Today we’d like to introduce you to Gregory Stebbins.
Thanks for sharing your story with us Gregory. So, let’s start at the beginning and we can move on from there.
PeopleSavvy started in 1989 as a company called Stebbins Consulting Group. As my background was sales and leadership, that is what I focused on. My skill was reading people and adjusting how I interacted with each person based on what motivated them, their behaviors and communication style.
I added team building in the late 1990s and in 2000, Jennifer Cayer joined the company. Jennifer is now the CEO of the company and majority owner. In 2004 we changed the name of the company to more accurately reflect the kind of work we did. We were granted a Trademark for the name in 2005.
Currently, most of my work is executive coaching in the area of leadership development and teaching PeopleSavvy to young leaders. As a leader climbs the ladder of responsibility inside an organization, people skills are the prime reason for success or career derailment. By the time they get to the executive suite inside an organization almost everything rests on their ability to work with many different kinds of people.
In the past, I’ve taught large classes to corporations but found that the participants learned what people skills were, but couldn’t get past the information stage and apply the skills. Now I do either individual or small group coaching to ensure that young leaders learn how to apply the skills.
I’m currently co-creating a program called Transcendent Leadership for Peace Theological Seminary and College of Philosophy. This is a direct result of my 30 years of leadership coaching and consulting tied in with my meditation practice that has been ongoing for 5 decades.
Transcendent Leadership is about the “being” of a leader, not the doing of leadership. “Being” transcends intelligence, street smarts, political skill or business shrewdness. Transcendent leaders are able to be aware of and rise above many aspects of human consciousness. In that awareness they are able to hold in a consciousness that helps unbind others from their often self-imposed restrictions. They are able to connect purpose with loving, removing the anchors of egocentric limitations while bringing people together.
We’re always bombarded by how great it is to pursue your passion, etc – but we’ve spoken with enough people to know that it’s not always easy. Overall, would you say things have been easy for you?
It’s been an interesting road. I started the company just before the business downturn of 1990. Fortunately, I already had well developed sales skills and used those to stay in business.
We’d love to hear more about your business.
PeopleSavvy is a company about people. Most of our clients have been medium to large organizations. Of the Fortune 100 we’ve probably worked with about 25% of them. Our work involves three areas, training, coaching and consulting. We’ve done work with for profit, nonprofit, foundations and NGOs. We’ve worked with companies in Los Angeles and Internationally.
Jennifer Cayer, the CEO, has created a program called Fast-Q. This program integrates the hiring and onboarding of sales professionals in large companies. We help them create a process or streamline an existing process. The objective is to help a new hire exceed quota and shorten the ramp time between hire date and regularly meeting quota. Jennifer has implemented this in more than a dozen companies.
The balance of the work we do is focused on helping leaders and sales professionals improve their people skills. This goes much deeper than Emotional Intelligence and covers area such as motivations, behaviors and communication skills. Our approach is via individual or small-group coaching.
Lack of people skills is the primary cause career derailment for leaders inside an organization.
What were you like growing up?
I have an unusual background. I grew up in a military family that has a long military tradition. My father and three previous generations were all West Point graduates. The longest I lived in one place while growing up was 3 years, and the shortest was 6 months. I live in Brussels and then moved to Montgomery Alabama in 1964. I had more culture shock coming back to the United States than I did moving to a foreign country.
I was very involved in sports, especially basketball. As a senior in high school I was all conference and recognized among the top 20 statewide in basketball.
When I was 18, I started exploring Spirituality and took up a meditation practice. That practice has been ongoing for more than four decades and I spend about two hours a day in meditation.
These two extremes have allowed me to have multiple perspectives on life. Living and traveling outside of the U.S. has provided me with cultural perspectives that many people do not have. This is a distinct advantage when I’m doing coaching.
While I spent the first 18 years of my life in the military, I chose an academic approach to life. I have degrees in computer technology, finance and education.
I co-created a Graduate School in New Mexico that offered a Doctoral degree in education. Changes in regulations starting about 2013 caused us to close the school as it became too expensive to operate.
I am now co-creating a Master’s degree in Transcendent Leadership that will be authored through Peace Theological Seminary and College of Philosophy headquartered in Los Angeles.
Contact Info:
- Address: 13428 Maxella Ave.
Suite 601
Marina del Rey, CA 90292 - Website: www.peoplesavvy.com
- Phone: 310-578-5322
- Email: [email protected]
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