On Feb. 9, Michael Crooke, former CEO of Patagonia, gave the keynote speech at Claremont McKenna College’s (CMC) 10th annual Green Careers Conference.
The conference, which was sponsored by the Roberts Environmental Center, featured panels on postgraduate education, civic and community engagement, environmental protection, environmental policy and government.
Crooke’s talk at CMC’s Marian Miner Cook Athenaeum differed from the rest of the Green Careers Conference’s events, which consisted mainly of panels. His speech centered around his perspective on sustainable business and experience at Patagonia, concluding with a Q&A segment, while the panels had more fluid back and forth conversations between multiple speakers.
Hannah Vestring CM ’25 said she found Crooke’s talk to be a refreshing change of pace in the conference. She noted the importance of discussion in panels, but highlighted the benefits of having a solo speaker as well.
“In terms of that structure [panels], it’s really valuable to hear both sides and have that collaborative environment,” Vestring said. “But also to come here and sit down and focus and listen. I think it ties together really well.”
Crooke structured his talk around three behaviors that he claimed to be key to successful leadership and business.
“You must be a disruptor with a growth mindset,” he said. “You must be a strategist. You must develop exceptional emotional intelligence.”
Elaborating on the importance of emotional intelligence, Crooke emphasized its necessity in fostering strong team dynamics, another skill he underscored the importance of.
”Use the lenses of your values to create authenticity for the people around you,” he said. They will believe in you. It will be a culture of trust. Rarely anything exceptional happens without a good team.”
Vestring praised Crooke for his unique approach towards emotional intelligence and team-building in corporate leadership.
“That to me is something I haven’t really heard from speakers like this,” Vestring said. “Having really put a lot of weight on the culture behind the company and really weaving in the purpose of essentially saving the planet between each team member. That really inspired me and that is something that I think is not really highlighted often in this industry.”
On the idea of developing sensitivity in order to strengthen teams, Crooke highlighted the importance of a collective aim in an organization’s decision-making process.
“Shared purpose is what galvanizes people together,” Crooke said. “It gives meaning to their work.”
Crooke explained how, when he joined Patagonia in 2000, the company was facing the threat of being sold. He noted that the lack of individuals who could manage both environmental and corporate values and finances caused the company to struggle.
“There just wasn’t a value for finance or innovating the product,” Crooke said. “I brought in people who were interested in these two parts.”
Talia de Beer CM ’25 said she found his willingness to prioritize sustainability admirable.
“He said it himself, there is no company out there that exists that is 100 percent sustainable,” de Beer said. “I think that once we can accept that, it’s how to move forward in a way that is more sustainable. They said maybe this isn’t the best product at this moment but let’s keep researching, let’s keep looking for new ways and that’s just how we can do better and do our part.”
Crooke then talked about the importance of being a strategist and his personal experience with the intersection between business and environmentalism, describing the rise of environmentalism as a megatrend.
“Megatrends are by definition not a trend,” he said. “[They are] things that last, they are global, they are the macro.”
Despite the growing global popularity of sustainability, Crooke explained how Patagonia faced issues with the additional cost associated with selling environmentally friendly products. This is when Crooke’s emphasis on strategy came into play.
“Storytelling is everything,” Crooke said. “As soon as we started telling the story better, the customers’ willingness to pay was better. We can’t let one side tell the stories better than the authentic stories of the environment.”
On his last point of being a “disruptor,” Crooke emphasized the importance of thinking outside of industry norms.
“You have to outhink people, that’s how you get an advantage,” Crooke said. “The brilliance of Patagonia was not the fuzzy fleece jackets or the products. It was [that] … each one of us [had] the feeling of saving the planet.”
Crooke concluded with his thoughts on the prioritization of sustainability in the values of people today and the importance of being honest to customers and employees in creating a successful business.
“[Sustainability] is embedded in people’s value chains,” Crooke said. “As soon as you get off the track of being authentic, it’s game over.”
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