Steve Sukup's guest appearances

Steve Sukup

Farm Equipment Podcast

Radio on the Go

ZimmComm Golden Mic Audio

Farm4Profit Podcast

Chad Colby

John Deere

Jessie Alt

Pete Buttigieg

Michael Berry

Brady Smith

Brandon Scott

Chris Stewart

Robert Bonnie

Jeff Spencer

Kevin Ross

Kevin Scott

Pam Johnson

Sonny Perdue

Chris King

OwlTail

The habits you have today will shape who you become tomorrow. Get strategic about your habits.What sets apart great leaders? Great leaders are fanatically consistent with a few strategic habits. Great leaders are fanatically consistent at doing the things most of us only do occasionally. Habits Great Leaders Have in Common The best leaders aren’t always the smartest, hardest working, or best-connected people. The best leaders intentionally commit to strategic habits that produce their desired results. The Habit of No Snooze How do you get out of bed each morning?Do you wake up naturally (with no alarm) ready to attack the day? Do you get up after your first alarm? Do you wake up to your alarm, hit snooze, wake up again, hit snooze again, and so on?According to a study done by the University of Notre Dame, 57% of people fit in that third category. When you wake up at the right time (with your first alarm or without it,) you’re telling yourself that the first part of your day matters. Pro tip: If you want to sleep better, plan out your day the night before. Going to bed with the next day’s lunch, outfits, or meetings already planned will allow your brain to fully rest, leading to higher-quality sleep.  The Habit of Pre-Deciding The basic principle of the habit of pre-deciding is this: Any time you can make a decision ahead of time, make it. Any time you can automate a decision, automate it.Decision fatigue is a very real thing. The more decisions you make in a day, the lower the quality of your decision-making ability So, as often as possible make a decision ahead of time. One easy way to do this is by blocking off regular time on your calendar for your most important tasks. When you make that decision ahead of time, you’re making it easy to become the leader you need to become.  The Habit of Doing the Hard-Right In your leadership, you’re always going to face challenges and obstacles. When you face these challenges, you’ll often have two options. The easy-wrong or the hard-right choice. You’ll always be tempted to take the easy way out. Many leaders avoid the Hard-Right because it will make a difficult situation even more difficult in the short term. You’ll never regret doing what’s right, but you’ll often regret doing what’s easy.  The Habit of You-First Leadership The natural trajectory of leadership is towards self.I get the credit when things are going well, and I shift the blame when things are going poorly. The habit of You-First Leadership will help you intentionally fight this inclination.Simon Sinek teaches, “The leaders who get the most out of their people are those who care most about their people.” It really matters that you actually care about people. And that care has to start in your heart before your people feel it in the office. But what if you don’t like your team? If you don’t like your team, you’re in one of two situations: 1. You have the wrong people. Unless you inherited your team, your team is a combination of what you’ve created and what you’ve tolerated. 2. You have the right people, but you haven’t led them well. You might have a capable team, but you haven’t led them to fit the culture, have a strong work ethic, or have passion for the mission. Both of these situations are on YOU. Side note: You don’t have to like someone to care about them. You can love and respect someone without liking them. If you want to start living with the habit of You-First Leadership, start every interaction with the other person in mind.Anything else they’d like to add?What does Success look like to them?SummaryChallenge

