Jim Voss, CEO of Tenneco, took a different approach.
When he arrived, he found a company with great people, strong technology, and a toxic command-and-control culture that was holding performance back. Instead of a slash-and-burn strategy, he focused on changing leadership behavior, building a stronger culture, and investing in the business.
In this clip, Jim explains why culture was the first thing that had to change and how leadership became the foundation of Tenneco's transformation.
What we get into:
➡️ Why great people and great tech still weren't enough. The command-and-control culture was toxic, and it was choking performance
➡️ The hard truth most PE buyers miss: this was never slash-and-burn. Leaders build culture, so leadership had to change first
➡️ The mindset flip that made it real. The CEO turns into a blocker and tackler on the plant floor because culture is what you do, not what you say. How fast bad news reaches you is the truest test of a healthy culture
WATCH / LISTEN NEXT
➡️ Watch the full Tenneco Story (Part 1) with Jim Voss: https://youtu.be/TwOmVGRtRg0
➡️ Prefer audio? Subscribe on your platform of choice: theautomotiveleaderspodcast.com
#AutomotiveLeadership #AuthenticLeadership #CultureChange #AutoCulture2 #FutureOfAutomotive
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The Automotive Leaders Podcast is hosted by Jan Griffiths, the champion for culture change in the automotive industry. From a farm in Wales to the C-suite of a $3 billion Tier-1 supplier, Jan built her career inside this industry. Now she's out to transform it.
Her argument is blunt. The pressure on this industry isn't letting up. The survivors will be the ones who reinvent how they work. Speed wins. Everyone else gets left behind.
Every episode, Jan sits down with the leaders driving that change. Real conversations about tariffs, supply chain shocks, EV uncertainty, AI, and the shift from command-and-control to authentic, human-centered leadership.
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