Helping People Reach Their Potential

Interview of Matthew Malone, President and Chief Operating Officer of Graham Corporation, by Gregg Vanourek, co-author of Triple Crown Leadership: Building Excellent, Ethical, and Enduring Organizations, for Leadership Jeffco.*

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Gregg Vanourek:

Matt, where did you grow up, and who influenced you most during your formative years? And how?

 

Matt Malone:

I grew up in Rochester, New York, with two working parents and a younger brother. My parents were both middle-class and believed in working hard. My Dad was at NCR for 35 years. It was a very committed relationship with his career, where there was continual progress. He was on the sales side.

What he taught me about leadership was you earn it through trust and integrity. And I saw not the flashy salesman through him, but more the informal, connection-oriented, grassroots-type leader. Then he came home every night to watch his kids play sports.

My Mom was a microbiologist by trade, and I would say her style of leadership was, Follow your passion, and that’s still with me today. What’s most interesting about her background is that she was working for Johnson & Johnson in microbiology with a pretty prolific career, and unfortunately one of my cousins passed away from cystic fibrosis, and she pivoted her entire career to study potential cures and solutions for it. Now we have enzymes that do that. So, her whole teaching to me was, You have to love what you do, and you need a mission behind it.

And then lastly, probably the reason why I’m where I’m at today is my grandfather. He’s an inventor, an engineer. I’d work in the wood shop, taking apart lawn mowers. He was the one who convinced me to go to Penn State. And then my career came from there. So, it was a whole host of folks, a network of people pushing and enabling me to do what I love.

Gregg:

What about pivotal moments or challenges during your formative years? Did you have anything like that?

 

Matt: 

I think the most pivotal decision for me in my career was first where I’m going to start my career. I ended up selecting General Electric, and the reason I chose that business was their commitment to young leaders. I went through a leadership development program in engineering with about 20 other folks, from all over, over two years.

I rotated positions every six months, and it just gave my mind this new vision for how everything interacted together, plus traveling the world. I learned a lot about myself. I couldn’t have started at a better business. There’s no doubt about how young leaders come out of the GE leadership program. They put a lot of emphasis on it. You see a lot, and you learn a lot about yourself. It was a great starting point.

The next big inflection was the decision to join Barber-Nichols, and it’s one that I didn’t take lightly. I had been at GE about seven years, and I loved it there. I was an emerging leader in the business, getting more and more responsibility. At the time, I was leading the turbo machinery team for locomotives. I was out on a ski trip in Colorado, and I asked if I could just come by and see Barber-Nichols. At the time, it was 65 people, roughly a $20 million business, and Dan Thoren, the Barber-Nichols President and CEO, said, Yeah, stop by.

Greg Forsha and Mike Forsha, two owners of the company, they just walked me around. I just felt this passion for rotating machines and engineering that I couldn’t resist. About a year later, I decided to interview, accepted a role, stayed at GE another eight months, found my successor there, and joined Barber-Nichols. Quickly thereafter, I became an owner of Barber-Nichols. I married my wife and had two kids. That was a pretty pivotal moment. What it really brought for me in leadership was entrepreneurship and giving back to your employees.

The last major pivot was selling Barber-Nichols to Graham in 2021. I believe leadership really comes out when it’s not needed. The ownership group at Barber-Nichols that had sold the business actually turned the earn-out of the deal into a bonus program for the employees as a chance for them to see some of the same benefits from the acquisition. Over the last several years, we’ve been able to give out between $2 and $4 million to our 200 employees. So, the last inflection point was, Take care of your people around you. They’ll take care of you.

 

Gregg:

With the leadership training at GE, what were some of the key takeaways for you?

 

Matt: 

The thing that stands out the most to me was the connection of academia to real-world application into this idea that the soft skills are as or more important than the hard skills. You learn all these book things about heat transfer and power electronics and all these things, but seeing how that applied to a locomotive, which is basically a power plant on wheels, brought to light what engineering really means and how physical concepts operate in real life.