The habits you have today will shape who you become tomorrow. Get strategic about your habits.What sets apart great leaders? Great leaders are fanatically consistent with a few strategic habits. Great leaders are fanatically consistent at doing the things most of us only do occasionally. Habits Great Leaders Have in Common The best leaders aren’t always the smartest, hardest working, or best-connected people. The best leaders intentionally commit to strategic habits that produce their desired results. <ol><li>The Habit of No Snooze How do you get out of bed each morning?</li><li>Do you wake up naturally (with no alarm) ready to attack the day? </li><li>Do you get up after your first alarm? </li><li>Do you wake up to your alarm, hit snooze, wake up again, hit snooze again, and so on?</li><li>According to a study done by the University of Notre Dame, 57% of people fit in that third category. </li><li>When you wake up at the right time (with your first alarm or without it,) you’re telling yourself that the first part of your day matters. </li><li>Pro tip: If you want to sleep better, plan out your day the night before. Going to bed with the next day’s lunch, outfits, or meetings already planned will allow your brain to fully rest, leading to higher-quality sleep. </li></ol> <ol><li>The Habit of Pre-Deciding The basic principle of the habit of pre-deciding is this: </li><li>Any time you can make a decision ahead of time, make it. </li><li>Any time you can automate a decision, automate it.</li><li>Decision fatigue is a very real thing. The more decisions you make in a day, the lower the quality of your decision-making ability So, as often as possible make a decision ahead of time. </li><li>One easy way to do this is by blocking off regular time on your calendar for your most important tasks. </li><li>When you make that decision ahead of time, you’re making it easy to become the leader you need to become. </li></ol> <ol><li>The Habit of Doing the Hard-Right In your leadership, you’re always going to face challenges and obstacles. When you face these challenges, you’ll often have two options. The easy-wrong or the hard-right choice. </li><li>You’ll always be tempted to take the easy way out. </li><li>Many leaders avoid the Hard-Right because it will make a difficult situation even more difficult in the short term. </li><li>You’ll never regret doing what’s right, but you’ll often regret doing what’s easy. </li></ol> <ol><li>The Habit of You-First Leadership The natural trajectory of leadership is towards self.</li><li>I get the credit when things are going well, and I shift the blame when things are going poorly. The habit of You-First Leadership will help you intentionally fight this inclination.</li><li>Simon Sinek teaches, “The leaders who get the most out of their people are those who care most about their people.” It really matters that you actually care about people. And that care has to start in your heart before your people feel it in the office. </li><li>But what if you don’t like your team? If you don’t like your team, you’re in one of two situations: </li><li>1. You have the wrong people. Unless you inherited your team, your team is a combination of what you’ve created and what you’ve tolerated. </li><li>2. You have the right people, but you haven’t led them well. You might have a capable team, but you haven’t led them to fit the culture, have a strong work ethic, or have passion for the mission. </li><li>Both of these situations are on YOU. </li><li>Side note: You don’t have to like someone to care about them. You can love and respect someone without liking them. If you want to start living with the habit of You-First Leadership, start every interaction with the other person in mind.</li></ol>Anything else they’d like to add?What does Success look like to them?SummaryChallenge

Strong Leadership Habits w/ Steve Sukup

Steven E. Sukup  was born in Sheffield, Iowa and attended the Iowa State University  with a degree in Industrial Engineering.  A Republican, he served in the Iowa House of Representatives from 1995 to 2003  for Iowa’s 18th district.  Steve is now the President and CEO of Sukup Manufacturing. We don’t get to interview very many guests that have their own Wikipedia page!Our goal in the conversation today is to help provide insights to our listeners on how they can become better leaders to help them grow and ultimately leader to higher farm or business profitability.Let’s first roll through a little of the Sukup History – Giving us a starting Point for perspective on this conversation:Eugene Sukup, a young farmer, found drying to be slow, and pockets of grain began to overheat and spoil. Eugene began making the stirring augers and he patented the idea for the Stirway® stirring machine, and Eugene and Mary Sukup founded Sukup Manufacturing Co. in 1963. Sukup continued to expand the company to include a full line of grain handling products, including dryers in 