Hillbilly PHD Interview (part 1)

I am very blessed that I get to meet some really cool people as a result of writing Slacker Manager and my personal blog Make It Great! with Phil Gerbyshak. One of the most interesting people I’ve come across is a manager by the name or Roger “Rocky” Noe. His philosophy and his blog is Hillbilly PhD. Rocky doesn’t write as much as I’d like him to but what he does write is worth paying attention to.

I met Rocky a few years back because of my connection to Trevor Gay, another management blogger I’ll profile in the future. Trevor knew I’d love Rocky’s straightforward style, and he was right…I sure do!

And now it’s my pleasure to share part of 1 my interview with Rocky Noe, Hillbilly PhD.

Hillbilly PhD. Interview (part 1)

Phil: Please share a little background about you, and about Hillbilly PhD, for those who don’t know you yet.

Rocky: My background has always been in working with at risk teens. That field of work has always been my passion. I have been in that field for over 20 years and can’t see myself doing anything else.

The Hillbilly PhD. is based in the idea that it does not take any special qualifications, birth rights, or academic degrees to be successful. Anyone can be successful. It is not your talent that makes you successful, it is how well you are willing to do the things that do not require talent that makes the difference. The most successful people I know do not necessarily have more talent or academic degrees than anyone else. They tend to live their lives certain principles that make the difference. It does not require special abilities or privileges to be honest, trustworthy, respectful, forgiving, to have integrity, to be persistent, etc…. I believe that living with these kind of values and doing them well are the things that can make a difference. That is how I settled on the term Hillbilly because it does not take any special talents to be successful. The PhD. part stands for putting in a hard days work. I believe that if you are willing to work hard and live by right principles then success is a by product.

Phil: Tell me about how you got started managing people.

Rocky: I finished my Bachelor degree in 1987. I started working in a residential program for at Risk teens pretty much as soon as I graduated. I started as a frontline worker and loved working with the teen population. I really enjoyed having the opportunity to have a positive impact. As I began to develop in the field by gaining experience and knowledge I quickly realized that I could have a greater impact on a larger number of people if learned to lead others. I began to work my way through the ranks and started studying leadership. After 20 plus years I am now the Superintendent of one of the states largest treatment facilities.

Phil: What’s your favorite and least favorite parts of managing people?

Rocky: My favorite is seeing people develop and having a part in their personal and professional growth. The least favorite is seing people self distruct in their careers and personal lives. It is so sad when disciplinary actions have to be taken and the individual fails to learn and grow through them

Phil: Who are some of your management mentors?

Rocky: I have a number of mentors.Our world of technology has increased our ability to communicate in so many ways that I have several mentors that I have never had the opportunity to meet face to face. For instance, Trevor Gay is a dear friend and I consider him  as one of my special mentors. He lives in England and I have never had the opportunity to formally meet him, but he provides a great deal of mentoring and gives solid advice that follow. Brian Ward is another person I consider to be a mentor for me. he lives in Canada, but through he use of the internet I have learned a great deal from him. Closer to home I have a really good friend that mentors me more specifically in my field of work. Jerry Cantrell is an absolute genius in the field of working with at risk teens.

Booker Noe was also a great influence on me. Booker was the Grandson of Jim Beam and ran the Jim Beam Distillery for 50 years. He has now sadly passed away, however, he had a huge influence on me.

Phil: What’s the best management advice you’ve ever gotten and what made it so good?

Rocky: Booker Noe shared a lot of great advice with me when he was living. I asked him what he thought was the single most important thing to know in business. He thought for a moment and then said "you have to have Passion. That has to be a passion for people. You have to want to make people better and their lives better. provide them with quality. You have to have an equal passion for your product. You have to have a passion for people and for your product" That conversation had a very big impression on me. Booker was a very genuine person. He lived what he believed. That remains the biggest influence on me.

Please come back tomorrow for part 2 of Hillbilly PhD. with Rocky Noe, where we talk about Rocky’s favorite management story, some favorite resources, and why he keeps managing people.