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Take Me To Your DEN Leader


When I think of the many leaders that I’ve had in my career, so many different attributes come to mind. I think of those leaders that sometimes just didn’t give a shit to those that treated me better than my own family. There was one leader that exhibited the traits of a transformational leader, whom I will never forget. His name was Mike Santos and I worked for him at Denver International Airport.
Transformational leaders do their best to inspire and motivate their followers without micromanaging their every move. Mr. Santos gave me and other followers more opportunities to be creative and find our own vision and solutions to problems. He was this type of leader and he executed this style quite successfully. I was very happy to have worked with Mr. Santos during my time in Denver. Leaders are authentically transformational when they increase awareness of what is right, good, important, and beautiful, when they help to elevate followers needs for achievement and self-actualization, when they foster in followers higher moral maturity, and when they move followers to go beyond their self-interests for the good of their group, organization or society (Bass and Steidlmeier, pg. 189).
Mr. Santos was different than most of the leaders in Denver. Where many “leaders” used a pseudo-transformational style of leadership, Mr. Santos was truly authentic. He came from a military family and had worked for the federal government in many places around the world. He had a sense of duty to do things correctly the first time and do them to an outstanding level of quality. He encouraged and motivated through positive reinforcement and shared his values and priorities through direct communication. There were also times when he used transactional leadership by creating rewards for team members to get them to perform. I wasn’t part of the group of followers that needed to be rewarded, because I was already performing at a high level. Overall, transformational leadership provides leaders with information about a full range of their behaviors, from transactional to transformational (Northouse, pg. 181). Mr. Santos captured my attention by inspiring me to identify with something great than myself. Such leaders call for sacrifice in the pursuit of moral principles and higher goals, validating such altruism by looking beyond the present moment to frame a future worth striving for (Goodwin, pg. 235).
I feel I was transformed by Mr. Santos for many reasons. First, I was not only new to the organization (Denver International Airport and the City and County of Denver), I was also new to the entire state of Colorado! These experiences left me exposed and open to learn and absorb more than I thought I would. During this time, Mr. Santos provided me with structure, by providing a solid outline of my job duties. He challenged me by letting me challenge the institution of the airport, as I brought new ideas to the fold. He protected me by stepping in when I needed help and encouraged me through high moral standards. The relationship we fostered together was an experience I’ll never forget.
I’m still colleagues with Mr. Santos to this day, having spoken with him off and on since I left Denver over 20 months ago. He was the one that hired me. He was the one that approved my Black Belt at the Denver Peak Academy. He was the one that entrusted me with the keys to the kingdom so that I could make it my own. We share ideas, problems, solutions and wish the best for each other. Learning the transformational style of leadership from Mr. Santos has changed me for the better. I appreciate everything he has done for me and will try and do the same for my teams.
Marques Thomey
November 20, 2019
References:
Bass, B. and Steidlmeier, P. (1999). Ethics, Character and Authentic Transformational Leadership Behavior. Binghamton University, Binghamton, NY: Elsevier Science, Inc. ISSN: 1048-9843

Brown, J. (2019). How To Be An Inclusive Leader: Your Role In Creating Cultures Of Belonging Where Everyone Can Thrive. Oakland, CA: Berret-Koehler Publishers. ISBN: 9781523085170

Goodwin, D.K. (2018). Leadership: In Turbulent Times. New York, NY: Simon & Schuster.
Northouse, P. G. (2018). Leadership: Theory and Practice (7th Ed.) Los Angeles, CA: Sage Publishing.


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