1998. (Nearly 60 years in the grain bin industry as family owned)After serving as the President of his company for 32 years, Eugene Sukup turned over the position to his son, Charles, in 1995. His son Steve served as the company Vice President and Chief Financial Officer. Steve also served in the Iowa Legislature from 1994-2002 and was Speaker Pro Tem of the Iowa House of Representatives.What did you learn about yourself to balance your responsibilities as an elected official and the family business day to day responsibilities?What were some key things you learned about your state during your time as a representative?Eugene held the role of Chairman of the Board, and was active in the business until passing away in July 2018. What were some of the big characteristics of your dad that made him who he was and led to his success?Also, what about traits your brother Charles has that led to his success in the 25 years as CEOIn 2001, Sukup took a significant step and began manufacturing the grain bins themselves providing a “one stop shop” for grain storage and handling needs, and becoming an innovation leader in the bin industry with multiple patented features.On February 1, 2020, Charles Sukup transitioned to Chairman of the Board, and Steve Sukup assumed the role of President and CEO. Much of the family is involved in the company.What about having family involved in the success of Sukup makes them even more special?How does your family handle the regular company struggles when working with family?Do the family dynamics in Sukup resemble those dynamics of a family farm?Sukup Manufacturing Co. has kept its home in Sheffield, Iowa, the same community where Eugene and Mary founded the company in 1963. It employs more than 600 people.Ten years after a massive earthquake devastated Haiti, there are more than 300 Sukup SafeTHomes® in Haiti, and nearly 400 total worldwide. Sukup partners with non-profit organization GoServ Global to distribute these hurricane-proof structures for post-disaster relief.Where or who did the idea come from for the safe-t-home project?Sukup Manufacturing Co. remains the world’s largest family-owned and operated manufacturer of grain storage, grain drying and handling equipment, and steel buildings.Sukup Manufacturing doesn’t get to where it is by accident.  There has been some great leadership before you and with your contributions as well.  How can our listeners start working on themselves to be better individual leaders for the farms, their families, and their communities?Q: WHAT IS THE BEST ADVICE YOU’VE EVER BEEN GIVEN?A: I like to say that moving targets are harder to hit. So as long as you’re making progress, moving forward, make sure you have good information, make a decision, and then work hard to make it a success.Q: YOUR FAMILY IS ON A FIRST-NAME BASIS WITH MANY PEOPLE IN THE STATE AND ACROSS THE INDUSTRY. YOU’VE BEEN GENEROUS IN SHEFFIELD, AT IOWA STATE UNIVERSITY, AND AROUND THE WORLD. WHAT DOES THAT MEAN TO YOU?We enjoy our community. Iowa has been good to us. It’s a great place. I think I’m up to 42 states, and I’ve visited 31 countries, but I live in Iowa by choice and I enjoy it. It’s a great place with friendly people, and everybody’s interactive with each other.Q: WHAT KEEPS YOU UP AT NIGHT?Q: WHAT IS THE STEEL MARKET LIKE NOW? Q: WHAT TYPE OF SELF AWARENESS DOES IT TAKE TO GO ON A SEARCH FOR A MEMBER OF YOUR LEADERSHIP TEAM OUTSIDE OF THE FAMILY?WAS THIS INITIATED WITHIN OR BY A CONSULTANT?The Sheffield company, which has three generations of family members leading and working in the business, said Wednesday that John Teeple, a non-relative who worked 23 years in leadership roles at Deere, will join the business as chief operating officer.Teeple most recently led Amazon's worldwide business development efforts in agriculture and was a senior vice president at DTN, an agricultural data company that's based in Minnesota. At Deere, Teeple held leadership positions in manufacturing, research and development, strategy and technology.Q: WHAT IS NEXT FOR THE SUKUP FAMILY AND THE BUSINESS ?We have had the privilege to speak with various guests for over 3 years.  What are your reflections on the next list of tips for being a great leader?7 Tips for Leadership Success from Top Companies and CEOsRecognize your team's performance and give credit where credit is due. ...Develop a great strategy and build a great culture. ... Drive the Culture You Believe in.Be passionate, and keep learning. ...Stay courageous. ...Include your employees in your organization's goals. ...Embrace failure.Your Purpose is Fuel. ...Bridge the Generational Divide. ...Embrace Vulnerability as a Strength. ...Know the Details of Your Business, but Don't Get Stuck in the Weeds. ...Challenge Your Perspective. ...Make a Decision. YOUR decision Anything else you’d like for our listeners to know before we sign off?What do you know now that you wish you would have known sooner?Summary Challenge

