On the Way Up: Roger Hughes

Summary

Background and career

Roger Hughes describes growing up in Crawford, Nebraska, attending Nebraska Western Junior College, and transferring to Doane, where he completed his undergraduate degree. He later earned a master’s degree and doctorate at the University of Nebraska–Lincoln, including time as a graduate assistant with football coach Tom Osborne.

His coaching career included positions at Wisconsin–Whitewater, Cameron University, Dartmouth, Princeton, the Omaha Nighthawks, and Stetson University. At Stetson, he built a Division I football program from the ground up. He says the experience taught him about many aspects of running an organization—not just coaching—including facilities, equipment, recruiting, financial aid, and student support. He later became president of Doane University.

Building a program and a culture

Hughes contrasts taking over an established organization with starting a new one:

• An established organization already has a culture, which may need to be changed or strengthened.
• A new organization lets a leader shape its culture from the beginning, but also requires building basic infrastructure and systems.

He defines culture as shared, non-negotiable expectations: how people act, respond to adversity, and treat one another. For a culture to last, it cannot depend only on the leader. Every member of the organization must uphold it. For example, peers should reinforce expectations around punctuality and accountability, and focus on solving problems rather than simply complaining.

A strong culture helps people work toward common goals and raises the organization’s standards. Hughes argues that everyone must take responsibility for making the culture better.

Leadership based on principles and service

Hughes favors principle-centered leadership over leadership built around the authority or personality of the boss. If people understand the organization’s principles and goals, they can make sound decisions when the leader is absent or unexpected problems arise.

He highlights several practices:

• Be humble and listen, especially to people closest to the work. Front-line employees may see problems and opportunities for improvement that leaders cannot.
• Explain the “why.” People are more willing to commit when they understand the purpose and intended outcome.
• Ask what you can do for others. A leader’s job is to support the team, not simply direct it.
• Set and uphold standards. Leaders must address mistakes and low performance rather than silently accept them.
• Develop others so the organization can function without you. Hughes says an effective leader prepares people to keep the work moving after the leader leaves.

He distinguishes a manager, who may focus chiefly on the bottom line, from a leader, who puts the team first. In his view, taking care of people helps an organization achieve its goals over time.

Communicating across different groups

Hughes says leaders must adapt their communication to their audience. A university president speaks with students, faculty, staff, trustees, alumni, parents, and others, each with different concerns and ways of communicating. Clear communication includes explaining decisions and using language appropriate to each group.

He also describes recruiting, fundraising, teaching, and motivating people as forms of transferring emotion or passion. People are more likely to commit when they understand why the work matters and feel connected to its purpose.

Talent, strengths, and team-building

Hughes says effective teams need people with different skills and perspectives. He uses “diversity” broadly to include differences in background, experience, expertise, and strengths. His aim is to build teams whose combined abilities exceed what any one person could offer.

He lists five qualities he looks for when hiring or recruiting:

1. Character — the foundation for realizing a person’s potential.
2. Work ethic — persistence and hard work matter greatly.
3. A team-first attitude — people should contribute to something larger than themselves.
4. Coachability — the ability to accept guidance, correction, and support through adversity.
5. Talent — the ability to perform the particular role the person is assigned.

He advocates identifying people’s strengths and placing them in roles where those strengths can contribute most. Rather than spending all their effort trying to eliminate weaknesses, people can build on what they do especially well. He also notes that people may need different forms of communication and feedback, so leaders should learn how to coach each person effectively.

Lessons from sports

Hughes sees sports as a practical setting for learning lessons that apply to work and life:

• Teamwork matters in nearly every profession.
• Resilience is learned by facing setbacks. People will be knocked down; the important question is whether they get back up and learn from each attempt.
• Failure can be part of improvement. Athletes may need to struggle or fail before developing greater strength and skill.
• Know your role and help others succeed. Individual achievement is connected to the success of the team.
• Keep improving after success. Satisfaction can lead to complacency, so teams should review their performance and look for ways to do better.

Hughes says a leader’s legacy should be to leave an organization better than they found it and develop people who can continue its work. He also describes Doane’s purpose as developing students into leaders in their families, communities, and professions.

Advice to students and to his younger self

Hughes encourages students to build their skills, relationships, and personal reputations while in college. People do not succeed entirely on their own; learning to work with and support others helps individuals and teams advance.

His advice to his younger self is not to let a small-town background or self-doubt limit his ambitions. He encourages people to dream big, focus on fundamentals, and work consistently rather than look for shortcuts. He also cautions against comparing one’s path with someone else’s: people’s opportunities and timelines differ, and a deliberate, steady path may be right for an individual.

Speakers and sources mentioned

Speakers

• Travis Handler — interviewer and chair of Doane Leadership Educators.
• Roger Hughes — Doane University president and former football coach.

Books, frameworks, and examples Hughes references

• Simon Sinek and The Infinite Game.
• It’s Your Ship — a Navy leadership story Hughes recounts; the title is unclear in the auto-generated subtitles.
• Extreme Ownership — a leadership book title that appears garbled in the subtitles.
• Gallup StrengthsFinder — the strengths-assessment framework Hughes discusses.
• The Captain Class — cited in connection with the importance of team captains.
• Pat Riley and Michael Jordan — referenced for ideas about sacrifice and team success.
• The New England Patriots, Alabama, the New Zealand All Blacks, and the U.S. Navy SEALs — cited as examples of high-performing teams and continuous improvement.
• Nick Saban, Bill Belichick, and Tom Brady — named as examples of sustained high standards and discipline.