When Michael Polk Newell Brands left the corner office of a major public company, few expected him to return to work just as intensely somewhere else. But in 2019, the former Newell Brands chief executive came out of retirement to take charge of Implus, a smaller, privately owned company, and he says the change reshaped how he thinks about leadership entirely.

Two Very Different Jobs

Across a career spanning Kraft, Unilever, and Newell Brands, Polk held some of the most demanding executive positions in consumer goods. He says leading a public conglomerate is largely about delegating and allocating resources to match a broader corporate plan, noting that CEOs in that position spend a great deal of time working through others rather than doing hands-on work themselves. Investor relations consumed a major chunk of his schedule too. Polk estimates he spent around thirty percent of his time with investors and public markets while balancing quarterly results against long term goals.

Getting Back to the Work He Loves

At Implus, Michael Polk found a different rhythm. He is directly involved in marketing, sales strategy, and building go-to-market programs alongside his commercial team, something he describes as a return to work he loved two decades ago. He also notes that his current team, while ambitious, tends to be younger and less experienced, which means he has to actively model the behaviors he wants to see rather than simply hand off responsibility.

Private ownership, according to Polk, offers a freedom that public companies rarely allow. Owners can focus on the long term health of the business instead of chasing quarterly numbers, giving leadership more room to make bold moves.

Still, Polk says the fundamentals of good leadership hold steady no matter the setting. Accessibility, authenticity, and sharp decision making matter whether a company is public or private. For Michael Polk, the goal has always been the same: build lasting value, however different the path looks along the way. Refer to this article for related information.

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