Ep. 472 - Pepper Construction Senior Vice President of High Performance and Sustainable Construction, Susan Heinking

Second in Command: The Chief Behind the Chief

Second in Command with Cameron Herold

Entrepreneurship, Business, Management, Careers

4.5 • 1.6K Ratings

🗓️ 6 May 2025

⏱️ 41 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

In today's episode of the Second in Command podcast, Cameron is joined by Susan Heinking, Senior Vice President of High Performance and Sustainable Construction at Pepper Construction.

During this fascinating conversation, you'll be taken behind the scenes of a dynamic leadership journey where the balance between structure and creativity plays a pivotal role. Susan shares insights into navigating growth within a well-established framework while maintaining the foundational values that shaped the organization. With candid reflections, the conversation highlights how intentional communication and adaptability remain central to leading a high-functioning, purpose-driven team.

Hear about the art of managing complexity without losing touch with the work that ignites passion. Thoughtful leadership practices, including strategic delegation and fostering a culture of self-awareness, underscore the importance of empowering teams to evolve while staying aligned with larger goals. You'll learn how tools for collaboration and team dynamics are being reimagined to meet today’s ever-shifting challenges.

From embracing failure as a teacher to incorporating surprising reminders to stay lighthearted amidst pressure, this episode is rich with takeaways for anyone striving to lead with intention, empathy, and a little bit of fun.

If you've enjoyed this episode of the Second in Command podcast, be sure to leave a review and subscribe today!

Enjoy!

In This Episode You'll Learn:

The evolution of sustainability from energy efficiency to resilience and human health.
Susan's approach to presenting sustainability as a cost-effective solution to clients.
Her experience working in a male-dominated industry and the empowerment of seeing more women in leadership roles.
The importance of keeping employees informed and engaged with new information and technologies.
The role of managing company-wide initiatives and ensuring they are on track and on time.
And much more...

Resources:

Connect with Susan: Website | LinkedIn

Connect with Cameron: Website | LinkedIn

Get Cameron’s latest book – "Second in Command: Unleash the Power of Your COO"

Get Cameron’s online course – Invest In Your Leaders

Transcript

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0:00.0	Hey, it's Cameron Harold, the host of the Second Command podcast. Before we dive in, there's something you need to know.
0:05.5	If you're a C-O-O-V-P operations or you're in any role where you're the second-in-command to the CEO,
0:12.1	the C-O Alliance is the place for you. If you're the integrator to the visionary, you're going to want to join us.
0:18.4	The C-O Alliance is the world's leading community for the second command.
0:22.4	We've had over 500 members like you join from 17 countries to grow their skills,
0:27.6	connections, and confidence.
0:29.1	You'll get the tools, friendships, and a 10x guarantee to ensure that you get your
0:33.6	money's worth.
0:34.6	Go to COOalliance.com to learn more and see if you qualify. You can even
0:39.4	book a free call with our team to ask questions. Now let's jump into this week's episode.
0:44.2	I walk past somebody that I probably needed an answer for, and I didn't even say good morning.
0:49.8	I just spat out the question like, hey, do you know where? And he dot, dot. And he sat me and he goes, good morning, Susan.
0:56.6	And it like, oh my gosh, I am being way too serious.
1:01.5	And somebody's like, you have to keep it like.
1:03.3	Like, don't forget to keep it light.
1:06.0	And so I think like that's probably the best piece of advice I ever got as a younger person to like,
1:11.7	to keep it like.
1:17.7	Welcome to the Second and Command podcast, produced by the C.O. Alliance and brought to
1:23.9	you by its founder, Cameron Harold. In the Second in Command podcast, we talked to top COOs who share the insights,
1:31.1	strategies, and tactics that made them the chief behind the chief.
1:35.4	And now, here's your host, Cameron Harold.
1:42.3	Today I'm joined by Susan Hinking, the senior vice President of High Performance and Sustainable Construction at Pepper Construction.
	...

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