Vanguard Magazine

gAme cHANgeR 44 JUNE/JULY 2020 www.vanguardcanada.com See the full interview online Q What is your role in your organization today? On July 1, 2019, L3 Technologies and Harris announced the creation of L3Harris Technologies. Following this merger, I was appointed as General Manager of MAS in Mirabel, Quebec, Canada. Today, this organization em- ploys over 1,100 people at 12 sites across Canada. My role is to ensure that we de- liver execution excellence and continue to grow as Canada's leading In-Service Support (ISS) integrator providing in- novative and integrated solutions that span the full spectrum of ISS. Q What was your aha moment or epiphany that you think will resonate most with our reader, tell us that story? I learned very early in my career, and still believe today, that delivering excel- lence comes from building a community of leaders across the organization, at all levels. The importance of connecting with employees, being attentive to their needs, and building a positive work cli- mate of trust and respect is key. At L3Harris, building a high-perfor- mance culture across the organization demands that leaders actively promote and encourage inclusiveness, diversity, respect of ideas and opinions, and pro- vide timely feedback and recognition on results and behaviours. Q What is the one thing that has you most fired up today? A brick wall is sometimes just a test of our perseverance. History has taught us many lessons on not giving up after a failure or setback. I am inspired when I see leaders getting back up on their feet and rallying a team with a renewed focus and approach to persevere with a 'can do' attitude to achieve goals that initially seemed impossible. Q What is a habit that contributes to your success? There are days where a plan or situation will go off the rails. This is part of busi- ness. When this happens, I believe it is more important than ever to be positive and to rally employees in a constructive and respectful manner. A failure is some- times the catalyst needed to achieve an important breakthrough – to learn from what went wrong and break from past approaches. I believe that giving a team latitude to generate new and innovative approaches helps foster ownership with- in the team in driving towards desired results. Q What people or organizations do you believe best embody the innovation mindset? L3Harris embodies a true commitment to innovation and continuous improve- ment as an agile global aerospace and defense company focused on delivering end-to-end solutions that meet custom- ers' mission-critical needs. Driving for excellence and accelerating innovation are key strategic priorities. L3Harris invests an industry-leading 4 per cent of its revenue in Internal Research and Development (IRAD). About 20,000 of our employees – representing 40 per cent of our workforce – are scientists or engineers. This really defines who we are as a company. Q What technologies, business models, and trends will drive the biggest changes in your industry over the next two years? I would have answered this question dif- ferently a few months ago. The reality is that we cannot ignore the inevitable downstream impact of the COVID-19 pandemic. As difficult as it is to predict, this will certainly be the predominant shaping force in the near future. This will most likely affect markets (both in Canada and abroad), budgets, schedules, work re- gimes, as well as social interactions. Cul- tures best positioned to deal effectively with change and uncertainty will have the greatest chance to succeed in these un- precedented times. Technology will continue to play a ma- jor role for success, particularly for product companies, but even services-focused com- panies will have to invest and determine how best to innovate by introducing new technology into their business. I believe L3Harris has been successful in doing this in the past and is well-positioned for the future. Technology themes such as artificial intelligence, cyber assurance, robotics, in- tegrated data environments, and advanced manufacturing, to name but a few, will fea- ture prominently in the years to come. Despite the unpredictable impacts that may transpire from the ongoing pan- demic, L3Harris will remain true to the principles that are central to our success: flawless execution, customer focus, stra- tegic partnerships, and commitment to innovation and continuous improvement. Q What is your parting piece of advice? The employees are the foundation of any business. Be genuine with the employees and make time to connect with them by listening and validating what the underly- ing concerns are. The best way to do this is to put yourself in their shoes when dis- cussing issues. An important part of leader- ship is about building confidence and trust with the employees, across all levels. In my opinion, building a strong community of leaders across the organization, with a high level of transparency, trust, and collabora- tion are key tenets for continued success. uGo Paniconi General ManaGer, Mas L3HarrIs tecHnoLogIes

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