Melanie Whelan (C.E.O. of SoulCycle) in “The Corner Office”

Whelan-1Adam Bryant conducts interviews of senior-level executives that appear in his “Corner Office” column each week in the SundayBusiness section of The New York Times. Here are a few insights provided during an interview of Melanie Whelan, C.E.O. of SoulCycle. To read the complete interview, check out other articles, and obtain subscription information, please click here.

Photo credit: Todd Heisler/The New York Times

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What were some early influences for you?

My father is an entrepreneur. We lived in Baltimore, but all of his companies were based out of D.C. He got up every morning at 5 to work out, then he would commute an hour and a half each way to these companies. He probably started between five and six companies that I can remember.

He was a huge role model for me because of his work ethic and discipline. He was like the mailman — come rain, come shine, come anything, he was out that door at 5 in the morning. And there was a big creative aspect to his work — he would start something, and when it grew large enough, he would sell it and do the next thing.

Did you have an idea of what you wanted to do for a career when you were in college?

I thought I wanted to be an architect. I was fascinated by building structures and engineering. I loved physics and calculus. After two and a half years, though, my interest started shifting to business. I realized I wanted to be part of a team and I wanted to build a company.

After working at Starwood Hotels and helping launch Virgin America, I was introduced to Harvey Spevak, the C.E.O. of Equinox, and he gave me the opportunity to start a business development function at the company. I was responsible for managing three department heads. They were all far more experienced than I was. I came in with one view of how to manage people, and after a year or so I had a completely different perspective.

I thought initially that I was going to learn their business and then I could add value by saying, “Here are our goals, and here’s where we’re going.” What I learned very quickly was that they just wanted a partner to collaborate with. They just wanted to brainstorm, to vent, to spitball ideas.

I learned to just ask questions, and not to have an initial point of view. For them, it was really just about collaboration and coaching and me bringing fresh eyes to their business. They wanted accountability, they wanted to run their business, and they didn’t really want me in their day-to-day. Once I figured that out, we had really productive relationships.

And how has your leadership style evolved?

The biggest thing I continue to learn is about really actively listening to people. Great leaders are great listeners. So what I try to do is set a vision about where we’re going, and then empower people to make it happen. I spend a lot of time with our leaders just really understanding how they’re doing, what they need and how else I can provide value to them.This interview with Melanie Whelan, C.E.O. of SoulCycle, was conducted and condensed by Adam Bryant.

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To read the complete interview as well as Bryant’s interviews of other executives, please click here.

Adam Bryant, deputy national editor of The New York Times, oversees coverage of education issues, military affairs, law, and works with reporters in many of the Times’ domestic bureaus. He also conducts interviews with CEOs and other leaders for Corner Office, a weekly feature in the SundayBusiness section and on nytimes.com that he started in March 2009. In his book, The Corner Office: Indispensable and Unexpected Lessons from CEOs on How to Lead and Succeed, (Times Books), he analyzes the broader lessons that emerge from his interviews of hundreds of business leaders. To read an excerpt, please click here. To contact him, please click here.

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