Former Olympian kicks off CVSN Summit with keynote address on how to thrive in a fast-changing world

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Updated Sep 19, 2019

Vince Poscente speaks at CVSN SummitOnce you’ve competed in the Olympics, Vince Poscente says the first thing anyone ever asks you about the experience is “Did you win?”

For more than 25 years he’s been hearing it, and while he wasn’t asked the question directly after taking the stage to begin his keynote address Monday at the 2019 Commercial Vehicle Solutions Network (CVSN) Aftermarket Distribution Summit in Banff, Alberta, Poscente still went ahead and answered the question that was on everyone in the audience’s mind: “No, not technically.”

Though he set a Canadian national record and gave his parents “the best experience of their lives” in speed skiing at the 1992 Winter Olympics in France, Poscente said no, he didn’t win a medal.

He finished 15th.

But while some may look at that finish as disappointing — Poscente admits he did in 1992 — he says now he can look back on the experience fondly. A journey isn’t required to end at a specific destination to be deemed a success.

Vince Poscente attended the Opening Ceremonies at the 1988 Winter Olympics in Calgary, Alberta, as a sports fan and a dreamer. He saw the athletes entering the building and thought one day he’d like to do the same. He didn’t compete in any of the sports in the games, but that didn’t matter. He knew what we wanted and he was willing to work for it.

After four years of intense research and training, a man who himself admitted in 1988 that he was nothing more than a recreational skier flew more than 216 kilometers per hour down a mountain in southern France en route to the fastest speed skiing run in Canadian history.

If that can’t be deemed a success, then such an achievement is impossible.

Poscente shared these stories of his past experiences during Monday’s keynote presentation in an effort to communicate to the CVSN Summit audience what people are capable of accomplishing when they are willing to seek discomfort; to step out of the status quo and strive to achieve something truly spectacular.

Poscente says it doesn’t matter if you’re trying to make the Olympics or trying to sell more truck parts, success isn’t reached through passivity. Success is achieved by accepting the world is changing and changing with it.

He says three keys to success he discovered in speed skiing that he’s found are equally effective in business are alignment, agility and aerodynamics.

  1. Alignment – In business, Poscente says alignment doesn’t start from a PowerPoint or from what a leader says in a meeting. He says true alignment happens at the individual level. Only when a leader is truly aligned on who they want to be and how they want to lead can they convey those feeling to their associations. Poscente says leaders should bring emotion and enthusiasm to their work and share that with colleagues. They also should make sure employees understand their value to their customers and society as a whole. He says that awareness increases engagement and aligment.
  2. Agility – On this note Poscente says anyone hungry to succeed must be willing to take chances and try new things. They have to be willing to do what the competition is not willing to do. He says when training for the 1992 Winter Olympics he once had himself strapped to the ski rack of a car going more than 100 miles per hour so he could practice his ski form. Business owners don’t need to do anything that physically dangerous, but he says they do require a willingness to do more than the same old routine. “Conventional wisdom can hold us back,” he says.
  3. Aerodynamics – Poscente describes this as eliminating the drag on one’s business. Clear the barriers so a business can function without interruptions and distractions. He says frequent interruptions reduce productivity and if leaders don’t prioritize eliminating such distractions they will occur. He adds data indicates more than 80 percent of interruptions are of little to no value to our work, even though they occur every six to eight minutes on average. On a speed skiing hill, a distraction could be the difference between a gold medal and a devastating crash. In business, the impact can be equally variable.

Seven honored during three award presentations at opening general session

GenNext announces 2019 4 Under 40 Award winnersGenNext HD announced the winners of its second annual 4 Under 40 Awards Monday during the opening general session at the 2019 Commercial Vehicle Solutions Network (CVSN) Aftermarket Distribution Summit in Banff, Alberta.

Sponsored by Trucks, Parts, Service, this year’s winners of the 4 Under 40 Awards were Kate Diecks, eastern regional sales manager, Kit Masters; Sean Ryan, president and treasurer, Point Spring & Driveshaft; Megan Vincent, marketing manager, Phillips Industries; and Jerry Conroy, North American regional vice president, aftermarket sales, Bendix CVS.

The awards were presented by GenNext President Nick Seidel of Action Trucks and TPS Editor Lucas Deal.

Trucks, Parts, Service is thrilled to recognize these four professionals for their enthusiasm and commitment to the independent aftermarket industry,” says Deal. “All are incredibly deserving and serve as wonderful examples to motivate other GenNext members to get involved in our industry.”

Former HD America and VIPAR Heavy Duty leaders Pat Biermann and Steve Crowley also were honored with the presentation of the CVSN President’s Award by Andy Robblee during Monday’s opening session.

Both men entered the aftermarket early in their careers as supplier operations and over time gravitated to toward their eventual leadership positions at the two buying groups. In being presented their awards Monday, the duo was humbled and appreciative.

Crowley thanked everyone who worked with him, first in his supplier role at Chicago Rawhide and then VIPAR Heavy Duty, noting their experience and cooperation helped him learn the business and become a stronger leadership. Biermann echoed similar sentiments about the distributors and colleagues who helped him shape HD America as the market’s first buying group in the early 1980s. The men also thanked their wives and families for their support in their careers.

Monday’s award presentations concluded with an honorary plaque presented to CVSN Executive Director Angelo Volpe for his 25 years of work in support of the organization and the independent aftermarket.

“This is a great honor … The people of this industry are top notch, down-to-earth, with a lot of integrity. This is very unexpected. Thank you very much,” he said.

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