The second part, the soft skills. I’m an intrapreneur, which means I love invention. If you look at my background, I’ve come up with all these wild ideas. At GE, the thing I learned was: The idea is one piece of it, but the ability to convince, influence, bring other people along, and get them excited about it is equally as important, or else a good idea can die. And so, just a number of amazing experiences during that young portion of my career.

Gregg:

You trained as a mechanical engineer, I believe, with a bachelor’s and a master’s degree, and eventually rose up through the ranks at GE and Barber-Nichols. And now you’re President and COO of Graham Corporation. Did you envision yourself as a leader like this initially, and if not, what inspired you to take on that mantle?

 

Matt: 

I don’t think you can envision yourself as a leader. The reality is, if you enable the people around you, they’ll be the ones to raise you up. I’ve never interviewed for a role, except for joining Barber-Nichols, which was actually, I would say, a downward move at the time. It was just following my passion, one, for Colorado and the outdoors, and two, for a small engineering business where I could have skin in the game.

I’ve noticed a consistent tendency for people to turn to me when times get tough. I will relate it back to Leadership Jeffco. At the end of the program, they give out these awards. The one that I got was the person that you’d want to be around if you were stranded on an island. I seem to get the same kind of award many times. I think the reality is, I’m calm under pressure. I really will look to save the whole community before myself.

There’s this idea of thinking out of the box to find a better solution. And consistently, I’ve just been given these opportunities to take on more responsibility, and then along with that is that my brain wants to think at this really strategic level. Yes, I can do the nitty gritty tactical, which is designing a rotating machine, but my brain wants to think at 10 years out: what’s the strategy? So, I’m grateful to have this background, and as the leader here, I’ll be leading Graham holistically. I’ve found the need for these skills over and over again.

 

Gregg:

Are there other leaders who have inspired you deeply, other than your father, mother, and grandfather?

 

Matt: 

The first is Brett Warden. He was a chief technologist at GE, and he had an ability to bring very complex situations to the most basic physics you could possibly get to. You could be talking about a power electronics problem that could blow people’s minds, but he could translate it in a fashion that was super simple to digest.

I’ve lived with that concept as I’ve gotten into more complex situations and larger and larger leadership roles. How can you actually install that message really simplistically? The other aspect of that Brett instilled: this idea of entrepreneurship, and this idea that you don’t have to fit into the box that already exists. He and I had brainstormed inventions and brought them to life.

The next is Dan Thoren, who is the CEO at Graham Corporation today. He had identified me at a young age, when I joined Barber-Nichols, as a potential succession plan for himself. It’s one thing to say it, and it’s another thing to do it. I’ve seen nothing but a demonstration of what good leadership looks like. And sometimes that means stepping out of the way to let someone experience what a larger opportunity or even failure looks like.

When Dan became the CEO at Graham Corporation, I had the opportunity to become the General Manager of Barber-Nichols, and it became this opportunity where I really found the opportunity to blossom. Without his assessment of that and the ability to make it happen, to allow me to step into that opportunity, I wouldn’t be where I’m at today.

And then, the last I have is at the peer level. There are quite a few people around Barber-Nichols who are at the execution level. They really are the people who are the DNA of the company. Folks like Art Crowe, a machinist, who’s machined every shaft that we’ve made for these critical Navy nuclear programs. You look on the engineering side and the ability to design a turbine that is bringing something to space. So, these individuals prioritize mastery over career progression in the conventional sense of just going upwards.

That’s one of the things I absolutely love about Graham’s umbrella, and more specifically, Barber-Nichols: the appreciation and the criticality of mastery. You could be the best welder, and honestly, you’re more important than the CEO of the business. You could be the best machinist, and you’re more important than your leader. I think leadership can come in the form of mastery of your trade as well.

Gregg:

We’ve been talking about it in bits, but I want to ask you about your leadership approach. How do you think about it? Tell me about your leadership approach in a nutshell.

