|
Getting your Trinity Audio player ready...
|
Early in the morning, half awake and eating breakfast before school, Willie White and his older brother would hear inspirational speeches from their father. In these motivational moments, their father would tell them they could be anything they wanted to be. One story involved becoming lawyers and running their own law firm.
“That was the first time I thought about going into law,” says White, a native of Charlotte, North Carolina.
Another significant influence was the attorney White’s uncle hired to help his grandparents secure ownership of their home. His grandfather had purchased the house but hadn’t obtained the title. White recalls the attorney’s help in resolving the situation was “one of the best things that happened to them.”
And then there was Johnny Cochran. “I don’t know any Black lawyer who wasn’t inspired by the excellence of Johnny Cochran or Willie Gary,” he says.
These influences inspired White to become the first person in his family to go to college (he studied economics at North Carolina Agricultural and Technical State University) and to earn a JD (from North Carolina Central University School of Law).
He built his expertise in private practice at Perkins Coie and Womble Carlyle Sandridge & Rice (currently known as Womble Bond Dickinson) before moving in-house at Wells Fargo, Driven Brands, and Adobe.
Willie White
“How can we cultivate a culture that inspires our workforce but then also supports our long-term strategy and what we want to be, if you will, when we grow up?”
Now, White is the assistant general counsel for corporate governance and securities and assistant corporate secretary at JELD-WEN, which he joined in January 2023.
His years in private practice provided him with broad array of experiences that “laid the foundation for my career now,” he explains. “I can identify issues and assess risk even at the highest levels at the company as assistant corporate secretary.”
Being in-house allows White to tap into his business and economics background because as in-house counsel, he gives advice that informs business decisions. “I get to use the part of me that likes thinking about strategy, customer impact, and long-term goals and priorities,” he says.
In his role at JELD-WEN, White leads securities reporting and disclosure and the global ESG function, which is responsible for publishing the company’s annual ESG report. He also supports the organization’s board of directors and subsidiary management.
It’s been an exciting time for White because JELD-WEN is in the midst of its own transformational journey. The company is reevaluating both the business and the workplace culture.
“How can we cultivate a culture that inspires our workforce but then also supports our long-term strategy and what we want to be, if you will, when we grow up?” he says.
The transformational initiative—which White is undeniably excited for and heavily involved in—started with a survey designed to measure the overall health of the company. The survey, sent to most JELD-WEN associates, looked for what the company was doing well, what it could do better, and where there were opportunities for improvement. The company then used the results to create a culture and capabilities workstream and change agent network.
The network comprises people across the organization, including White. They have conversations with colleagues throughout JELD-WEN, identifying areas of improvement, brainstorming changes, and testing those ideas before implementing them across the company.
“I see myself as a person who doesn’t just talk the talk but walks the walk,” White says. “I am focused on being an example of what I want to see.”
White is a values-based leader. A major value he lives out in his own leadership is accountability. He believes in taking responsibility and ownership of your work—a value that applies regardless of leadership or management experience.
Respect is another value that is high on White’s list. He is a manager and leader who will never ask someone to do something or make a commitment he isn’t willing to take on himself. He follows the golden rule: treat others the way you want to be treated.
White believes in operating from a place of humility and respect. That creates a chain reaction: your team does well, then you do well, then your boss does well, and then your CEO and the company does well.
“It creates a collaborative and respectful environment where folks feel valued,” White says.
White may still be early in his tenure at JELD-WEN, but he’s on a mission to drive business strategy through legal, governance, and culture transformation.
“As outside counsel, Womble’s Public Company Advisory Team has worked with Willie on many projects. He is a smart, practical and strategic lawyer; we always look forward to working with Willie and his team.”
–Chris Gyves, Jamie Francis and Sid Shenoy, Partners
