Baking & Snack - October 2019 - 12

Who are the helpers?

I recently watched a documentary about Fred Rogers, the
beloved host of Mister Rogers' Neighborhood who taught
countless lessons to millions of children. One of his most
notable was geared toward parents, when he recalled advice his mother gave him while watching news coverage
of a traumatic event: "Look for the helpers."
The lesson was that we should remind our children
that, in times of disaster, we can always see - and find
comfort from - those who are willing to help, whether
it's public servants, volunteers or just friendly faces willing to lend a hand.
But I don't think disaster should strike before we
choose to look for the helpers; they're all around.
In day-to-day bakery manufacturing, helpers can be
anywhere, from inside the R&D lab or the machine shop
to the plant floor or the c-suite. You might say I'm talking
about leaders ... perhaps. "Leader" is a complex term
and one that's often reserved for a person in charge.
But there's a difference between being a leader
and being in charge. I'm talking about servant
leadership.
When I think of servant leadership, Daniel
Servitje, chairman and CEO of Mexico Citybased Grupo Bimbo comes to mind. As the
third member of the Servitje family to hold
this position in the world's largest baking company, Mr. Servitje has an opportunity to carry on
the company values set by the founders while creating
sweeping change in the company and around the world.

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12 Baking & Snack October 2019 / www.bakingandsnack.com

I recently visited Mexico City to present Grupo Bimbo
with Baking & Snack's first-ever Sustainability Award,
in celebration of excellence in sustainable practices
through its four pillars: Wellbeing, Planet, Community
and Associates. During my visit, I learned about the 2020
Vision and Grupo Bimbo's purpose to build a sustainable,
highly productive and deeply humane company.
I also realized the belief Grupo Bimbo holds that everyone - every person, every product, every plant - has
the potential and responsibility to make thoughtful business decisions and do good for the people and communities it serves worldwide.
Two weeks later, Mr. Servitje participated in the
American Bakers Association's NextGen Baker panel discussion, where he was asked about his leadership style.
Without hesitation, he responded, "That is not for me to
answer. That's a question for Grupo Bimbo associates."
In my opinion, true leaders lead from within, not from
above.
Leaders are, innately, helpers.
In the pages ahead, I hope you find lessons from Grupo
Bimbo and Mr. Servitje on the possibility of building a
viable business capable of making positive and lasting
change for the future. To make that kind of change, you'll
need to look for the helpers. As Mr. Rogers said, "If you
look for the helpers, you'll know there's hope."
Oh, and don't forget to be one, too.
- Joanie Spencer, editor
jspencer@sosland.com

EDITORIAL
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Joanie Spencer
Dan Malovany
Nico Roesler
Charlotte Atchley
Anna Wiber
Karlee Renkoski
Donna Berry
Hikmet Boyacıoglu
Len Heflich
Jim Kline
Joe Stout

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Baking & Snack - October 2019

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