BY KYLE GARGARO
Clarkston News Editor
After 1,600 interviews with company leaders from every walk of life, Martin Zimmerman is ready to share his knowledge. The Clarkston resident has written a book on leadership titled ‘In Their Presence.?
Zimmerman recently worked for a Fortune 500 company as a feedback coach. He would interview the leaders, their peers, clients and employees to find out how the leader handled items such as risk taking, decision making, strategic thinking, etc. Zimmerman would then sit down with the leader and supply the results.
‘The highest mark you could get would be a role model,? Zimmerman said. ‘And over time I would be hearing the same answers from different people from all walks of life. That is when I thought I might be on to something.?
The book is a catalog of what the leaders identified as catalysts behind their role model ratings. The attempt is to make the reader feel as if they are holding conversations with these people who are a cross section of leaders. The book highlights everything from leaders in retail to government.
‘The book allows leaders to read what the role models were saying and ask themselves how frequently they are doing the same thing,? Zimmerman said. ‘My intention is not to preach. This is just a starting point for continued development.?
While Zimmerman never thought he would write a book, that is the direction his life took after he lost the job due to corporate downsizing. After giving some speeches on the subject, Zimmerman was struck by the number of people that would come up to him after the presentation and suggest he write a book.
It took Zimmerman only a few months to write the book.
‘I would work on it day and night because obviously I had the time. It was easy to write because it is my passion. Ask me to write about something else and I probably could only do it for 20 minutes before I need to take a break,? Zimmerman said.
After writing the manuscript, Zimmerman got on the Internet to look for publishing companies. He settled on 1st Books and his work was published in October of 2003.
Zimmerman is now speaking around the area. He was at the Clarkston Optimist meeting last week and promoted the book. He will be at the Independence Township Library on March 8 from 7 to 8 p.m. for a book signing.
The Clarkston resident was born and raised in Cincinnati. Zimmerman was on his way to becoming a priest, but changed his mind and entered Annapolis. Upon graduation, he spent 22 years with the U.S. Marine Corps, achieving the rank of lieutenant colonel.