The focus of Rhoades' work has been in improving personal relations in a variety of service-based industries including Southwest Airlines and Jetblue. Throughout her speech, titled "People-Centric Cultures Pay Big Dividends: Lessons from Great Companies," Rhoades stressed three qualities that make entrepreneurs successful.
"Great entrepreneurs get people to follow them," Rhoades said in an interview. "They have to be passionate, they have to be driven to succeed, and they have to be able to transfer that passion to all the people that follow them."
Rhoades said one of the most successful entrepreneurs that she worked with was JetBlue Chairman David Nealman, whose belief in having a passionate staff has contributed to the company's success.
"At JetBlue we only hire people that are A players," Rhoades said. "We hire people with a sense of humor, and we hire people that enjoy coming to work."
While serving as the vice president of the People Department of Southwest Airlines, Rhoades also worked with co-founder, Chairman and former CEO of Southwest Herb Kelleher, who she said has played an integral role in the company's recent growth.
To emphasize Kelleher's employee-oriented leadership, Rhoades noted that after 9/11, Kelleher vowed to take a one-dollar salary until the company returned to its former profit levels, in lieu of reducing his employees' salaries. She also feels that he engages employees in the decisions the airline makes.
"In Southwest, everyone knows what it takes to be successful," Rhoades said. "They over-communicate -- they make sure that everyone participates on a continual basis, and when they have a problem that is not solved in corporate headquarters, it is solved on the field and solved by all the players."
In addition to internal organization, both Southwest and JetBlue have compiled a "do not fly" list of customers that are no longer allowed to fly with the airlines due to past incidents, a policy Rhoades feels improves the companies' morale and makes employees feel more involved.
Rhoades also commended Howard Schultz, chairman of Starbucks, who she said makes sure to interact frequently with his employees by visiting at least 25 stores every week. According to Rhoades, Schultz has said visiting the stores and working with the employees has been tremendously educational.
"It's something so basic but so many times as we grow we forget," Rhoades said.
Rhoades went on to describe the successful leadership styles of eBay President and CEO Meg Whittman and head of the United States Olympic Committee Peter Ueberroth, and culminated by stating that each of the leaders she referred to transfers their values to their employees.
"Great leaders absolutely know where they're going and how they're going to get there," Rhoades said. "Values are at the heartbeat of the organization."
Presented by the Rockefeller Center, Rhoades' speech was also made possible by the Tuck School of Business, the Tuck Center for Private Equity and Entrepreneurship, the Dartmouth Entrepreneurial Network, and Dartmouth's Office of Corporate and Venture Initiatives and paid for by William C. Portman '45.
