Enhancing Leadership at the VBU Leader Summit
Software leaders attest to knowledge sharing and networking as a catalyst for effectively running and growing their companies.
The most recent edition of our Volaris Business Unit (VBU) Leader Summit took place in St. Petersburg, Florida, with participants gathering from across the UK, North America, and Asia, to learn and share the most effective methodologies for operating software businesses. Drawing on the strengths and accomplishments of each VBU, the workshops were facilitated by attendees for peer-to-peer learning amongst the leaders within a Volaris Group portfolio of companies.
Communications & Events Coordinator, Lauren Dilbeck, works within the DeSilvester portfolio with one core mission in mind – to promote a seamless flow of knowledge sharing and collaboration across the various departments and levels of the greater group. As one of the many supportive programs for talent development at Volaris, Lauren reflected on the event.
"The VBU Leader meeting provides an opportunity for our business leaders to network, share best practices, and provide solutions to relevant industry issues.
Knowledge sharing is of the utmost importance at Volaris; as our core driver for business success, it continues to keep our portfolio growing and moving forward. It was an honor to organize and attend this event and I look forward to many more to come."
-- Lauren Dilbeck, Internal Communications & Events Coordinator, Volaris Group
From interactive workshops and team-building activities to whiteboard sessions and Q&As, the best practice sharing event ranged in a variety of topics ultimately aimed to drive the success and growth of our vertical market software companies. Topics included growth strategies, talent management practices, international expansion tactics, pricing concepts, initiatives and more.
We caught up with some participants to learn what the leaders gained from the sessions.
What was your impression of the VBU Leader Summit?
It was a great professional privilege to be invited to learn and share with other established and new leaders. The sessions enabled collaboration in a structured environment and the evening social events allowed the leaders to get to know each other on a more personal level.
Despite running businesses of different sizes, markets, geographies, and solutions, if we are open-minded, the learning opportunities that we can draw from others’ experiences are endless. Across Volaris’ portfolio of companies, we are more alike than we are different when it comes to common challenges in the software market.
What have you learned that will help you with your job?
I’m taking away many ‘golden nuggets’ that can be implemented into our business but for me, the main lessons are around talent and leadership.
To foster a culture of innovation in my business, it's crucial to transform talent acquisition and capability building into a formal, structured, and consistent practice. I've gained insights into various tools that other VBU leaders are currently utilizing for talent development, which I can integrate into my approach.
Importantly, talent development starts from the top and effective leadership is critical for creating a high-performing organization. The event helped me identify that there is still much I need to learn about improving myself, and my leadership skills. I learned several concepts that I intend on researching further as I continue to reflect on my leadership style. This was a great primer for me as I am about to partake in the Executive Accelerator Program - an internal leadership training series within the DeSilvester portfolio.
Would you recommend this experience to other software leaders?
I would highly recommend this to others as Volaris attracts and cultivates great talent and people. It was a genuine pleasure to spend time with all the attendees and I look forward to participating in similar internal events in the future.
Dean Coleman, CEO, Sunrise Software
What was your key takeaway from the VBU Leader Summit?
The VBU Leader Summit was a great mix of best practice sharing, networking and team bonding. Of the many sessions, each one had excellent takeaways. I built connections that I will carry far beyond the event; ever-growing relationships that will help us all going forward.
Our portfolio is full of extremely committed, knowledgeable and friendly leaders with vast experience running software businesses; all of whom are willing to share their expertise to help support me and my business. Although no one individual has all the answers, we can share our knowledge and ideas to generate solutions to our problems.
What lessons will you take back into your business?
There were several key takeaways that I will bring into Sunrise, but I will highlight two that resonate with me:
Firstly, the value of getting closer to our customers post-pandemic cannot be underestimated. Our industry has shifted to more remote meetings but getting actual face-to-face time for all our teams will ensure we build strong relationships and create a trusting partnership with our customers. In turn, increasing understanding of our customer’s needs will help drive our product and service development.
Secondly, I learned the importance of understanding the of value our software products and services, and the significance of strategy revisions to support sustainable growth. By listening to our customers, we can further build value into our software products that exceed the high rates of inflation.
What would you tell other leaders who might attend the VBU Leader Summit in the future?
The experience is extremely valuable to all software leaders. While our businesses may differ, we often share similar challenges. Chances are if you’re experiencing a particular challenge, someone has overcome that obstacle in the past. As part of Volaris Group’s network, we have the privilege of tapping into the wealth of experience of our peers; learning from their mistakes, and drawing on their successes.
VBU Leader attendees, past, present and future, share a multitude of commonalities – an immense dedication to their businesses, extreme professionalism, and a desire to succeed. However, above all, they are a very friendly group of people who display their humility by learning from one another.
Knowledge Sharing Beyond the VBU Leader Summit
Following the event, the leaders expressed their confidence in leveraging the shared best practices and peer connections to drive strategic growth in their respective businesses.
Beyond the VBU Leader Summit and other knowledge-sharing events, Volaris continues to facilitate networking and professional development through a global intranet, special interest communities, collaboration tools, and more. It is this focus on people and the extensive interconnected network that distinguishes Volaris and makes it unique.
Read about additional Volaris events focused on empowering software leaders:
• Strengthening Leaders at Volaris 101
• Quadrants 2022: Volaris Comes Together
• Takeaways from the 2021 Organic Growth Summit