are not always the best or the most effective. Taking a more targeted approach allows you to learn each aspect of the business more intimately and make better decisions.
My advice to fellow CEOs on building resilience in their organizations is to foster a culture of continuous learning and adaptability. Encourage your team to embrace change and see challenges as opportunities for growth. Invest in their development by providing training and mentorship.
Develop robust contingency plans for various scenarios and regularly review and update them. Above all, lead with empathy and understanding, creating an environment where employees feel supported and empowered to contribute their best.
How do you prepare your business for potential future crises?
Mark McCullough: Knowing how to interact with international businesses helps so we can be aware of and prepare for potential geopolitical issues that have business impacts.
At Gebrüder Weiss, we focus on diversification, expansion, technology, and collaboration to prepare for potential future crises. Scenario planning and proactive risk management also help us navigate potential challenges.
Expanding service capabilities, such as domestic transport services, ensures adaptability to changing market demands. We’ve added strategic locations to serve our customers better throughout North America. Infrastructure is also critical – technology adoption enhances efficiency and agility.
Last but not least, relationships with people help you navigate crises together. Building strong relationships with partners and customers facilitates effective collaboration during uncertain times. As we are in international transport and logistics, we have very good relationships with countries worldwide and have built partnerships with many companies globally.
These global relationships put us in touch with the world in a practical way and allow us to understand the reality of what a potential threat may or may not be. We must prepare for the worst but have realistic expectations, and relationships help us better assess any situation from all points of view.
What’s the most important lesson you’ve learned about leadership in times of crisis?
Mark McCullough: The most important lesson I’ve learned about leadership in times of crisis is the value of empowerment and trust. Empowering teams with the knowledge and authority to make decisions creates a resilient environment where solutions can be found quickly.
Trusting your team’s capabilities and encouraging them to learn from mistakes fosters growth and adaptability. This approach helps teams overcome immediate challenges and lays the foundation for long-term success and resilience.
Jed Morley, VIP Contributor to ValiantCEO and the host of this interview would like to thank Mark McCullough for taking the time to do this interview and share his knowledge and experience with our readers.
If you would like to get in touch with Mark McCullough or his company, you can do it through his – Linkedin Page
Disclaimer: The ValiantCEO Community welcomes voices from many spheres on our open platform. We publish pieces as written by outside contributors with a wide range of opinions, which don’t necessarily reflect our own. Community stories are not commissioned by our editorial team and must meet our guidelines prior to being published.
