1. Duke University
Fuqua School of Business
Admissions Essay
Micah Steele
I expect that my participation in the program will benefit my classmates for three reasons –
my diverse experience at John Deere, the perspectives I have gained from the work I’ve
done, and the convictions I have about work, business, and leadership.
First, the experience I’ve already gained in my 15 years at Deere has given me a diverse set
of experiences from which I can draw as I engage in the program. I have served in many
distinct functional areas of the company, including manufacturing engineering, design
engineering, quality, supplier development, strategic sourcing, supply chain integration, and
aftermarket parts. Not only have those experiences been diverse in their functional focus,
they have also been diverse in their regional focus, as the assignments have had roots on
five continents and more than a dozen countries, with heaviest focus most recently in North
America, Japan, China, India, and Brazil.
Next, I will bring valuable perspectives about talent and teamwork. The attraction,
development, and retention of extraordinary global talent will be a distinct competitive
advantage for any company who can do it well for the next generation. In my work, over
the years of my experience as a manager and leader, I have honed skills in engaging the
teams and individuals in my circle of influence, especially those working directly in my chain
of reporting responsibility. Further, because I happen to work for a company which
operates from factories which are primarily in small towns of the Midwest, I have a
perspective on how to compete for and engage strong talent which many of those working
in large metroplexes probably do not. But building talent is, at best, half of the solution.
The other half is to engage that talent on high-performing teams in a way that distinguishes
the organizations in our company from those of our competitors. Getting talented
individuals to engage passionately in their work, and to pull hard, pull together, and pull in
the same direction is a recipe for extraordinary success in any business.
Finally, and in my view most compellingly, I will offer a diversity in thought which lies in
strong (and perhaps rare) convictions about a career as a leader in business. I have a few
foundational beliefs, and all of them have a firm root in my faith in Jesus Christ. One of
those beliefs is that the human race is dreadfully blemished by sin. Another is that we were
created in God’s image to do good work in order to serve each other, and to glorify God in
doing so. I can easily extrapolate from those beliefs by saying that our work in business will
be difficult at times, and corrupted at others, but that even so there is profitable work for us
to do. God has called me to the work of business, through which He can and will be
glorified in specific ways.

2. Men and women exhibit natural flaws which many times motivate them to (for example)
collude rather than compete, or to risk shareholders’ capital more than they would their
own. For these reasons (and many others), capitalistic economic systems don’t always
work well. We shouldn’t be surprised -- any system created and managed by mortal men
and women will have outcomes at times which are nothing short of disastrous. Even so, I
feel strongly that there is no better system to foster the kind of growth and value-creation
which are nearly certain outcomes over time when free enterprises like John Deere (and
countless others) compete for labor, capital, and customers. In fact, our economic system
is most effective when everyone participates in a highly ethical way, making contributions to
their businesses and industries as they compete aggressively but honestly. Of course, there
have been countless examples to the contrary, and the consequences really are dreadful.
That’s precisely why how we do business is so important and relevant to society at large.
When businesspeople and companies operate ethically and aggressively in these systems of
free enterprise and competition, they will be sustained in the long run only by doing great
work to delight their customers through the generation of genuine value. When that value
is wrought for customers to the benefit of businesses, families, and communities, the long-
term results are simply stunning. One can look backward in history and note the
undeniable flourishing of the human race which has been catalyzed in large measure by
men and women working in profitable businesses large and small. It can be fairly said that
through this work of millions of business people, such human flourishing is being sustained,
indeed accelerated, in our day. I like to point out that there is a glory in such human
flourishing which is entirely appropriate for us to acknowledge, celebrate, and work to
sustain for generations to come.
Such perspectives of a leader in business have a power to engage and compel an
organization to generate genuine value in an impressive way. I combine these perspectives
and passions about business with a general posture of servant leadership, which is the most
credible and fruitful brand of leadership, as demonstrated consistently by most of the
greatest leaders in history. If I can utilize these perspectives, passions, and postures to
lead in that way with increasing consistency, then the consequence of my leadership will be
greater than the shareholder value generated in a particular quarter, or even in the course
of a multi-decade career. As a matter of fact, one day I fully expect to look back on my
career and thank God for the tools and opportunities he gave me to bring greater glory to
Him through what truly is a high calling of business.