Meet One of HBJ’s 2020 Most Admired CEOs: David Wolff

 

By THE HOUSTON BUSINESS JOURNAL

The Houston Business Journal named 50 leaders around the Houston area as 2020 Most Admired CEOs.

In selecting our honorees, a panel of judges looked for characteristics such as contribution to company success, civic involvement, career achievement and more.

The judges selected 31 for-profit leaders and 19 nonprofit leaders for this year’s award. The 50 honorees were recognized in a special section of HBJ’s Aug. 21 weekly edition and at an online awards ceremony on Aug. 20.

This article spotlights six of the honorees, including David Wolff.

David Wolff
Chairman and president, Wolff Cos.

Company employees: 8

Education: Bachelor’s, Amherst College; MBA, Harvard Business School

How would your employees describe you as a leader in one word? Committed.

What was your biggest professional mistake and what did you learn from it? In 1986 I had a signed letter of intent to acquire the Golden State Warriors(NBA) for $16 million. At the last moment, without notification, the seller’s attorney made a material change in the closing documents. As a matter of principle, I walked away from the deal. In retrospect, I should have “held my nose” and closed the transaction despite the attorney’s unethical behavior.

I learned to keep my eye on the deal and not get too upset when someone acts improperly. Today, the team is worth about $3 billion.

What advice would you give to emerging leaders? Find an occupation or an organization that you enjoy and really believe in, one which you will be happy to stay with long term. Longevity and experience are important contributors to success. Moreover, hard work and commitment are instrumental to achieving any goal and are only possible to maintain over the long term if you believe that what you are doing is important and enjoyable.

What is your leadership philosophy? Find people who are better than you at achieving specific tasks and carrying out important responsibilities. Then let them know what you expect of them, support them, and stay out of the way.

What are you most proud of accomplishing as a leader? I am proud that the company I founded 50 years ago is still prospering and developing excellent projects when only a handful of real estate companies in Houston have survived all of the tumultuous cycles of that half-century. Further, because we operate conservatively, I have never had to let an employee go because business was bad, and that conservatism has enabled me to maintain all of my employees at full compensation during the current pandemic.

How do you relax/unwind? I enjoy reading, spending time at my ranch north of Brenham, and summers in Nantucket, where I sail, walk and have a lot of family time.

This profile has been edited for length and clarity.

For the complete article, please go to:
https://www.bizjournals.com/houston/news/2020/08/28/mendoza-patel-pavlovic-thakur-thompson.html