I met Michael several years ago when he hired me as a Keynote Speaker for the Americas Grape Country Wine Festival, the largest Wine Event in New York’s famed Chautauqua Grape Growing Region. It was a great event, with Bands, Wineries, Speakers, Vendors and Food organized and smooth. After watching him in action, I decided Michael was a man I needed to get to know and I’m proud to introduce him to you. He has had plenty of leadership roles, from President and GM of Professional Sports teams(including the Buffalo Blizzard!) to managing arenas and marketing the Chautauqua region. Today Michael is running for County Executive in Chautauqua County.
Micheal, you have had a lot of different leadership roles in your career, some tremendous undertakings. What was your favorite?
I think my first professional sports position with the Jamestown Jammers, then a Detroit Tigers Minor League affiliate was one of my favorites. It was a dream come true to operate a professional baseball team with such a historic past. I learned to surround myself with hard working people and the importance of “winning as one”. The success or failure of any sports organization isn’t due to the efforts of just one person. It takes a concerted effort from everyone on the team. From Leadership Teams to the Field Crew to the Hot Dog vendors, we win together, we lose together and everyone has a part to play in the orchestra.
But I would have to say that this experience is a close tie to coming back home to Western New York and serving as Vice President and General Manager of the Buffalo Blizzard Soccer Team at what is now called the KeyBank Center, then Marine Midland Arena. Going from 3,500 seats in Jamestown to over 18,000 seats in my hometown was an incredible experience and forced me to up my game quickly. Some people may wonder how someone goes from baseball to soccer, but the management, philosophy, budgeting and most importantly, the Customer Experience is one and the same. Plus I had a love for both games.
How is leading a professional Sports Franchise different from the other businesses and marketing efforts you’ve led?
I’m not sure that it’s very different. For the most part it’s creating an experience and memories that will hopefully last a lifetime. My love for sports came from experiences that I had as a child. Walking through a crisp Buffalo winters night into the old War Memorial Auditorium, smelling the popcorn, hearing the barking vendors selling hot dogs, beer or programs, then entering the brightly lit cathedral that was the Buffalo Bisons Hockey arena, hearing pucks hitting the boards was a thrilling experience. Hearing the crack of the bat as the old Buffalo Bisons played in “The Rockpile”. The sound of baseballs slapping the leather of a catcher’s mitt, then seeing finely manicured grass and hearing the music. Those are the things i wanted to recreate for our Fans.
When you provide a superior experience, everything else falls into place financially. People buy more tickets, eat more hot dogs, buy more souvenirs. They feel like the are part of the team. We had to learn to appeal to “all” of our Fans; Dad, Children and even Mom. Returning to an event is a family decision. Rarely will people return if they don’t enjoy the game. We found that “winning” was important but that the “experience” is what brought them back.
I’ve always “built a team” both on and off the field. People don’t like to be managed. They want to be able to contribute to the final product and team management allows for that to happen. We are selling ourselves, our logo, our culture, our “brand”. So whether it’s the Jamestown Jammers, Lake Erie Speedway or even the Buffalo Bills, we are selling the culture that it represents, the image, the experience of being a Fan. The same goes for a product. Currently I market both Fredonia Place Assisted Living and the Bemus Bay Pops. Two entirely different organizations yet have many of the same goals; fill seats, fill beds and develop a belief amongst our team that what they do changes lives for Residents and what the Pops brings to Chautauqua Lake is one of the most unique experiences in America. A Floating Stage with live arts programming. A facility that treats its Residents like it’s their home.
The difference is McDonald’s coffee for a buck and Starbucks for four. You are paying for the quality, you are paying for the experience and ambiance. You are paying to belong.
Where did you learn to lead at such a high profile level?
My mentor was Michael J. Billoni of the Buffalo Bisons and Rich Baseball Operations. Mike was the person who taught Minor League Baseball to market themselves independently. In the old days, minor league teams would try to wear the logos and colors of their major league counterparts. Mike saw the need to develop a brand that the Fans could relate to. Something that they could call their own. Something to make them “buy into” the club. You may never see George Steinbrenner roaming the stands taking pictures of Fans, but come to Buffalo and Mike Billoni was truly a P.T. Barnum. Together we were unstoppable. No promotion was too outrageous. No request by a Fan was impossible. He could make things happen for people. He knew it was all about people. And that is why the Buffalo Bisons were one of the most respected Minor League baseball clubs in the World.
