AC 1219 Larry Cassidy "Connector, Commander, Corporate and Chair"

Arete Coach: The Art & Science of Executive Coaching

Arete Coach Podcast

Business, How To, Entrepreneurship, Education, Management

5 • 1.2K Ratings

🗓️ 24 November 2025

⏱️ 71 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

In this special memorial episode of the Arete Coach Podcast, host Severin Sorensen honors the extraordinary life and influence of Larry Cassidy—Marine Corps officer, corporate leader, Vistage Master Chair, mentor, and friend. Drawing from multiple past interviews, Sorensen reconstructs Larry’s story, weaving together personal history, powerful coaching moments, signature questions, and original tribute songs written in Larry’s honor.

Born in 1937 in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, Larry excelled academically and showed an early aptitude for public speaking. He later served as a Marine Corps Lieutenant and Captain, leading Marines in the Pacific region with discipline, courage, and “bark on the wood” truthfulness—a philosophy that shaped his entire coaching career.

After a distinguished corporate career at General Mills, Quaker Oats, and Wilson Sporting Goods, Larry became a Vistage/TEC Chair in 1987. Over 38 years he earned numerous Vistage awards—including the Robert Nourse Chair of the Year Award and multiple Master Chair Awards—and became one of the most respected leaders in the Vistage global community.

Sorensen pays tribute to his friend through archival dialogue, reflective commentary, and two original songs: “Bark on the Wood – The Unvarnished Truth” and “He Learned to Listen to Understand.”

Larry discovered his true calling—guiding leaders through curiosity-driven, truth-seeking, deeply human conversations. He built a reputation for:

piercing, soul-searching questions
empathetic listening
courageous truth-telling (“with the bark on”)
community-building (“The Romper Room” chair gatherings)
and an unwavering belief in each leader’s potential

The Arete Coach Podcast continues to explore the art and science of executive coaching at the highest levels. You can find more about this podcast at aretecoach.io.

This episode was recorded on the 23rd day of November, 2025. Portions were previously recorded on January 4th, 2021, December 22nd, 2022, and December 12th, 2024,

Transcript

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0:00.0	This is the Aratee Coach podcast with your host, Severn Sorensson. And today I have a special podcast
0:06.0	episode in memory of Larry Cassidy, Connector, Commander, Corporate, and Chair. I have interviewed
0:13.9	Larry several times, and on one occasion, he interview me for my own podcast. I've pulled together
0:20.2	the best of moments from those recordings
0:22.6	and layered in some new thoughts as well on this tribute. Let's begin. Larry Cassidy was born in April
0:30.2	1937 in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. His parents, both University of Wisconsin graduates, with the profession of public school teachers.
0:39.3	In his youth, Larry carried newspaper routes and mowed lawns.
0:44.3	In high school, he played team sports like basketball, and he also ran on the cross-country team.
0:50.3	While his sports garnered no accolades, his mind and presence did.
0:55.0	In high school, he won a competition for his public speaking, writing a talk,
1:00.0	Voice of Democracy, that foreshadows his future career in the military.
1:05.0	He was in the United States Marine Corps from June 1959 to April, 1963, he was a lieutenant and platoon commander,
1:14.6	then promoted to captain and battalion logistics officer S4 and regimental
1:21.6	assistance officer S3A with the First Marine Brigade in the Pacific region.
1:28.3	Larry attended the Miami University in Oxford, Ohio.
1:32.3	He graduated magna cum laude with a BS degree in business in 1959.
1:38.3	After returning from the Marine Corps Service in 1963,
1:42.3	Larry attended Northwestern University's MBA program and he graduated
1:48.0	in 1964 with distinction and a 4.O.GPA. With his MBA, he went corporate and he worked in marketing
1:57.0	and brand management at General Mills and Quaker Oates.
2:01.6	Later, he was able to turn a personal passion of golf that anyone would know by merely looking at his email account handle,
2:08.6	Handicapper, and he turned that passion into an aligned business role.
	...

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