Joe Schratt, President & CEO of Canonsburg Electrical has over 18 years of diverse leadership experience. He has proven himself an authority in energy-related sectors by delivering excellence in regulated utility and independent energy. He started his career as a master electrician and served diverse companies before joining Canonsburg Electrical. He aims to build a cleaner energy future by helping his team transform the energy landscape.
Joseph Schratt has launched multiple key initiatives for Canonsburg Electrical including the development of the strategic plan, automated system technology and smart metering, electric vehicle infrastructure deployment and transportation electrification, and improving Canonsburg Electrical’s renewable energy portfolio.
Joe Schratt is a self-made success story. This inspirational interview explores Joe Schratt’s journey to where he is today.
Topic: Things I learned as a CEO of Canonsburg Electrical
- Thanks for joining us! Let’s start with getting to know who Joe Schratt is?
Thanks for having me. Joe Schratt was a boy with big dreams and aspirations. I have always had an interest in electrical equipment and supplies. You can say I was a techie. When the kids of my age spent time playing football, I used to spend hours in my garage building a DIY lighting system for my bedroom. My journey from that small garage to being the CEO of Canonsburg Electrical, one of the leading electric utility companies in the region, is surely inspirational for everyone who wants to achieve big in life through sheer hard work and commitment to their passion.
- Tell us a little bit about what brought you to this specific career path?
Well, if I say I chose to be an electrician because I really wanted to be one, it won’t be wrong. But this couldn’t be enough reason unless I had the technical mind, stable hand, and a lot of raw talent to pursue and eventually succeed in this industry. I won’t deny the monetary reasons too because it’s a handsomely paid profession with a lot of employment opportunities as well as the option to switch to entrepreneurship at any point in life.
- What are your top 3 skills that made you a successful CEO?
Being the CEO of Canonsburg Electrical, I am responsible for making critical business-wide decisions and managing across-the-board operations for my company. I believe if I did not have these 3 top skills, I would never have succeeded in this role.
Clear Communication
I try to communicate with my employees using easy-to-understand and concise language. I always make sure to effectively communicate to my employees the reason for my decisions. This helps maintain morale and healthy company culture under my guidance.
Open-Mindedness
I am always open to new ideas and methods. I have established a progressive culture in Canonsburg Electrical where I genuinely care about novel ideas for doing business. I encourage employees to try new processes and procedures, improving the business overall.
Growth Mindset
I welcome obstacles with a growth mindset as learning opportunities and I encourage the employees to develop their own growth mindsets.
- Can you share with our readers the biggest lesson you’ve learned as the CEO of Canonsburg Electrical?
I had been lucky to work in various positions for several years before taking the responsibilities of being the CEO of Canonsburg Electrical. 18 years back, the company had just started and I had to ‘reinvent’ everything. As the CEO the first lesson I learned was how to become the ‘doer’ and the ‘buck stopper’ at the same time!
The next biggest lesson I learned was that success lies in teamwork. I learned the art and science of focusing on the right people and putting them at the right place at the right time.
Another important lesson I learned was to become an outward-looking CEO. I go out and meet diverse people, not merely for the sake of ‘networking’, but to practice being open-minded to people who can help and are willing to.
- Is there any “myth” that you once believed but now would like to dispel about being a CEO?
Oh yes, this is interesting. I used to believe that a CEO should have a larger-than-life personality to inspire a devoted following. It’s something many boards and headhunters frequently search for in a CEO. But the charisma of appearance isn’t all it’s cracked up to be.
I am an introvert but I usually outperform extroverts when it comes to meetings. Being an outwardly confident individual is great as having a likable personality might increase your chances of getting hired as a CEO but when it comes to proving your worth as one in practical life, looks have nothing to do with success.
- As you said that you served diverse companies before joining Canonsburg Electrical, was there any difference between how you thought the job would be as a CEO and the actual job itself?
Yes, there was a striking difference between my expectations and reality. I always knew that being a CEO meant greater responsibility and added workload. However, the reality was way more demanding and challenging than I expected.
Since the company was in its initial stages when I joined, the biggest and the most crucial responsibility on my shoulders was to build an effective team. I worked diligently from day one to build a strong and competent team. I worked with the HR department and hired only the A+ players from the industry.
The position required me to maintain a solid balance between internal and external factors. Under so much workload, I had to strike a balance between work-life too. I was expected to have a lot of patience as the leader of the ship and it shaped me greatly as a person also.
- You have served Canonsburg Electrical for around two decades now, how do you plan to further grow your company?
My plans for Canonsburg Electrical are very much clear. I want to make it an even more lucrative business. We are always planning to leverage diverse strategies to drive business growth and connect with our potential customers by getting the word out about our company.
We have recently launched a few initiatives, including an incentive procurement program. We are constantly improving our renewable energy portfolio and moving towards energy-efficient solutions to maximize performance and cost savings.
- Please share your most inspiring life quote and the reason why you like it.
I love this quote by Winston S. Churchill, “Success is not final; failure is not fatal: It is the courage to continue that counts.” This quote has literally opened a whole new world to me and acted as a beacon in the darkest of times. There was a time at the very beginning of my career when I failed to secure a dream job and I was really hopeless but this quote gave me the courage to continue and in the end, my consistency counted and here I am. You will find this quote framed in my office too.
- In the end, if any of our readers want to reach out to you, how can he do that?
My office door is always open to welcome anyone during working hours. If you can visit me physically, you can drop a message on the company’s official business page on Facebook and LinkedIn.
Thank you so much for this truly amazing interview!
Interviews and PR by Matt Peters.
https://searchmanipulator.com
About The Author
