Posted June 24, 2015

I’ve had the privilege, as many of you have, of hearing Allen Gant Jr. speak on several occasions. The Glen Raven, Inc. chairman and CEO is one of those orators who, when you see his name on the program, you look forward to hearing. Without a doubt, you know he will enlighten and inspire you with sage knowledge and will leave you pumped up and ready to take on any challenge.

 

I most recently heard him keynote dinner during the Outlook Conference, co-developed by the United States Industrial Fabrics Institute (USIFI) and the Narrow Fabrics Institute (NFI), divisions of the Industrial Fabrics Association International (IFAI). For 30 minutes, he wowed the more than 100 attendees with passion, purpose and profundity at The Greenbrier in West Virginia. (Read a transcription here.)

 

What’s interesting about Gant is that most of his speeches are similarly themed – usually around the changing world from a 10,000-foot level – but are always chock full of fresh, provocative information and data you probably didn’t know. What’s equally impressive is I’ve never seen him use a note nor a teleprompter when he speaks. It all seems extemporaneous, wisdom gleaned from many years traveling the world, changing a business model and thriving in this topsy-turvy textile industry – as well as keeping a close eye on events that are often occurring at lightning speed.

 

He spoke of the importance of such prescience during this conference. Sometimes, he said, we all get so mired in the work we do every day, we never look up. “We become myopic and never look down the street,” he said. That can be a fatal mistake, he added: “The world is going to change while you are here at Outlook and unless you’re prepared to change with it and get more competitive, you will lose the fight you’re in by tomorrow,” he said. “There are no less than 100 million people who would love to have your business today. And, quite frankly, they would be happy to kill you to get that business.”

 

Expounding on the subject of the fast-changing world, Gant used the term “paradigm shift” frequently to make his point. Such tectonic movements have never been experienced before, not with the speed in which they’re occurring these days, he said. These mega-trends are already having a huge impact on the world’s economy, global business, mortality rates, connectivity and many other things, he said. “Maverick innovators,” as he called them, are responsible for some of those paradigm shifts because their out-of-the-box thinking and ability to set their ideas in motion have brought about true, impactful change.

 

Huge philanthropic efforts also are bringing forth rapid change, he said, particularly around efforts to improve water quality around the world. Such endeavors are helping to improve quality of life, increase longevity, create healthier world communities and, in effect, build new markets.

The ability to recognize and respond to these changes starts at the top, Gant said, with leadership. He asked whether leaders have the courage and strength to change, and the ability to unshackle employees so they can have the ability innovate. “Do you have the courage to identify the market that you have a competitive advantage in and do you have the ability to turn your associates loose to capture that market and to get out of their way?” he asked.