Leadership Spotlight: Marty DiFiore of Palltronics
Palltronics: Palltronics is a smart pallet company with disruptive technology and Fortune 500 customers
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/marty-difiore-78854a8/
Is there a company or company leader who you admire? Why?
I have had the privilege to work and learn from some very good business leaders including Sergio Marchione, the CEO of FiatChrysler Automobiles. I ran one of the business units for the Company and often was in meetings with him. Trust me, being in a meeting with him wasn’t easy. His guiding principles of leadership consisted of how well you lead people and how well you lead change. And he measured you every time you interacted with him. He pushed me like many in his organization, he pushed leaders to achieve excellence. I can say I am a better leader due to my experience working at FiatChrysler while he was CEO.
It’s a very simple but guiding rule – “The only mark of a leader is the leaders he or she leaves behind”.
What are you reading right now? And why?
I am reading “American Prometheus – The Triumph and Tragedy of L. Robert Oppenheimer”. The latest movie that was released last year was based on this book. I have seen the movie, but I think the book is much better. I enjoy books that are based on historical significance or about influential individuals.
In my teenage years I worked with a WWII Marine veteran who fought in a number of island beach invasions in the pacific. He never talked to anyone about his horrific combat experiences, but I think one day he saw that it might help me learn something about history – so he told me his perspective on use of the two atomic bombs on Japan. He said that after the surrender, he actually landed in Japan and saw firsthand the Japanese defenses, and given he was scheduled be in the earlier “invasion waves” he told me that there was no way he would have survived. And even though the two bombs killed civilian population and has been questioned whether it was morally justifiable, he strongly believed the “bomb” saved his life…and he told me…if anyone ever tells you the atom bomb didn’t save lives, you need to tell them “bulls#%$!”. Because of his story, I feel I have a real connection with this book.
If you could put a single statement on a billboard, what would it say?
It would be from Sergio Marchione. It’s a very simple but guiding rule – “The only mark of a leader is the leaders he or she leaves behind”.
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