INTERVIEW WITH A

MANAGER
Steve Bagley of Superior Ski

Brendon Mayberry
11-25-14

Description of the Interview

For my interview I choose my current boss during the ski season because he does things
much differently than your average manager. After all I have learned this semester I thought it
would be interesting to interview somebody who doesnt fit into one exact mold. Steve does
things his own way but has been perfecting it for over 20 years. Steve currently runs Superior Ski
at Snowbird Ski and Summer Resort where he runs a very high end ski shop and manages 8 to 10
employees. This may not seem like a lot to some managers or very difficult but Steve works with
each employee one on one to guarantee a satisfied customer. I generated a list of questions to talk
with Steve about based off what I have learned in this class and what I have seen while working
with him. We met for a couple hours in his home/office to talk about the difference between
management and leadership and what it meant to him.

Questions Asked During the Interview

Background Information

How long have you owned this shop?

What did you previously do for work before opening the shop?

What pushed you to open the shop at that time?

Management Definition
Managers vs. Leaders Video
Steve jobs video
Manager vs. Leaders Video

What is your definition of management?

Do you feel like there is a difference in management and leadership?

Do you feel like you are a leader or a manager?

How have you developed those leadership skills?

How have you combatted any weaknesses as a manager?

What is one piece of advice you would give to somebody who has just been hired into a
leadership position?

Management Roles
Katz PowerPoint
Class discussion on 9/16 on Katz Model and Situational Leadership

When did you feel as if you had the conceptual skills needed manage your own
company?

Did the conceptual skills come to you before or after opening Superior Ski?

Which conceptual skill do you feel is the most vital for you shop?

Organization structure and Situational Leadership

Class discussion on 9/18 on situational leadership
Hurd, et al., 95-103, First, get rid of all the managers
Cake Boss

What is the Organizational structure of Superior Ski look like?

How has that organizational structure changed over the years?

How do you use this organizational structure to your advantage?

Recruitment and Selection of Employees

Interview Lab, Arnold et al., pgs. 75-79; 87; 99-105

What are some key things that you look for when interviewing an applicant?

What is a quality that stands out in an employee?

Do you focus on the application when hiring an employee?

What makes a good employee?

Mission, Vision, Values of the Company

Vision, mission and goals PowerPoint discussed on 9/30

How does your mission, vision and values set the tone for your company?

What are the mission, vision, and values of Superior Ski?

How do you factor that into your daily work, and get your employees to follow to these
expectations?

Has your mission, vision and values changed over the years as the market has changed?

Motivation
Motivation PowerPoint discussed on 10/9
Discussion 11
Arnold et al., pgs. 111-118
Hurd et al., pgs. 268-277

What motivates you to be the best Boot fitter in the industry?

How do you motivate your employees to work up to that standard?

How do you stay motivated after 20 years of this work?

Performance and Compensation

Hurd et al., pgs. 129; 132-138;143-161, Volunteer Appreciation

How do you decided on pay for your employees? Have you had issues with it?

What is the evaluation process and how does that affect pay?

How do you evaluate the company as a whole?

Summary of the Interview Questions

Background Information
Steve Bagley has owned Superior Ski for 21 years this season and has been the owner
and operator the whole time. He originally opened the shop after working as a ski instructor for a
few years than a sales representative for Nordica Skis for a few years. He saw a need for betting
boot fitting and better sales service to the ski industry. After traveling around Utah, Colorado and
Idaho selling products to shops he knew that his own shop would offer superior services and
better customer service. His experience as a ski instructor and sales rep gave him a great
knowledge of the ski industry and what skiers are looking for. Owning his own shop let him set a
higher standard of performance than any other shop had at the time.

Management Definition
Steve has a very unique perspective on management because of his past experience with
people. He believes management is one person giving directions to everybody else in order to
achieve a common goal. The difference between management and leadership comes down to
how employees view the person in charge. Whether they are told what to do in each task or they

know what needs to be done by what the person in charge is doing. Steve believes and works
extremely hard to be a leader for his employees. He does not have time to micromanagement
each action of each employee. This skill has been developed over many years by simply getting
in and getting work done. He explained to me that during his years in the military he was in
charge of about 10 guys and had to accomplish tasks on a daily basis. He found that when he
worked others would follow his example and everybody would get more done. The biggest
weakness of Steve is his lack of management skills when people get off tasks. He has combatted
his weakness by motivating his employees to be leaders and keep each other on track. By doing
this his employees monitor and self-regulate so that Steve can focus on his customers. I have
noticed that employees who have worked for Steve for multiple years have a huge respect for
him and want each other to stay on task and get things done. The one piece of advice from Steve
that he would give to a new hire would be to patiently discover what it takes to promote
motivation and earn the respect of the employees.