I also became a student of Management, Customer Service and Customer Experience. I studied some of the top companies in the world; Apple, Zappos, Starbucks, Wynn, Virgin and Richard Branson, John Paul DeJoria of the Paul Mitchell and Patron Tequila companies. I also met a man named Dan Dalpra. Dan is the owner of the Italian Fisherman Restaurant in Bemus Point, New York. Dan also invented and is President of the Bemus Bay Pops on the Floating Stage, also in Bemus Point on Chautauqua Lake. His restaurant has been around for 30 years this Summer. The Pops 20 years. But like Mike Billoni and I, Dan was outrageous. He developed the Pops by placing an entire symphonic orchestra on the roof of his restaurant one Labor Day weekend to entertain and encourage the boaters on the lake to stop by his establishment. He replicated the Times Square ball drop by hosting a Great Meatball Drop of his own to celebrate the midway point of the Summer. And together we pulled off “Light the Lakes”. An eight community fireworks show so big, “it could be seen from space”. (We actually had a report from NASA live from the Space Shuttle!)
If you’re in management, only one thing counts; your team and most importantly, your Customers. If your name is on the line, so is your reputation. Which means you always need to put your best foot forward yet never be satisfied with what you did the day before. It’s like sports or any other competition. You need to continue to evolve and look to the future. Because the future is now.
How important have mentors and business coaches been in your journey?
As you can see from the last questions, they were ultimately responsible for my success. No one can do it alone. Having a great network of people you can turn to who won’t always tell you how great you are is important as well. Always remember the people who were there for you when nobody else was. Usually you don’t have to look too far to find them. for me, it was the people I mentioned and my best friend, my wife Dianne.
Delegating tasks can be a difficult task for a leader. After watching you in action, I admire your ability to delegate minute tasks while keeping a hold of the big picture. What advice do you have for new leaders on delegation of tasks?
A.) You can’t do it all yourself no matter how much you’d like to.
B.) Hire people with more energy than you have, give them their parameters and turn them loose.
C.) Always make your expectations crystal clear.
Whatever outcome you envision, give it to your team, let them become a part of it. Let them own it. But tell them specifically what the final outcome should be. If you’re the Leader the responsibility of the outcome falls squarely on your shoulders. You win together…you lose together…but you’re the coach and general manager. You lose, take the blame and learn from it. Finally, the devil is in the details. Pay attention to everything you manage. The smallest thing can destroy an experience or an event. And you may never hear about it until it’s too late.
Chautauqua is a great place, with a grape industry the whole State is proud of and lots of historic landmarks. What inspired you to run for County Executive?
I love Western New York. Although I was born and raised in the Buffalo, West Seneca, Orchard Park area, I have now lived in Chautauqua County for 28 years. I have seen the transformation and rebirth of my hometown. Specifically Canalside, Seneca Street and more. Less than 10 years ago you wouldn’t walk those streets after sundown. Now it’s the place to be. I have a belief that we can do the same here in Chautauqua County. We have some of the most amazing attractions in the World: Chautauqua Institution, Panama Rocks, the Bemus Bay Pops. Chautauqua Lake brings in a third of our total tax revenue. Dunkirk Harbor can do the same with development. Soon we will have the National Comedy Center which was born from the Lucy-Desi Comedy Center. We have the Northwest Arena which I ran for a number of years which participated in the last World Junior Hockey Championships and played host to shows like Jerry Seinfeld, REO Speedwagon and more.
But my greatest motivation came from a phone conversation with my family. My wife and children said, “No matter what you’ve done and no matter where you go, you’ve always left whatever you were doing in better shape than you found it.” That’s all i needed to hear.
What other passions do you have besides marketing and leadership?
I love to learn something new. I feel that when we stop learning, we stop living. It keeps me sharp and ahead of the curve in all phases of life. I love to read magazines. Both online and to feel the heft of a magazine in my hands. I love to discover new things. Foods, spirits, adventures. And I want to be engage in my world. I have no tolerance for injustice. I have recently begun research in the horrors of Human Trafficking. It’s in our own backyards. It needs to be stopped. I have also become involved in the clean water movements and initiatives. From communities that have no drinking water or bad drinking water to the state of our lakes and oceans. Water is the lifeblood of the world.
Coveys 7th habit is “Sharpen the Saw”, what do you enjoy doing in your time of relaxation?
I played Racquetball professionally for a number of years and I love the game. But my new passion is Pickleball. It’s a wonderful sport with a silly name but essentially it’s a combination of tennis and ping pong on a court very similar to the size of a racquetball court. I love it so much that I am the Official USAPA Ambassador for the Village of Fredonia! I’m a little disappointed because I don’t get one of those cool “Ambassador” sashes that I can wear across my chest. What I find most gratifying is spending time with Family and my three wonderful Grandchildren. Nothing beats it. Unless all of the above has a beach included. That’s the icing on the cake. Pickleball courts, family, grandkids on the beach. That’s the ticket.
