Local Leader Spotlight: Marc Petitpas

At Intrigue, we believe in empowering leaders & strengthening communities — that’s why we have decided to spotlight a ‘Local Leader’ each month!

Our Local Leaders are individuals who have shown professional leadership, but also leadership within the community. We are proud to live and work in communities with many amazing people who exemplify these qualities!

This month’s ‘Local Leader’ is Marc Petitpas, VP of Sales for Fusion Homes in Guelph.

Watch the ‘IM in a Car’ segment below to see Marc being interviewed by Intrigue co-founder Rob Murray about what it means to be a great leader.

About Marc Petitpas

Marc’s lively personality shines through — there’s no surprise as to why he is the VP of Sales. Marc started his career in retail, and always had a vision to work in sales. Through his early work experience, he found that he enjoyed working with people.

When working at TELUS Marc was introduced to personal development strategies and leadership. TELUS was a company that truly lived out their vision and values. They came from a position of ‘Who are we?’, ‘Where do we want to go?’, and ‘How does everyone feel about it and can everyone live it?’

His leadership exposure shifted when Marc was recruited by the Maple Leaf Sports Centre & Entertainment. In this role, he had the opportunity to work with a great leader who wanted to see him develop and grow his talent. When Marc told him he wanted to work in his position down the road, his leader told him all the gaps he had in his skillset and was a big believer in exposing Marc to all those areas. Marc believed he was lucky to work for a leader that demonstrated an interest in his development and goals.

After his time at Maple Leaf Sports Centre & Entertainment, Marc moved into more of a marketing role, where he later had an interview with Lee and Elyse from Fusion Homes. Through the interview process, he was inspired by Fusion’s desire to be the best at customer service and decided to join their team.

Fusion Homes has doubled its growth in the last year, which has meant hiring new team members. Marc points out this can have an influence on the culture, which can be a challenge!

He also shares the leadership advice he has learned through his past experience and working at Fusion Homes:

• You have to keep company culture by living it! The executives have to be living out the company culture day in and day out if they expect the rest of the company to do the same.
• It’s the executive team’s responsibility to hear the feedback from their team members – people closest to the problems usually have the best solutions.
• Leaderships biggest challenge is creating an environment where people are comfortable giving feedback. Implementing one-on-ones to consistently get that feedback from your team is crucial.
• Leadership isn’t top down, it’s bottom up — you need people to weigh in in order to buy in.

It’s very clear that Marc and his team exemplify leadership on a daily basis. “If you’re not in the game, knowing what is going on, how can you be a coach?” Marc forces himself into situations where, on a daily basis, he has touch points with his team and his customers to get that continuous feedback.

Get in the trenches!

Tricia wants to ensure your experience with Intrigue is awesome! She helps non-profits, businesses, and communities grow together. Tricia assists the sales team in business development. Outside of work she is an avid tea drinker, world traveller and loves getting active and cooking healthy.