 

Matt: 

I use the term “force multiplier”: if you can get to an environment where every single person on your team is maximizing their potential, then you can force-multiply your vision. Instead of having one person beating the message, if you can have 200 plus yourself, your reach is a lot further. That can be from community to suppliers to customers to your employees. The more people you have ingrained in understanding your message allows you to multiply even further. It’s so simple, and that is the core of it.

 

Gregg:

How would you say your leadership approach has changed over time, if at all?

 

Matt: 

Leading individual contributors is a lot different than leading leaders, because now that message has to go down several rungs, and it actually has to be clearer. So, the biggest change for me is that the message has to be more succinct, and it has to be mission-based. If the leaders below me cannot absorb it, then it can’t get down through the organization. So, clarity up top is critical.

The other is, Relate a bit, even though you can’t connect at every minor little level. What you have to be able to do is understand the gravity of the decisions that are being made and have appreciation for the decisions that are being made, even at the grassroots. You have to understand how it is that each individual is acting in a safe environment or not, and how do you address it. You can’t make these global decisions as a leader without understanding how the playing field works.

 

Gregg:

What are the biggest leadership challenges you’ve faced in your career?

 

Matt: 

I think the biggest is presence. There’s only so much time in a day, and you have to make sure that you’re that you’re applying that time in a very present way that can allow connection, but also not get tunnel-visioned. You can spend a lot of your time focusing on the problem people and/or the problem areas, and not focusing on what are your biggest strengths and opportunities or your best people.

I’ve really gravitated my strategy towards what I’ll call risk and opportunity, and really understanding, What are those risks and opportunity? And make sure that I’m nurturing the biggest opportunities while addressing the biggest risks, but not getting slanted in that scale. I think it’s very important to not get sidetracked to only thinking, “risk, risk, risk.”

 

Gregg:

Matt, you’ve had a distinguished career as an engineer and intrapreneur. You have several patents and publications. You’re serving as a senior executive. What are you most proud of as a leader and in your career?

 

Matt: 

All those just come with the territory. Two things. The first is, I get to come to work and do what I love to do every day. It makes coming to work a blast. I love it. I’m most proud that I’ve been able to have some of these accolades in an environment where I get to do what I love every day.

The second is just taking care of the people. It’s not even just the employees at Graham Corporation, but the community. I got involved with Leadership Jeffco. I sit on the board of the Arvada Chamber of Commerce. I go down and interface with suppliers and help them talk through challenges they’re having. I think it’s really the opportunity to try to help people solve problems. At the end of the day, that’s where the worlds intersect. Engineering is all about bringing innovations and problem-solving to an existing environment, and so just applying that same skill set to a different set of problems.

Gregg:

You said you love going to work every day. What is it that you enjoy about your work? Would you say?

 

Matt: 

For me, it’s twofold. The first and the most important is, I love people reaching their max potential. I just love it when someone or a group can do something that they didn’t think was possible. And then you see this momentum build, and all of a sudden what they thought they couldn’t do, they’ve already done tenfold. And I see that every day.

Second, I love seeing technology become an enabler. And the cool thing about what we’re doing today is that we make stuff. Graham makes vacuum and heat transfer systems all around the world. And Barber-Nichols makes rotating machines that launch people and critical assets to space. I love the impact of what physical product can bring, and then seeing people rally around that mission.

 

Gregg:

How would you describe the external impacts that you’re having and aspiring to have on the world, on our nation, on the community? What are some of the big ones?

 

Matt: 

Have you ever had that feeling of, You do something and you get to the bottom, for example, of a ski run, and you’re thinking, That was the best run of my life, but there’s no one there? It’s not a great feeling. You can have the best run of your life, but if you can’t share it with anyone, then it’s a lonely feeling.

