Hofstra University

Since I was little I had a fascination with NYC. When it came time to decide where to go to college, I knew being in or around the Big Apple was a must. From the first moment I stepped foot onto the Hofstra University campus, I was sure it was the place for me.

I enjoyed 4 years of studies at Hofstra with a focus in Business Management. In addition to my major requirements, I filled my schedule with as many art classes as allowed. I loved drawing and painting, and those classes served as an outlet for me to exercise my creativity.

I worked consistently while attending school. I began with a job on campus, and eventually needing more money, started working in local restaurants. To this day, one of my most enjoyable work experiences was waiting tables at California Pizza Kitchen for 3 years. I worked with friends, the atmosphere was bustling, and my boss Don provided an example what being a good manager was all about. At CPK I also figured out that I could control my income to a degree (tips) with the effectiveness of my personality and service. This was extremely motivating (especially for a college student needing money) and developed a mindset of how to hustle at work and prioritize superior customer service.

Undoubtedly the most fulfilling and rewarding part of my college experience was meeting my beautiful wife Julie. We have been together for 20 years and now live happily in Connecticut with our lovely daughter Eliza.

Target

I began my professional journey with Target as an eager recruit straight from the career fair held on my college campus. The company's commitment to training and leadership development is first class and proved to be instrumental in my personal growth and trajectory within the organization. Over the 11 years I spent with Target, I was promoted 5x and served in 6 different roles. My responsibilities ranged from product replenishment, managing a customer service team, leading food operations across 42 stores, piloting a position (later rolled out) in the #1 sales location in the Company, running a $63+ million store, and serving as a business partner on the NYC district leadership team. The range of core roles developed a diverse understanding of organizational structure and key business domains - HR, Operations, Loss Prevention, Sales/Service/Merchandising, Logistics, Vendor and Community Partnerships - and provided exposure to the highest levels of leadership within the Company. I gained experience in single store settings as well as leading teams and driving results across territories ranging from 7 - 42 stores. All of my roles were located throughout the Metro NY area which was the company's highest volume, highest risk, and most complex market.

Dick’s Sporting Goods

Taking a position with Dick's Sporting Goods was a step closer to aligning my personal passions with my career. I love active lifestyle, sports, fitness; and especially all of the gear that goes along with it. Working for Dick's, I was dealing with sporting goods product and equipment and interacting with customers who were excited about the same things I was, on a daily basis.

The training I received at Dick's was incredible. The Company’s objective for Store Leaders and above was to make sure that you knew product and services, so you and your team could successfully sell it. I was trained on everything from performing a running gait analysis, stringing a tennis racquet, basic bike maintenance, selling a firearm, golf club technology, appropriately fitting and sizing team sports equipment, and more. Dick's taught me that even in a high volume retail environment, the key to effective sales was through a conversation and asking the right questions so you could guide the customer appropriately, and leave them satisfied.

I was assigned to 2 underperforming stores where I recovered the customer service scores by increasing team member engagement, and drove sales in one of the Company's most challenged locations to beat plan and rank in the Company Top 20.

A highlight at Dick's was when I entered the companywide "Team of Toughness" competition by submitting a video documenting my commitment to living an active lifestyle, and was selected as a finalist.

NYA Sports & Fitness

The opportunity to take on the role of Executive Director at NYA Sports & Fitness Center was a gift. I was immediately planted in an environment that encompassed so many of the things I love - sports, fitness, kids, and daily interactions that are focused on positively impacting people's well-being.

The task to achieve sustainability for the organization by course correcting years of established business practices, staff culture, and community awareness was tall. In addition, learning a completely new industry (fitness, youth and sports recreation) while also adjusting my leadership lens from a national corporate point of view, to a small business/local non-profit frame of reference was challenging. The role has required me to stretch, adapt, learn, and lead with humility more than any other position I've held.

The keys to success have been: relationship building, establishing a strong partnership with the Board of Directors, developing an entrepreneurial mindset, and having a willingness to get hands on within every aspect of the business to learn, and drive it forward.

The role has required me to exercise a variety of skills that have made me a more versatile business professional. I have done everything from marketing (website maintenance, social media management), property management (vendor procurement/management, maintenance protocol), finance (budget/forecast creation, AP/AR management, P&L), HR (hiring, reviews, payroll oversight), and business development (program creation/implementation, sales initiatives, CRM).

Undoubtedly the most fulfilling part of the job has been working with kids and especially those with special needs. There are days where I am a pseudo gym teacher, mentoring teenagers, or teaching sports in an adapted format to young people with challenged abilities.

Coaching

I have come to understand that my intrinsic approach to parenting, personal relationships, work, and daily interactions with others is that of a coach. I genuinely love to see others learn new skills, intentionally confront a challenge, accomplish goals, and experience personal growth. I've recognized that people in my life - young, old, and in-between, look to me for guidance, motivation, accountability, and most of all a listening ear that will not cast judgement.

Identifying this skillset has been an organic process. I kept finding that people felt comfortable around me and would always ask questions, seek advice, and positively respond to my approach around career, health and fitness, and general life situations.

I have become more intentional with these skills over the years and have enjoyed applying them in a variety of environments:

I have shared my love for mountain biking with kids by leading instructional clinics for KC&E Adventures and coaching the John Jay High School Mountain Bike Team to a 2016 NY State Championship.

I have applied my commitment to healthy lifestyle by becoming a Certified Health Coach and working with individuals to make positive changes around their nutrition and wellness habits.

My current work has enabled me to teach the fundamentals of team sports to young kids and more specifically work closely with special needs children.

But most of the time it's the more informal interactions with my daughter and wife, employees at work, or random conversations with neighbors and friends, where we're talking through how to navigate the vastness of life, that really fills my cup.

Endurance Sports

A couple of years after graduating college my Dad threw out, "let's run a marathon." Although I was actively going to the gym and hitting the weights, I was by no means "fit." I think I knew this deep down at the time, and accepted my Dad's invitation knowing that I needed something to change with my approach to fitness, and life. Committing to run that first marathon unlocked a piece of me that had gone dormant during my late teens and early twenties.

Preparing for that marathon introduced a lifestyle that I quickly embraced and have now cultivated for almost 2 decades. I have come to love the grind of training and maintain a consistent regiment even if I am not targeting a specific event. The planning, scheduling, and execution of a hefty training load amongst work and family responsibilities has helped me prioritize my time and ultimately drop habits or activities that were not healthy or productive. The discipline and perseverance required to accomplish long distance endurance feats has transferred over to my approach with work, and life challenges. I am extremely grateful for my Dad challenging me (us) to push outside of  our comfort zone and set in motion a personal transformation.

Over the past 16 years I have completed 2 marathons, a Ironman triathlon, 8 half Ironman triathlons, a 50K trail running race, 2 100k mountain bike races, a 6 hour mountain bike race, and countless Olympic and Sprint distance triathlons, half marathons, 10Ks, 5Ks, and various distanced bike races.

More satisfying than crossing the finish line at these events has been the estimated 6,000 hours of training I have put in during this time, and the personal growth I have experienced in all domains of my life, which I strongly attribute to my involvement with endurance sports.