Steven E. Sukup  was born in Sheffield, Iowa and attended the <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iowa_State_University" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Iowa State University</a>  with a degree in Industrial Engineering.  A Republican, he served in the Iowa House of Representatives from 1995 to 2003  for Iowa’s 18th district.  Steve is now the President and CEO of Sukup Manufacturing. We don’t get to interview very many guests that have their own Wikipedia page!Our goal in the conversation today is to help provide insights to our listeners on how they can become better leaders to help them grow and ultimately leader to higher farm or business profitability.Let’s first roll through a little of the Sukup History – Giving us a starting Point for perspective on this conversation:Eugene Sukup, a young farmer, found drying to be slow, and pockets of grain began to overheat and spoil. Eugene began making the stirring augers and he patented the idea for the Stirway® stirring machine, and Eugene and Mary Sukup founded Sukup Manufacturing Co. in 1963. Sukup continued to expand the company to include a full line of grain handling products, including <a href="https://www.sukup.com/products/farm#grain-dryers" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">dryers</a> in 1998. (Nearly 60 years in the grain bin industry as family owned)After serving as the President of his company for 32 years, Eugene Sukup turned over the position to his son, Charles, in 1995. His son Steve served as the company Vice President and Chief Financial Officer. Steve also served in the Iowa Legislature from 1994-2002 and was Speaker Pro Tem of the Iowa House of Representatives.What did you learn about yourself to balance your responsibilities as an elected official and the family business day to day responsibilities?What were some key things you learned about your state during your time as a representative?Eugene held the role of Chairman of the Board, and was active in the business until passing away in July 2018. What were some of the big characteristics of your dad that made him who he was and led to his success?Also, what about traits your brother Charles has that led to his success in the 25 years as CEOIn 2001, Sukup took a significant step and began manufacturing the <a href="https://www.sukup.com/products/farm#grain-bins" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">grain bins</a> themselves providing a “one stop shop” for grain storage and handling needs, and becoming an innovation leader in the bin industry with multiple patented features.On February 1, 2020, Charles Sukup transitioned to Chairman of the Board, and Steve Sukup assumed the role of President and CEO. Much of the family is involved in the company.What about having family involved in the success of Sukup makes them even more special?How does your family handle the regular company struggles when working with family?Do the family dynamics in Sukup resemble those dynamics of a family farm?Sukup Manufacturing Co. has kept its home in Sheffield, Iowa, the same community where Eugene and Mary founded the company in 1963. It employs more than 600 people.Ten years after a massive earthquake devastated Haiti, there are more than 300 <a href="http://www.safethome.com/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Sukup SafeTHomes®</a> in Haiti, and nearly 400 total worldwide. Sukup partners with non-profit organization <a href="https://goservglobal.org/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">GoServ Global</a> to distribute these hurricane-proof structures for post-disaster relief.Where or who did the idea come from for the safe-t-home project?Sukup Manufacturing Co. remains the world’s largest family-owned and operated manufacturer of grain storage, grain drying and handling equipment, and steel buildings.Sukup Manufacturing doesn’t get to where it is by accident.  There has been some great leadership before you and with your contributions as well.  How can our listeners start working on themselves to be better individual leaders for the farms, their families, and their communities?Q: WHAT IS THE BEST ADVICE YOU’VE EVER BEEN GIVEN?A: I like to say that moving targets are harder to hit. So as long as you’re making progress, moving forward, make sure you have good information, make a decision, and then work hard to make it a success.Q: YOUR FAMILY IS ON A FIRST-NAME BASIS WITH MANY PEOPLE IN THE STATE AND ACROSS THE INDUSTRY. YOU’VE BEEN GENEROUS IN SHEFFIELD, AT IOWA STATE UNIVERSITY, AND AROUND THE WORLD. WHAT DOES THAT MEAN TO YOU?We enjoy our community. Iowa has been good to us. It’s a great place. I think I’m up to 42 states, and I’ve visited 31 countries, but I live in Iowa by choice and I enjoy it. It’s a great place with friendly people, and everybody’s interactive with each other.Q: WHAT KEEPS YOU UP AT NIGHT?Q: WHAT IS THE STEEL MARKET LIKE NOW? Q: WHAT TYPE OF SELF AWARENESS DOES IT TAKE TO GO ON A SEARCH FOR A MEMBER OF YOUR LEADERSHIP TEAM OUTSIDE OF THE FAMILY?WAS THIS INITIATED WITHIN OR BY A CONSULTANT?The Sheffield company, which has three generations of family members leading and working in the business, said Wednesday that John Teeple, a non-relative who worked 23 years in leadership roles at Deere, will join the business as chief operating officer.Teeple most recently led Amazon's worldwide business development efforts in agriculture and was a senior vice president at DTN, an agricultural data company that's based in Minnesota. At Deere, Teeple held leadership positions in manufacturing, research and development, strategy and technology.Q: WHAT IS NEXT FOR THE SUKUP FAMILY AND THE BUSINESS ?We have had the privilege to speak with various guests for over 3 years.  What are your reflections on the next list of tips for being a great leader?7 Tips for Leadership Success from Top Companies and CEOs<ul><li>Recognize your team's performance and give credit where credit is due. ...</li><li>Develop a great strategy and build a great culture. ... Drive the Culture You Believe in.</li><li>Be passionate, and keep learning. ...</li><li>Stay courageous. ...</li><li>Include your employees in your organization's goals. ...</li><li>Embrace failure.</li><li>Your Purpose is Fuel. ...</li><li>Bridge the Generational Divide. ...</li><li>Embrace Vulnerability as a Strength. ...</li><li>Know the Details of Your Business, but Don't Get Stuck in the Weeds. ...</li><li>Challenge Your Perspective. ...</li><li>Make a Decision. YOUR decision</li></ul> Anything else you’d like for our listeners to know before we sign off?What do you know now that you wish you would have known sooner?Summary Challenge

Leadership and Innovation with Steve Sukup

2020 FJFD Interview with Steve Sukup, Sukup Mfg

In this episode of the Farm Equipment podcast, “How We Did It: Conversations with Ag Equipment's Entrepreneurs" (sponsored by Osmundson Manufacturing), Editor Mike Lessiter is joined by Steve Sukup, CFO and co-owner of Sukup Mfg. while visiting their operation in tiny Sheffield, Iowa.

How We Did It Ep. 20 Conversations with Ag Equipment’s Entrepreneurs: Sukup Mfg.’s Steve Sukup