Simone Venter, Marketing Assistant, Genasys Technologies.
The age-old philosophy on leadership has always confidently asserted that the greatest, most admirable leaders are those who lead by example-even the renowned novelist Ken Kesey profoundly stated that “[One doesn’t] lead by pointing and telling people some place to go. [One leads] by going to that place and making a case.”
The case in point is our very own CEO. Cloaked in humility (and unsurprisingly oblivious to his own modesty), Steve Symes indisputably epitomizes the affiliative leader-especially considering the fact that he voluntarily joined the Genasys team on their endeavour to annihilate the Jeep Warrior Race which took place in Van der Bijl Park on 12 March 2016.
As a true sport would, Steve initiated battle against the ceaseless obstacles that have become notoriously synonymous with the almighty Warrior Race. The dreaded obstacles involved the likes of “The Tower of Rage” which demands a daunting 7m high jump from scaffolding into a body of murky water (Steve valiantly did this one twice). Moreover, bridges were braved whilst water cannons took aim with the intention of bowling the warriors over and the “Mud Monster” put on an unforgettable show in baptizing every man (and woman) of war in dense, heavy slop that made the assignment of clambering the muddy hill a seemingly impossible feat.
“Steve was meant to form part of the rookies, but suddenly our objective changed from completing the race in good time (as the advanced group) to instead concerning ourselves with outrunning him to defend our ranking”, laughs Ferdi, the Genasys Extreme Team Captain.
Steve smiled throughout and was truly a sport in soiling his hands with the best of them. According to the rest of the Genasys Warriors, Steve was far from the rookie he had signed up as, and impressively, with nimble agility lead the team on with a torch of endurance and fiery spirit.
Characteristically, Steve spurred the team on enthusiastically and for this event in particular (due to his and Natalie’s inclinations towards unforgiving speed) was aptly dubbed “The Flash”. There was manifestly no room for gentle walks in the park.
“The Flash put us to shame in almost every single obstacle”, Hannelie says in astonishment, “[He] cruised through the “Mud Monster” looking really at home and at peace”.
The timeless picture capturing Steve’s victory dance at the completion of the race is truly symbolic of our dynamic CEO’s words that are often echoed in the office, “Never forget to have fun”.
To our warrior, our gentle giant Steve Symes, thank you for your example and for being the cornerstone of our ethos and the happiness permeated throughout the company.
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