Anyone who knows Bob Fisher knows that empowering people and organizations to become all they can be, is the hallmark of his life’s work. Below are remarks given by Rodney Slater, U.S. Secretary of Transportation, honoring Dr. Fisher as the 4th President of Belmont University:
I am proud to call Bob Fisher my friend. But my testimony to his skill as a leader is not based on our friendship alone, but on direct experience of what he can accomplish. I stand before you as a witness to how he has helped transform the way we do business at the U.S. Department of Transportation. And what he was able to accomplish working with us may give you some insight into what could be in store for Belmont University in the years ahead.
When I picked up Bob’s book, Real Dream Teams, in 1996 — which he co authored with Bo Thomas — I knew at once that I wanted him to help us build a ‘dream team’ DOT. I was so impressed with his philosophy on leadership that I immediately picked up the phone to try to track him down.
I must admit that our first telephone conversations were difficult. When I finally located Bob at the Harvard Leadership Seminar he was attending, I had to convince him that I really was the Secretary of Transportation. He thought my calls were a hoax.
But like the widow in Scripture who finally prevailed on the reluctant judge, I refused to go away. I persisted in my entreaties until he considered my request. And I am glad I did. I knew that Bob Fisher had the tools, the vision I was looking for, to help guide the 100,000 employees of the U.S. Department of Transportation in a new direction.
If you reflect on what has happened at the U.S. Department of Transportation over the past few years, you can see something of the future he has in mind for Belmont University: He begins by seeking a new consensus vision for excellence, moving beyond what seems possible. He encourages unity, asking all of the distinct segments of an organization to find new ways to work together for good. He thinks big — and encourages others to think big also. He believes in growth, but he also insists on putting people first, fostering diversity and reaching out to new constituencies.
And he thinks globally. Belmont University is already an educational enterprise committed to global education, with students from 27 countries representing every continent on campus this year. And an unusually high number of Belmont students already participate in some studies outside the United States during their course of studies. Now that Bob is here, I expect that number to grow.
Dr. Bob Fisher is remarkable leader and a remarkable human being. Even more amazing, he has a sense of humor. Yet he is modest, and would be the last to claim credit for the outstanding performance he seems able to encourage among those who seek his counsel.