Management Roles
Steve wasnt sure what conceptual skills meant when I asked him this question so I
explained to him and he told me there wasnt an exact time. Between serving in the military and
serving a mission for his church were to very hard experiences that allowed him to manage a
large variety of people and pick up a few bits of knowledge. Taking these into the ski retail
world gave him a good foundation to learn how to better manage employees. He explained in
both of those circumstances he couldnt control who he worked with, where as a manager for his
own company he gets to choose his employees. The military and mission allowed him to see
what kinds of people he could work with and accepted his leadership which helps him to select

his employees. The conceptual skills mostly came after opening Superior Ski and he had a few
seasons under his belt. It took a few years before he was comfortable with what he was doing
and managing his employees. He tried hiring a manager at one point but had a hard time with
what conflicting ideas and decided it would be best if he managed his own way. Steve believes
the human skill is the most important conceptual skill because you have to relate to your
employees and customers. By understanding their needs you can satisfy them and both parties
end up happy and satisfied.

Organization structure and Situational Leadership

The organizational structure of Superior Ski is very simple with Steve as the manager and
in charge of all boot fitting. Ted is the assistant manager and in charge of ski tuning. All other
employees work together to get daily tasks done and manage each other and their actions. All
employees work on a similar level as far as conceptual and technical. Both the long term and
short term goals of the company are to guarantee that each customer is satisfied with the work
they have paid for. The organizational structure has always been the same except for a brief
period where Steve hired a manager for the shop. Steve knew this is what he wanted when he
started the company and has worked very hard to maintain the integrity. He uses this structure to
encourage team work and motivate his employees to work hard.

Recruitment and Selection of Employees

A few key things Steve looks for in an employee are work ethic, desire to learn and
focus. Each employee first goes through and interview with both Ted and Steve then has to work
in the shop for a day or two to see how they act and how well they can focus on given tasks.

There are only 8 or so employees in the shop and it is hard to hire mid-season so it is vital that
Steve hires good employees at the beginning of the season. By requiring that employees
demonstrate work ability he can see through the application and what the prospects are really
like to work with. He believes that anybody can learn the skills needed to work in the shop, the
important part is whether or no they can focus on a given task until it is done.

Mission, Vision, Values of the Company

Superior Ski does not have a set mission, vision and values besides making sure that
every customer is happy and that tuning and boot fitting are done properly. This sets the tone for
the company and everything that is done on a daily basis. By setting a simple mission of the
company it is always in employees minds and sets a clear standard around everything that is
done. This is factored into daily tasks by the leadership of Steve and how he treats each
customer. By setting the example he shows each employee how to properly get work done and
how to be the best. The company was founded on these standards and they are even more
important today. There are a lot of different ski shops but only a few boot fitters and he has to
show each customer the value of his services.

Motivation
Over 20 years of experience as a boot fitter has allowed Steve to see everything and solve
any problem a customer is having. This knowledge and confidence is what motivates Steve to
run the best shop. He believes in his knowledge and knows that each employee is doing their best
to take advantage of the knowledge Steve has. This experience makes Steve the best and both
employees and customer recognize that. Motivating his employees comes back to his leadership

skills and the example he sets with each customer. His employees know that if they dont offer a
great service the customer will be back for more help. All boot fitting is guaranteed so
employees have to work with the same person until they get it right. Steve is also always there to
help each employee and solve any problems. After 20 years Steve stays motivated by the
confidence he has in his knowledge and the fact that he offers a superior service than other
shops. Even in his mid-60s he has no plans to slow down or stop. I believe he is motivated by
each happy customer that leaves the shop ready to ski.

