Podcasts

Season 1 | People You Should Know in Forestry and Natural Resources | Episode 12

#12 | Foresters today need more managerial and social skills

November 24, 2016 | Scott Wallinger

R. Scott Wallinger, Sr. is a retired forester and forest products industry executive for Westvaco Corporation and its successor by merger, MeadWestvaco; today he is an advisor in forest sustainability. Scott earned a Bachelor of Forestry degree from North Carolina State and a Master of Forestry from Yale University, completed the Advanced Management Program at Harvard Business School, and was awarded an Honorary Doctor of Sciences by N.C. State University. Throughout his career, Scott worked in a range of field and leadership positions, both domestic and international in scope. This interview includes Scott’s reflections on leadership through the lens of forestry’s evolution and his varied roles that allowed him to both witness and influence this history. Get ready to learn from Scott’s extensive leadership wisdom on today’s episode.

Key Takeaways:

[3:20] What got Scott interested in forestry?

[7:35] What did Scott learn from being on committees where he wasn’t the leader?

[11:50] Scott discusses his time as Senior Vice President at the Westvaco corporation.

[14:00] What’s Scott’s global view of leadership, after working on such an international level?

[20:00] Scott has seen the forestry profession evolve in a number of ways over the years.

[24:10] When Scott finished forestry school in the 1960’s, the text books at the time focused on a very small aspect of the forest.

[27:45] There’s universal agreement that graduate foresters today need more managerial and social skills to meet the needs of their job.

[34:15] Where are we on the continuum from utilitarian to holistic forestry?

[39:05] What does leadership mean to Scott?

[42:50] When it comes to leadership, Scott recommends everyone read about T. E. Lawrence.

[45:25] You can learn a lot about leadership from reading about other leaders.

[47:55] Are leaders born or made?

[53:15] Tom’s Leadership Tip of the Week!

Mentioned in This Episode:
Scott on LinkedIn
With Lawrence in Arabia by Lowell Thomas
Their Finest Hour by Winston S. Churchill
The Admirals: Nimitz, Halsey, Leahy, and King — The Five-Star Admirals Who Won the War at Sea by Walter R. Borneman
www.leadershipnature.com