Leggett CEO tells students about journey

Haffner, a Carthage native, told the students that growing up as the youngest of three sons in a poor family helped him acquire the traits he uses to lead a Fortune 500 company.

Haffner talked about an article in Monday’s USA Today that provided anecdotal evidence that many successful executives received spankings as a child. The article quoted Haffner telling about how his father, a mechanic and a truck driver, used his belt to discipline him about six times a year.

His father also taught him discipline by reminding him to return every tool in the shop to its place. Haffner said his family also instilled integrity – a trait he said is necessary to run a publicly traded company.

Growing up poor and the subject of teasing made Haffner competitive in academics and athletics.

He told the MSSU students about an injury that ended his college football career. Haffner said the injury happened when he was playing football for then-Missouri Southern College during a game against rival Pittsburg (Kan.) State University.

“I didn’t break my leg,” Haffner quipped. “The PSU player did it for me.”

The injury further channeled his competitive spirit towards academics, Haffner said. He later transferred to the University of Missouri–Columbia and earned an engineering degree. He later earned his master’s in business administration from the University of Wisconsin.

Haffner said he maintained a close relationship with his father, whose terminal illness prompted him to return to southwest Missouri.

Haffner has worked at Leggett & Platt since returning to Carthage in 1983. He became president and CEO in May after serving as president and chief operating officer since 2002.

The students posed Haffner questions about a variety of topics, including China, leadership, motivation, his schedule and CEO pay.

“The pay of CEOs is obnoxious,” Haffner said. “It is unjustified in many cases.”

See the Oct. 23 issue of Joplin Tri-State Business for more on Haffner’s remarks. Joplin Tri-State Business is Springfield Business Journal’s sister publication. Jeff Wells is JTB editor and can be contacted at jwells@joplintsb.com.[[In-content Ad]]