Performance and Compensation

Pay for employees is very simple and a lot of it comes from commission. There is a base
pay that is competitive for a ski shop and the potential for a lot of commission for employees
who want to actively sell and assist customers. Steve believes his employees are motivated by
money and those who work harder should be paid more. The evaluation process comes from the
customers and whether or not they buy from the employee and if they leave a tip. Employees
who sell more are generally working harder for the customer and striving to be better. The
evaluation of the company first comes from the numbers and how much has been sold each
month. More important than that is returns and overall customer satisfaction. Customers who
return products and are dissatisfied with our service are a black stain in the company and can
hurt the reputation. Each customer who walks out the door happy shows that Superior Ski was
successful and is ready for the next one.

Reflection of His Responses

In general I was not surprised by any of his responses because I have worked with Steve
a lot and have seen all of this in action. In some instances we had a conversation about past
experiences and what could be learned from them and how we would fix them. Each response
was clear and concise because of the confidence that Steve has in his knowledge and experience.
The simplicity in everything he does and believes in is what impacted by the most in the
interview and working with him. I see the benefit of not over complicating ideology in
management and leadership styles.
I have never felt uncomfortable in this management environment because it is straight
forwards and I know what to expect. I know what Steve expects of his employees and I know
what I need to get done in order to be successful. I have learned a lot from this interview that will
help my future management opportunities and leadership positions. Watching and working with
him has helped me to learn more about myself and how to work with others around me. I am still
exploring my leadership abilities but this job has presented another management theory that I
have a lot of appreciation for.
It is interesting to see how the lack of education in management has affected Steves
management theory. There isnt any specific management theory that he fits into because he
doesnt mold himself to somebody elses ideas. He organically started his shop and transformed
himself into a leader and manager by practice. There has been a lot experiences from him to
learn from including what not to do. In some instances his lack of management skills has allowed
employees to get lazy or to ruin the environment he has created.
During the interview we reflected on some of the issues with employees in the shop last
year and how they could be solved or prevented. Steve admitted that part of the problem was his
lack of managing employees every action but he didnt think that would solve the problem. He

believes it is about hiring the right person to get the job done under his conditions. There has
been a number of times, including last year where he hired employees that didnt respect his
management style and too advantage of the circumstances. Steve doesnt have harsh
consequences on the spot for disobedience but those employees are not given the opportunity to
return to work at the shop. There is a lot of people willing to put in the time and effort to work in
the shop and Steve can always replace a bad employee.

Exploration of my Learning
What I have learned from this interview is there are lots of ideas and philosophies on
management but what it comes down to is having confidence in what you are doing and setting
the example of what you want your employees to do. Management and leadership dont need to
be complicated and often times we get lost in the ideology. It is critical that you believe in what
you are doing, how you are doing it and that your employees feel the same. The less you have to
manage the better you are managing according to Steve.
Steve has a management theory of simplicity in work and leadership in work ethic. This
is not a management theory that would work at any company, it works at Superior because Steve
has created an environment that supports this type of management theory. Over 20 years of
running this shop he has developed a process that allows him to pick and choose his employees
based off their ability to work in this type of environment. It doesnt matter if somebody is the
best boot fitter in the world, if that person cant be a self-starter and needs constant direction,
Steve wouldnt hire them. His leadership skills are based around creating this stigma at the shop
that is supported by the employees he hires. Most people grow up in a society where they are
told exactly what to do and how to do it. Today that management theory is supported by most

because it is easy and consistent. It would work to run this type of theory in the shop and it
would be very effective. It isnt better though because there would be less of a focus on the
customer. There would be less freedom to the employees limiting their ability to learn and grow
through trial and error. I have greatly appreciated being able to work under Steve and his
management theory of leadership and example.
Steve is not a manager because he has no formal education as a manager that has limited
his scope of view. His concept of doing now and dealing with the consequences later has allowed
him to develop his own management theory. The theory of example is what I am going to call
Steves management theory. This theory is different because it is implemented by working hard
and knowing people will follow. I cant think of another great leader who inspired people quite
like this before. Most bosses I have had stand over me watching my every move, they manage
everything their employees do. This has been good in some working environments but is also
very annoying. Example theory is all about trying to work as hard as your boss and coworkers
because nobody wants to be the lazy employee. There is an awesome intrinsic push to work
harder and be the best employee, not for the money, but for the ability to say so. Because of this
intrinsic motivation all employees work extremely hard and accomplish tasks together and
creates example management theory.