IT Leadership Manual: Roadmap to Becoming a Trusted Business Partner

Preface

It is a warm summer day at Watkins Glen International Raceway. I am just finishing my second test session of the day. It is unusually hot for this time of year and we have had to make several adjustments to the car. I am here as part of the F2000 Championship Series, a professional series in its sixth year.

Young kids from all over the world are here, and the competition is tougher every year. With over 30 cars competing, there are only two seconds separating the field. Every one-hundredth of a second is important.

We have made several adjustments to the chassis, added new springs, adjusted the Penske shocks, played with ride height, and adjusted tire pressures. Our team engineer, Angello, calls a racecar “the unsolvable equation.” He has a degree in mechanical engineering and is a great asset to the team. He can prepare each car to the individual driver's preferences. I like understeer, which we call “a push.” It causes the front end to be a little loose. The advantage to me is that it keeps the rear more stable. Every driver has his own style.

The young drivers like our series because it features several experienced drivers. Many are national champions. We range in age from 17 to 72. I love to watch the kids learn and grow from our mentorship. All they know is how to go fast, but speed is not the only thing that counts. It is all about how you enter a turn and how you pick your turning and breaking points. It might be a tree, a spot in the track, a bump, or any other ...