It's time for Tom Anselmi
Last Fall, the Toronto Sun reported that the board of Maple Leaf Sports & Entertainment would “soon name a new boss.” That was almost five months ago, and with Richard Peddie now 10 weeks gone, after a 14 month notice period, the time is certainly ripe for a new CEO to be appointed.
The MLSE business runs so well, you can almost appreciate why there’s no rush to choose Mr. Peddie’s successor. But any successful business abhors a vacuum, and MLSE currently has one. For Korn/Ferry, the headhunter reported to be working to secure a CEO replacement, the short list work of compelling external candidates will have been completed long ago. I’m sure there’s someone from Portland or Seattle who is just fantastic, in theory. But for the local fan base, the ones who turn those turnstiles, we already know the answer: it’s MLSE EVP & COO Tom Anselmi.
Attend a concert, Leafs or Raptors game at the ACC with any frequency, and you’ll be struck by the professionalism of the fulltime customer-facing staff: the ushers, the guards, the servers. These people act like owners, and treat the season ticket holders as though their comfort and safety is the most important thing in the world. That’s the kind of culture that a Chief Operating Officer can build over a number of years, and Mr. Anselmi get full marks for it.
These things don’t just happen in a huge organization. It takes thoughful and proactive leadership.
I haven’t always been happy with the decisions around team management and player contracts, and complained about Mr. Peddie’s judgment on that front. But, as we all know, MLSE is first and foremost a business. And the success of the MLSE over the past 5+ years has many fathers, I’m sure, but unless someone on the MLSE Board is ready to jump into a minute-to-minute management role, the answer for Korn/Ferry is staring them in the face: once “no stone [has been] left unturned” in the CEO search, as the National Post reported in December, the new majority owners of MLSE are left with a very clear decision.
In my one brief interaction with him, Mr. Anselmi came across as a personable, forthright and saavy businessman. Rogers and Bell are going to want to make their own choice, but let’s not be deluded into thinking there’s a better candidate in some foreign market. The creativity and courage that MLSE has shown over the past few years with the real estate and restaurant plays is evidence that Toronto already has a world class management team.
Formalizing the new CEO hire won’t change the status of Andrea Bargnani’s calf, or the Leaf’s netminding challenge, of course. But it will cement what is working for we fans, and a great customer experience is what we have today. Don’t run the risk of undermining the one part of the equation that you DO have control over in the sports business.
It’s time for Tom Anselmi.
MRM
(NTD: sry about the spelling typo; it was 5am when I wrote the post)
Mark, it is always encouraging to experience service businesses that train their staff to recognize who determines the economic wellbeing of the enterprise and its employees — the customer. Compare the corporate cultures at WestJet and Air Canada. A company that promotes and rewards positive customer relations on a consistant basis is rare. The next several days may provide yet another lesson in this regard.