Darryl Griffin serves as the national associate executive vice president for the American Heart Association. He graduated from Vanderbilt University in 1995 and earned a Master of Arts in organizational leadership (MOL) from Trevecca in 2014. He currently resides in Plano, Texas, with his wife of almost 25 years. Together they have three daughters.
Here, he describes his career journey, the impact of Trevecca’s MOL program on his life and his perspective on effective leadership.
Is there a spiritual practice you’ve found particularly helpful as your career has taken shape?
In my earlier years, I didn’t know how or where God would lead me. But when I’d pray, I would repeatedly ask God to put me in a position to help other people.
That prayer has allowed me to be nimble so the wind of God could get in my sails and navigate my course. I began to notice throughout my career that I was moving into elevated levels of leadership with larger teams, larger footprints, larger budgetary responsibilities and ultimately larger impact. I think that’s centered on the fact that I care deeply about the people who I have the privilege to serve alongside.
How have you developed as a leader over time?
I believe the best leaders are often the best followers. When Christ came to Earth, he came to serve. With humility and gentleness, he ushered people down the pathway that led them to belief and understanding of His will and His way.
When you can allow yourself to be led, you learn from the good and bad characteristics of leadership. You benefit from the best aspirations or aspects of those leaders in your life. And over time you also develop a filter. You learn to filter out the qualities that may not align with your core values while embracing the ones that do. For example, if a leader in your life was a great tactician, or if someone was authentic in the way they led one-on-one conversations, you learn from those bits and pieces.
In what way has your relationship with Christ enabled you to become a better leader?
It gives me perspective. I don’t maintain a mindset that just because I have a higher title than others that my voice should be the loudest in the conversation. I believe in collaborative leadership—that all of our ideas matter. If there’s something I want us to follow as a team, the last thing I want is for others to just say yes. I need people to push back or poke holes in the idea so we can test it.
Without some level of creative tension, I don't feel as good about the direction we're going. I prioritize cultivating what I call positive conflict, because learning how to operate within that space brings out the best in everybody.
What does collaborative leadership look like for you?
Each day brings variety since I’m working with different leaders and different functionalities within the American Heart Association. On any given day, I may be talking to someone in marketing, someone in research, someone in our CEO’s office or someone in one of our regions. I’m dealing with varying levels of leadership all the time, so it’s important to understand how to lead with influence rather than with authority alone.
A lot of times I’m coaching, training and evaluating as well as seeking buy-in from a stakeholder. The only way I can bring about any wholesale change or manage my core day-to-day responsibilities is to navigate different personality types according to the way that they like to receive information. I try to achieve a really good understanding of my colleagues. That's a daily process for me.
How have the skills you learned at Trevecca influenced your leadership practices?
One of the most substantial things that stood out for me was gaining an understanding of myself and my own emotional intelligence. I had to ask myself, “What are some of the triggers that may provoke an emotional response?” Then I learned how to tame those triggers and manage them effectively so that I could be a conduit rather than a person who forces others to put up barriers.
I had to first become self aware before I could really be effective with other people. I remember reading the book “The Leadership Challenge” by James Kouzes and Barry Posner and grasping the five characteristics of exemplary leadership it outlines. One of the five practices is to challenge the process, and I've always been a person who asks a lot of questions out of curiosity, going back all the way to when I was a little kid with my mom. Today, if someone is pitching an idea to me, I might say: “That sounds pretty interesting. But have you ever thought about this or that?”
The way you introduce the question allows a person to take a deep breath and reflect on what you're saying, as opposed to immediately defending their position. Learning those subtleties, developing a sense of self awareness and discovering how to influence and cultivate relationships with people were some of my biggest takeaways from the program.
What’s your advice to someone who’s considering a return to school for a master's degree?
I would recommend making sure you are aligned with your purpose. It's an investment of time and resources. When you go into postsecondary education, your degree should be aligned with your career passion and what you’d like to do.
Then it’s finding the right program. Does the program you’re considering provide a supportive environment? Does it have the right professor-to-student ratio? What level of academic rigor is involved? Have you looked at the success, job placement or promotion rates of graduates? Does the school offer a strong alumni network? Does this align with your calling? To me, that's the pinnacle—when you realize how your calling and professional goals are coming into alignment. If it's helping you fulfill your purpose, you're in the right place.
How would you describe your own sense of purpose?
It’s first to be a great husband, father and son, and to represent my family's name and legacy while being a good example for my children. It’s also to be a faithful follower of Christ. Last, it’s to try to see how many people I can positively influence in their careers. To do this, I routinely ask myself: “Am I fulfilling the mission, vision and values of the organization where I have the privilege to serve? Am I helping to achieve and exceed goals and objectives? Am I an agent of change for the greater good?”
I consider my grandmother, who raised me up in the Lord, as my greatest mentor. She taught me to have a faith based on Philippians 4:13. I’ve always believed I could do all things through Christ who strengthens me. Christ undergirds, strengthens and fortifies me, whatever obstacle is put in my path.
Before triumph comes faith. That’s always been the catalyst for my life. I give all praise to God. And I give thanks to the many individuals in my life, like my grandmother, who have been tremendous blessings to me.
