John Ferguson, chairman, Suncor Energy
Lesson in Leadership
John Ferguson enjoys having an impact on an organization and, through it, influencing society at large. Hence his affinity for leadership roles – lots of them. Currently, he’s chairman of Suncor Energy Inc., chairman and founder of Princeton Developments Ltd. and Princeton Ventures Ltd., a director of Fountain Tire Ltd. and RBC, and the list goes on. And despite what he’s achieved in each role, Ferguson, chartered accountant by training and property developer by experience, isn’t inclined to dwell on the past – unless it’s to learn from it to anticipate the future.
You’ve seen a couple of downturns. What leadership skills saw you through them?
We saw two major real estate crashes: one in the early ’80s, one in the early ’90s. Once you’re into it, there’s not much you can do about it. The key is to prepare. For example, the crash that happened here in Western Canada in the real estate business in the early 1980s, once you were into it, it was a freefall… [Before that] I thought something was going to happen. I didn’t have any idea of the magnitude, but I was always prepared and thinking about the worst case that could happen, and what if it does happen, and how are we going to handle it.
You’re talking about foresight.
And about not following the herd. Good leaders don’t follow the herd; they use their own instinctive abilities.
Some would say that, when you sold off Princeton Development assets in 2006, you foresaw the most recent downturn. How did you know?
You don’t know. We never saw real estate prices or values that high. I thought they’d probably go a lot higher, but I’d never seen them that high before. And that becomes the basis on which you make a decision. They did go a little higher, but usually when things are bubbling along there’s usually something that’s going to go wrong and you can’t see it, you don’t know what it’s going to be.
Why do so many different things right now?
As you go through life, you want to do interesting and exciting things – you like to be involved in the process. It’s fun to be able to play in the various games and be able to contribute something to society at the same time.
How do you manage your time between them all?
You have to make sure you don’t overextend yourself because people who get involved in various organizations always get asked to get involved in more organizations. So you have to learn when to say no and pick and choose those organizations… in which you have an interest. Because if you don’t have a strong, passionate interest in it, I don’t think you’d be very effective.
Do refocus your personal skill set for each of your leadership roles?
You’ve got to make sure that within an organization you have diverse skills. That’s part of the role of a leader: making sure those skills are there. It’s not the skills, necessarily, that you have. Strong leaders cultivate strong leaders below them.
There’s an aspect of delegation associated with that.
Absolutely. But it’s more than delegation. It’s being a good listener and communicator. You’ll never find a strong leader that’s not a strong listener.
What is good listening?
Being able to hear the messages being said, not necessarily the words, and then being able to communicate accordingly. You can never over-communicate with people, whether it’s your business partners, suppliers, employees, shareholders. And that’s communicating the bad and the good. A lot of organizations have a tendency to communicate just the good, but it’s important that those that you’re dealing with get the whole picture.
What’s the best way to deliver bad news?
Don’t hide it; just be straight up. And that’s tough. You don’t like to say “We failed” or “We’re not doing very well here.” That’s a bit like admitting to defeat, but you’ve got to do it.
What would you identify as other strong leadership qualities?
A good leader has to have patience, and at the same time have a really good sense of urgency: be patient, yet know when to act.
How did your chartered accountant background affect your leadership style?
I think a chartered accountant background is probably the best background that any business leader can have. It just gives you that broad base of understanding finance and balance sheets and the basis of business. And discipline. It teaches you a great deal about discipline: sticking with projects, understanding what’s right from wrong.
What other experiences have contributed?
It’s when those mentors that you’ve had over the years give you the opportunity to take on responsibility. A big one for me was when I was the chief financial officer at Numac Oil and Gas, when I was still in my 20s. The CEO, Bill MacGregor, gave me the opportunity to develop a couple of office buildings. We developed Petroleum Plaza [in downtown Edmonton]. He had faith in me and I took advantage of the opportunity. We got good results. Once you’ve had good results, people start to believe in you and then you move on to the next opportunity.
How do you know it’s time for somebody else to take that lead?
You watch them. You’re always a little careful about how much responsibility you give them until they prove themselves and then you give them a little more.
You leave room for mistakes?
We all make lots of those. I’ve only learned from my mistakes. I don’t think I’ve learned from my successes. You just learn what not to do.
What was your contribution to the Suncor, Petro-Canada merger?
Being the chairman of the company, being the aggressor to make it happen. There were four people involved: from Petro-Canada, there was Brian MacNeill, their chairman, and Ron Brenneman, their CEO, and then Rick and myself. There was a great deal of trust between the four of us and that went a long way to make that transaction happen.
How do you establish that trust?
We built it over a few years. We played golf together and got to know each other well, had dinners together. Rick and Ron went fishing and hunting together and Brian and I are old chartered accountants and knew each other from way back.
Where do you rank that amongst your accomplishments?
That was the biggest deal done in Canadian history, so it’s got to rank up pretty high. I guarantee you one thing: I’ll never do a bigger deal.
Do you ever look back on things in terms of a legacy?
No, never. I don’t know why you would. In fact, I don’t look back very often. I don’t think there’s a great deal of satisfaction in looking back. The key is: Where are you going in the future? Look forward.
Born: 1941
Education: B.Comm., University of Alberta, 1964; CA designation, 1967
Key to leadership: Listen carefully; Groom new leaders; Don’t hide bad news
Model leaders: Rick George, Gord Nixon
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