I think the whole idea of bringing in the community there: you can feel success together, and you can also move through challenges together. I’ll use one example. The Arvada Chamber of Commerce, they’re working through initiatives on childcare and housing, and to watch the benefits impact Barber-Nichols and then the employee base here but then give even Barber-Nichols some of our profitability back to those environments. The tide is rising. At the end of a successful year, we can all look at each other and fist-bump and say, We did this together. As opposed to being at the bottom of the ski run saying, Wow, that was a really great run for myself, we’re all experiencing that together. It’s more that feeling of, We win together.

 

Gregg:

Matt, have there been any books or leadership theories or frameworks that have influenced you in your career?

 

Matt: 

They ebb and flow. I read a lot. Also, I write notes for every book I read. I have to internalize. And then I’ll actually go back and reread the notes, or even the book.

There is one that rises to the top. We at Barber-Nichols have brought in a leadership development course for both emerging leaders and leaders. The book that I’ve always handed out is by Adam Grant: Give and Take. I think the theme is, The best individual is one who can give and can take, and it’s that healthy tension between the two. Giving-only becomes a doormat, and taking-only is a short-term path to success, but not a long-term one. But give-and-take—that healthy tension can lead to everyone prospering over time.

I do believe in luck, but I don’t believe that you should depend on luck. Where it’s possible to improve your chances, I think that’s really important. Work on your weaknesses when you’re not in the Super Bowl is one of my key themes. When we’re on the one yard-line of the Super Bowl with three seconds to go, you’ve got all your best players in the right place, and you’re running the route that you think has the best probability of success. I’m a huge believer in utilizing strengths in really critical situations.

Gregg:

Matt, what was your experience with Leadership Jeffco and how it’s impacted you?

Matt: 

Totally eye-opening. I actually got out of it exactly what I expected, and that was, I really did not understand leadership amongst the community nonprofits, how they intersect with for-profit businesses, the mayors and how City Council works, how the City Manager impacts decisions around your community. The biggest takeaway I had is that a for-profit environment is for me, I love that competitive spirit, but I also love inclusiveness with the local community. The knowledge of how it works has made me appreciate the idea of community and for-profit business and how they have to intersect.

I have two little kids. We have several hundred employees around the world at Graham. If you don’t understand those intersections, you can’t possibly provide for your family, to the community, and your employees. I think just getting a better understanding of, What is the average compensation for this area? What does it take to live? How does the mayor work, and what are the responsibilities, and how can they influence our business? It was the interconnections that were brought to bear for me.

 

Gregg:

How do you continue to grow as a leader?

 

Matt: 

It’s pretty much endless. I’ll relate it back to my core values of my family, which are gratitude and adventure. Adventure is, Say yes and try new things, because you’ll always learn. And I really mean that. I will say yes and I’ll go try, and I’ll expose my family to those things, and in our business, to it. The first is, Be adventurous and try.

The other is gratitude. It mostly comes back to being grateful for the opportunities you have.

 

Gregg:

How do you navigate fulfilling your responsibilities across work and home?

 

Matt: 

It’s an ebb and flow. I wouldn’t call it a balance, because I don’t know that the balance is always there. The priorities just shift, and they shift in a very meaningful and tactical way. One week it could be that I’m in upstate New York at Graham Manufacturing and really focused on that time there. The next week could be connecting with the kids and bringing them to school each morning and riding the E-bike at night. I think it’s not so much of a balance as more of a prioritization.

The other thing is inclusiveness. What I mean by that is that I want to be in their stuff, so I’m going to swim lessons and teaching them how to ski, and spending time understanding what my wife does for a living, and supporting and asking questions. I bring them to the office, and I let employees bring dogs to the office, and I welcome having ice cream day, where families can come and be a part of what’s going on here. We have an upcoming day where people can bring families in to see all the equipment that we manufacture. I think inclusion is another key aspect.

 

Gregg:

What are some common leadership mistakes that you see people making around you or that you’ve made?

