Garry Ridge
- Former CEO of WD-40 Company
- World-Renowned Expert in Creating Top Organizational Culture
- Named Igniter of the Year by Simon Sinek (2016)
Travels From
California
Garry Ridge Speaker Biography
Garry Ridge has 25 years of experience as Chairman and CEO of WD-40 Company. He is also an adjunct professor at the University of San Diego, where he teaches the principles and practices of corporate culture in the Master of Science in Executive Leadership program.
Garry’s philosophy on company culture is based on Aristotle’s quote – “Pleasure in the job puts perfection in the work.” Turning that into action, he believes that all leaders can create a workplace where you go to work each day, make a contribution to something bigger than yourself, learn something new, feel safe, are protected, and are provided freedom by a set of values and go home happy!
He is passionate about the learning and empowering organizational culture he has helped establish at the WD-40 Company. In 2009, he co-authored a book with Ken Blanchard outlining his effective leadership techniques, titled “Helping People Win at Work: A Business Philosophy Called ‘Don’t Mark My Paper, Help Me Get an A.” A native of Australia, Mr. Ridge holds a certificate in Modern Retailing and a Master of Science in Executive Leadership from the University of San Diego.
As part of Garry’s commitment to helping companies of all sizes duplicate his success via workplace culture transformation, he makes a limited number of days out of every year available for keynote speaking engagements. He wraps his inspiring personal stories of his work at WD-40 Company with universally applicable steps and programs that any leader of any company can adapt. Audiences most likely to benefit from his program are already engaged in human capital development and/or they lead organizations that are going through a period of significant change.
The Power of The Learning Moment Culture
"At WD-40 we do not make mistakes, either we win or we learn. We want to enhance learning moments." This quote from Garry Ridge about the company he has been CEO of since 1997, WD-40 Company, perfectly summarizes the power of the Moment of Learning culture. In this keynote speech Garry will teach the audience the benefits that this culture brings to companies that implement it. Audiences will also walk away with a deeper understanding about the best ways to apply this culture in the company so that workers follow it and are aware of its benefits while increasing their commitment and engagement.
The 10 Traits of Leadership
Chosen in 2017 as one of the Top 10 Global CEOs, Garry Ridge is arguably an outstanding leader. Among his most important achievements is being the CEO of the WD-40 Company since 1997, and during this time he managed to multiply the market value of the company by six, from 250 million dollars to $1.6 billion. In this keynote speech he will talk about the 10 key elements for effective leadership.
How to create a tribal workplace culture where employees go to work happy; invest their passion, skills, and energy into a cause larger than themselves; go home happy
Currently in most companies in the world, 70% of the people who work in them do not feel engaged. They do not feel aligned with their values, vision or objectives. What are they doing wrong? Is it the companies or the people that cause it? In this speech by one of the leading company culture leaders, Garry Ridge, CEO of the WD-40 company, one of the companies with the highest index of committed employees in the world, he will explain step by step how they have managed to create a tribal culture in the company, detailing what changes they applied in the way they treat and communicate with their employees. In addition, it will also share the benefits it provides for both employees and the company.
Additional Topics:
- Critical decisions every leader must make before committing to cultural transformation
- The six critical characteristics of a highly engaged culture
- The personal journey every CEO takes when implementing organizational cultural transformation
