Doug's Bio

Knowledge, Credibility and Experience

Speaker and Coach

“After all those years of leading, coaching and developing people, I learned it wasn’t ever really a job, it’s who I am.”

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His Experience

Doug Sterbenz is the recently retired Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer of a Fortune 1000 Company.  Now he takes his leadership experiences and helps aspiring leaders reach their full potential and organizations reach their goals.

An effective and respected executive, Doug never imagined himself as a speaker, but has a passion for sharing the leadership lessons he has learned along the way. He has stories to tell because he has lived them, and has a proven track record of leading people to achieve success. He is often called to speak on leadership and safety, and his message will personally inspire and challenge any audience.

Doug has a Bachelor of Science in Mechanical Engineering from Kansas State University, holds a Professional Engineering license, and has a Masters of Business Administration from the University of Texas at Tyler.

Having worked as a shift supervisor in a power plant to launching his company’s power marketing business and going on to lead the operating activities for the largest electric provider in Kansas, Doug has serious credibility on the topic of leadership from the shop floor to the executive suite.

He is a graduate of many leadership programs and he serves on many non-profit boards and university academic advisory councils.

Doug and his wife Connie have three grown children and live in Kansas.

"We all want to improve our lives, yet we spend so much time at work away from our families.  My message will improve your live at work and at home with your families."

Ingram's Magazine on Doug Sterbenz

From "50 Kansans You Should Know" - June 2015

Doug Sterbenz – Present to Win, LLC Doug Sterbenz was pretty good at his first career—good enough to reach the C-suites of Westar Energy as chief operating officer, and to be able to retire early last year. And the skills he mastered there led to his second career, as an executive leadership coach through his company called Present to Win (as in the commercial disclaimer, “You must be present to win.”).

“Companies get so caught up in their business, the strategy and getting things done,” he says. “I have found that real, meaningful leadership development is missing in many companies. It’s the people, and their leadership that gets things done, but most companies focus only on things.” Focus instead on the people, he says, and the things will get done.

Sterbenz graduated from K-State and lived in Texas for a decade and Utah for a year before he and his wife came home to raise three children. He’s also been on the board of the American Red Cross for more than a decade. “What we learned is that every place has great and not so good elements,” he says. “What elements you focus on will determine your happiness.”

Contact Doug and schedule a free consultation.

Lead Yourself First

Before you can contribute to or lead a group, you must be able to lead yourself.  And that means working on yourself and improving yourself, so you can be a contributor and not a distractor.

Doug's New Book

His new book on Leadership "Must Be Present To Win" is now available!