 

Matt: 

We’ve all made mistakes. I’ve made too many to count. Fortunately, there’s always a path forward. What I would say is just realizing that the people around you are most important. I think you can really get tunnel vision by the hamster wheel of just, Oh my gosh, I need to run faster and faster and faster. Sometimes just slowing down and making really important decisions. Connection can enable a whole bunch of different benefits.

The first is just consciously deciding where to spend your time and not getting lost in the rat race. The other is deep connection. Work is going to be here tomorrow, and some of those most important relationships are super fragile, and so just taking time to nurture them like you do with a garden. You really have to just put that time in.

Today, I haven’t been at Barber-Nichols for quite some time, so I actually just took the time to walk around and say hey to people and see the progress. I think it has a tendency to, one, inspire them, but to reconnect me to the earth here before I start making leadership decisions. Just getting my feet in the mud again.

 

Gregg:

Matt, I’d love to do some rapid-fire fun and more personal questions to get to know you a bit. Is there anything people would be surprised to learn about you?

 

Matt: 

I work out about 15 hours a week. That’s when I do all my processing time.

 

Gregg:

Any other hobbies or activities that you love?

 

Matt: 

I love gardening. It’s a chance to see something blossom from nothing.

 

Gregg:

Any favorite sports teams that you follow?

 

Matt: 

Die-hard Buffalo Bills fan. Now Graham Corp. brings it full circle, because it’s 30 minutes from where I grew up. In general, sports fanatic.

 

Gregg:

If you were going to have dinner with a historical figure or a current leader of any sector, does anybody come to mind that you would love to sit down and break bread with?

 

Matt: 

I write famous people. This is a picture of Warren Buffett. He wrote back to me after I wrote him. I just love his thoughts on life: It’s a long game. Relationships matter. Tough love can actually be good. Love. His daughter asked for a loan for a garden. And he said, Take out a loan, just like anybody else would. I really like those principles.

 

Gregg:

Did you have any unusual or fun odd jobs growing up?

 

Matt: 

Too many to count. My favorite was my freshman year of college. I was a greenskeeper, so I would wake up at four in the morning and do that. I just love that meticulous, Show up every day, put in the hard work, and see the benefits of your labor.

 

Gregg:

If you couldn’t do what you’re doing now, but you had to do something else very different, is there anything else you’re curious about or that you might try?

 

Matt: 

I’d probably try to master something.

 

Gregg:

Anything else you want to share—advice or guidance to early-career leaders who are thinking about their career and life path?

 

Matt: 

Do what you love to do, if that’s possible. And if you don’t know, search deeply for what you love to do. And surround yourself with people who want to see you bring that to life.

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Matthew Malone is President and Chief Operating Officer of Graham Corporation. Matt joined Barber-Nichols in 2015 as a Project Engineer focused on rocket engine turbopump design and development. He was promoted to Navy Program Manager in 2018, overseeing key U.S. Navy programs. Mr. Malone was appointed Vice President of Operations of Barber-Nichols in 2020. He began his career at GE Transportation where he held a variety of engineering and management positions. Mr. Malone earned his B.S. in Mechanical Engineering with honors in design optimization from Pennsylvania State University and his M.S. in Mechanical Engineering from Georgia Institute of Technology.

Gregg Vanourek is a writer, teacher, and TEDx speaker on leadership and personal development. He is co-author of three books, including Triple Crown Leadership: Building Excellent, Ethical, and Enduring Organizations (a winner of the International Book Awards written with his father, Bob Vanourek) and LIFE Entrepreneurs (a manifesto for living with purpose and passion). Check out his Leadership Derailers Assessment or his Crafting Your Life and Work course.

* This interview has been edited for length and clarity.

 

Tools for You

• Leadership Derailers Assessment to help you identify what’s inhibiting your leadership effectiveness
• Personal Values Exercise to help you determine and clarify what’s most important to you
• Traps Test (Common Traps of Living) to help you identify what’s inhibiting your happiness and quality of life

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