Podcasts

Season 3 | Young Professonals in Forestry and Natural Resources | Episode 12

#47 | A good leader takes a little more than her share of the blame and little less than her share of the credit

October 25, 2017 | Tera King

Tera King is a forester and partner at Northwest Management, Inc., a forestland and environmental management consulting firm based in Idaho, Montana, and Washington. Tera worked her way up through roles like backcountry ranger, trail crew, timber cruiser, and firefighter to being the leader of Northwest’s Management Services Division and acting CEO for their real estate brokerage, Northwest Rural Properties, LLC. Tera earned her B.S. in Forest Resources from the University of Idaho and her MBA from Norwich University in Vermont. In this episode, Tera discusses her career path, learning moments along the way, and some important skills that young forestry professionals need to have in order to be more prepared professionally. For example, she points out on this show, “Your employer can’t teach you good work ethic and good attitude,” giving insight into what employers are looking for in new and successful employees.

Key Takeaways:

[1:15] A quick intro about Tera’s background.

[2:25] How did Tera first get started in forestry?

[4:40] Tera had some work experience in college; how did that help her land a job in forestry?

[5:45] What other piece of advice can Tera give young forestry professionals who are about to enter the workforce?

[7:05] How did Tera first get started at Northwest Management?

[8:15] What’s it like working for Northwest Management?

[9:15] Why did Tera go back to school for her MBA?

[12:25] What are some of the challenges young professionals today face?

[13:20] There are a lot of social issues now in the forestry industry and we need good communicators to interact with a wide range of publics.

[15:45] What kinds of people do Tera and her team look for when they’re about to hire?

[17:55] Your company can teach you anything, but they can’t teach you how to have a good work ethic and a good attitude.

[21:30] What kind of mentors has Tera had along the way?

[27:00] What’s required from a leadership standpoint when you reach different levels of leadership?

[32:25] Tera points out the need to understand what’s on the ground and how estimates are made so that one can use new technology and data with a realistic understanding of what the results really mean.

[37:50] What is Tera most proud of in her career?

[42:40] There is going to be change in the industry, whether we like it or not! Things will always be changing and you’re going to have to get used to that.

[48:00] Tom’s Leadership Tip of the Week – Making Your Praise Stick!

Mentioned in This Episode:

www.TheNMIway.com
Tera on LinkedIn
The Lord of the Rings film trilogy
www.LeadershipNature.com