James Grass - Mentor

What a new employee can teach you about leadership

We often talk about leaders who have worked in their chosen field for decades, admiring their accomplishments and respectful of the wisdom they’ve gained along the way. In this case, this particular leader is at the cusp of what I predict will be a great career. 

I met James about 15 years ago when he walked through the front doors of The Vancouver Club. Newly arrived from Australia, he started as a casual employee in the Club’s banquet department. Now, there are a couple of things about this occasion that still make me laugh… his spiked surfer dude hair and peach fuzz where a beard would eventually grow; the shirt we gave him to wear, which was made to fit a man twice his size and then the vest…which was, to say the least, ‘petite’. Yet there he was, despite all these distractions, wearing a “shit-eating grin” with a cocky presence and a wicked sense of humour. 

I think in the 12 years James worked at the Club, I never once saw him start a single day without that same grin and filled with the enthusiasm and spirit to take on whatever challenges came his way. I’d watch him from afar and think, “If I could do that, I’d be a better boss”, or if there were more people like James in my world, my job would be so much easier. 

Graduating through the Club’s ranks, donning many different hats, he eventually took the lead in the sales and membership department, titling himself the ‘Director of Good Times’. As he developed, he continuously challenged and recruited the Club’s junior staff to work alongside him and share in his enthusiasm about the role they played in the revitalization of the Club. James and his team encouraged a new roster of young professionals to join the membership of the Club; an essential component in keeping its relevance and ensuring its future success. James’s ability to recruit this younger demographic was so successful that, before long, the Under 35 category became one of the largest and most active groups. Many of these members remain and their loyalty to the Club is a testament to their initial experiences with James.

James would be the first to tell you that he didn’t do it alone. I’m sure there are some people he worked with over the years who perceived their achievements as solitary acts (they were not). Even then, it was evident James was someone who took on a leadership role naturally. An individual who was not intimidated, who pursued new and different initiatives, and who made sure the Club members were always provided with a first-class experience. 

In his new role at the helm of his own eponymous company, he has taken on many challenges; building an elite concierge service, promoting professional boxing matches, developing the “Chef’s Favourite” series, and establishing and hosting unique and exciting events in the city. He is building a following that will only continue to grow. 

We used to have an expression at The Vancouver Club: “You Make the Club”. I think, in James’s case, this was true. The ‘James Grass Club’ is the club people want to join and be a part of. I’m sure James would probably give me a lot of credit for his early successes and say that, somewhere along the line, I became a mentor to him, but it occurred to me that it was actually he who had become a mentor to me. As I watched his career unfold, it was he who I looked to for inspiration. 

James, you are a unique leader, deserving of the title. I know no one like you, and no one better. Know that in my career, it is I who has learned from you. I will always be a loyal member of the James Grass Club.

@jamesgrass.com