This year marks our 75th Anniversary. To celebrate, we’re publishing 75 stories about members of our community. Chuck West was a member of the Wisconsin School of Business Center for Professional & Executive Development team as an instructor from 1970 to 2002. In 2002, Chuck became CPED’s program director for sales, management, and leadership programs until his retirement in 2017.
ABOUT CHUCK
Chuck has a bachelor’s degree in marketing from the University of Michigan and a master’s degree in marketing from the University of Wisconsin – Madison. He began his career at Honeywell and 3M before starting his consulting business, where he worked with client’s like Electronic Theater Controls, The Manitowoc Company, Uline, and GE Healthcare. From 1970 to 2002, he was a CPED instructor in the sales and marketing programs. In 2002, Chuck became CPED’s program director for sales, management, and leadership programs, where he taught and developed new programs. Chuck also taught numerous custom programs during his time at CPED to the likes of American Family Insurance, CUNA Mutual Group, Colony Brands, Inc., and many other organizations. Chuck retired in 2017.
During his time at CPED, Chuck created and taught High Performance Sales, Strategic Sales, Coaching and Motivation in the Workplace, Overcoming the Price Objection, and Effective Sales Management. He also taught How to Influence Without Direct Authority, Leadership Beyond Management, Product Management, and co-created Manager Boot Camp with former CPED executive director Steve King.
Chuck is enjoying his retirement and loves spending his time with his family, as well as golf and photography.
CPED IMPACT
Chuck truly enjoyed his time at CPED and innovating new programs. Seeing clients succeed, however, was always his most rewarding experience.
“CPED always operates at the leading edge of business practices. We provide our attendees and clients information and business applications for improved job performance. Seeing our client organizations gain market share, improve financial performance, and grow their businesses were all rewarding to see.”
Learning from other instructors impacted Chuck throughout his career and often influenced his teaching style, for which he is grateful.
“I love teaching and CPED gave me the opportunity to observe and learn from other great instructors and improve my skills and effectiveness. I attended Alma Baron’s communication class and she did a unique and effective exercise on listening. I asked her if I could use her exercise in my sales programs. She agreed and offered me help and encouragement. I used that exercise for the next 30 years and it was always a favorite among our participants.”
Chuck encourages all professionals to find balance in their work and personal lives and to lead lives of compassion. “Always be prepared, collaborative, and positive at work and be attentive, supportive, and loving at home.”
Chuck also remembers Dick Barry, the CPED Marketing Program Director in the ‘60s, ‘70s, and early ‘80s. “Dick always said, ‘err on the side of compassion.’ Good words to live by.”
You can visit our website to learn more about Manager Boot Camp, Coaching and Motivation in the Workplace, How to Influence Without Direct Authority, Leadership Beyond Management, and our custom development solutions. See more stories from our community in the 75th Anniversary section of our blog.