The 80-year-old chairman of clothing brand Alex Mill, and former CEO of Gap and J.Crew Group, says he’d much rather colleagues and employees address him like a regular person, using his first name only.
“No one can call me ‘mister.’ I don’t care who it is,” Drexler said during a LinkedIn interview on April 10, adding that the title goes against his leadership philosophy of being on the same level as the people around him. “Even in restaurants, I [tell people to call me] Mickey, that’s it. I want them to feel not beneath me.”
Drexler’s accolades in the apparel industry are lengthy, from revitalizing Ann Taylor and turning Gap into a $14 billion powerhouse to founding brands like Old Navy and Madewell. He also served as an Apple board member from 1999 to 2015.
No matter his accomplishments, Drexler insisted that he’s no better than your average employee, and other bosses should have a similar outlook, he said. It’s easy to get wrapped up running a company, but connecting with your colleagues is an essential part of leadership, he added.
“You have to connect to the team. You can’t be in your ivory tower. … You don’t learn in a bureaucracy [or] in an office,” said Drexler, noting that he similarly doesn’t like the “bad connotation” of the name “CEO.”
Bosses who engage with their employees — by asking for input, offering feedback or simply checking in — encourage career growth and send a clear message that their people matter. Employees increasingly value having connections with their managers, according to a March 2023 survey from Pew Research Center.
Empathy and transparency are both green-flag traits in bosses, Deepali Vyas, the global head of fintech, payments and crypto practice at Korn Ferry,
“Managers that master the balance of emotional intelligence and not being so rigid — that’s a good boss,” said Vyas, who has 25 years of recruiting experience. He added that employees should also look for a boss that has “adaptability and someone that’s empowering you to grow.”
Drexler converses with his colleagues, both entry-level and executive, by asking simple, open-ended questions about their job or upbringing, he said. He calls it “schmoozing,” but you might refer to it as small talk or networking — creating a connection with an informal, friendly interaction.
“Meet all the people,” said Drexler, adding that small talk is a skill he developed as an executive, not something he’s always done. “Be a normal [person], not [an] ivory-tower person who thinks they’re smarter than everyone. … You never learn [something new] unless you have a relationship with someone.”
