Leadership Library

Mark J. Cundiff

The Encouraging Leader

Hello, welcome to my blog, The Encouraging Leader!

This is a place where you will be encouraged and equipped to meet the challenges you face with courage, confidence and enthusiasm!

This was all started as an experiment several years ago when a friend of mine challenged me to start blogging about all the leadership knowledge I had acquired over the years of studying leadership and running businesses. So, I began discussing the books I had read, conferences I had attended and life lessons on the job.

It is my hope that you are encouraged by the content you consume on here and that you go into the challenges of your day better equipped to go to the next level on your journey.

The purpose of this website is to provide information, teaching, and resources that help you grow in your leadership journey. One of the key principles I believe in as a leader is;

It is my hope that the content on this site will in some way help put you and your team in a position to be successful in all you do. It is my hope that this site will add value to you as you seek to grow and improve in your leadership abilities.

John Maxwell defines leadership this way:

I love that definition and how it frames the discussion around growing as a leader. If you grow as a leader your influence grows. If your influence grows then your leadership grows. Once you learn the power of this simple yet powerful definition it will provide a great foundation for you to expand your leadership abilities and as a result multiply your influence.

The purpose of this site is to provide engaging and informative content to help those that have a desire to learn how to lead at a higher level. I have spent my 30+ year career leading business organizations and selling different products and services. During the course of my career I developed a passion for studying and teaching leadership.

This passion for learning leadership led me to start blogging about what I was learning several years ago. It has provided an outlet for me to share what I learn from the books I read and training courses I attend as well as from the real-life lessons I have learned.

As a result of my study of leadership and practical application of what I have learned over the years I am often sought out by others for coaching and consulting about their leadership challenges and aspirations.

I hope you enjoy the time you spend on this site and find the information valuable for your leadership journey.

Elijah loves playing basketball for Cornerstone Preparatory Academy. He was named the Most Improved Player on his team as a Junior. He is a rising Senior who carries a 4+ GPA at a very challenging school.

Ethan loves playing electric guitar. He has been taking lessons from his great teacher Paige Garwood for 8 years. Ethan also began playing basketball for Cornerstone as a freshman last year. He will be a rising Sophomore who also carries a straight As report card.

My role is to lead change management initiatives and projects that enable under performing organizations to turn their plants around and perform at world-class levels.

Previous Positions:

ABB is a global leader in power and automation technologies that enable utility and industry customers to improve performance while lowering environmental impact. The ABB Group of companies operates in around 100 countries and employs 140,000+ people with global revenues of around $40 Billion.

Caraustar

I continued my sales career by spending 8 years as an Account Manager for Caraustar. Caraustar is one of North America’s largest integrated manufacturers of 100% recycled paper board and converted paper board products. During my time in sales I more than doubled the sales volume for my territory.

I was then promoted into the role of Plant Manager for my first “official” leadership role of my career. My next career step was to take on the Plant Manager role of our largest plant. In the course of a few years we increased profits over 40% at what was already the most profitable plant in the company.

When I left Caraustar in 2008 I was a Regional Manager for three converting plants.

Car Care Program

I started out my career in sales for a small advertising company, Car Care Program, Plano, TX. We provided direct marketing services for the automotive repair industry. I cut my teeth in sales doing door-to-door sales in the extreme Texas heat for four years. Yes, I was one of those guys you may have slammed a door in the face of years ago. That job was a tough job but a great learning experience for me. It taught me persistence and tenacity as I learned how to better relate to people in all economic classes and provide a product that added value to their lives.

Over the course of my career I have worked in various Senior Operations & Sales Executive roles in multiple industries. During my career I have built a track record of building & improving business operations. I am a results-driven organizational leader recognized for successfully driving change management processes that effectively improve all aspects of an organization’s operations. I have had great success dramatically improving safety performance through successful execution of behavioral based safety processes that transforms the organization’s culture to prevent people from being injured.

I am a passionate mentor/coach who effectively develops strong leadership teams and cultures that deliver superior results. As an experienced operations/business manager in a multiple industries (paper, metals, wood products, mining and tire production) delivered a successful track record of turning around under performing operations quickly improving profitability in a wide variety of situations.

In my spare time I love to golf, read, write and watch my boys play ball. I am a member of West Ridge Church, Dallas, GA where I have served in various volunteer roles: Men’s Ministry Director, Journey Group Leader, Men’s Group Leaders, KidQuest Story Teller, Community Makeover worker & other miscellaneous roles.