August 21, 2020
As a manager, what qualities do you look for in the team and staff members that you work with?
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JB King, KLUC: I always tell candidates during interviews that I don’t necessarily need an A-list talent, I can work with you to get to that level……what I need is an A-list person. Someone who can add to what we have built, both on-air and off. Mike “OD” O’Donnell, WKRZ: A similar work ethic to mine. People who are good communicators in terms of how they interact with their company peers. I also feel that every position requires a personality type, and I look for a good match for roles in our staff. For instance, for my promotions director, I picked someone with a type-A personality because you need someone who’s a stickler for details for promotions. Jammer, WEZB: People who are just get up and go! People who I don’t have to ask anything at all, they just do it. Self-starters.
Brian Mack, WXXL: Are they good people…do they have a grasp on right/wrong or care? Are they hard-working? Work well in a team atmosphere (former athletes often score well here)? Do they have a specialty that will be an asset to our business now or later? Josh Wolff, WAEB: Honesty, positivity, a desire to win, and intelligence.
Valentine, WBHT: 100% passion and hunger, and a whatever it takes to get it done attitude. Fish, WKRZ: You have to be very team oriented, no lone wolfs permitted…you have to be one cohesive unit. You have to have a strong work ethic and the ability to multi-task. You need multi-faceted experience these days, no one dimensional players. |
Jimmy Steal, WTMX: The #1 quality I look for is the ability to execute, getting things done. I’m sorry to say that passion, skills, creativity, and even vision, are all worthless without it.
Bartel, WKTU: That everyone is able to get along well and work as a team to accomplish our goals in a setting that’s conducive to success and overall experience. Joey Brooks, iHeartMedia: I’ve been lucky to learn from great talent and programmers throughout my career and I have always noticed that the best have incredible work ethics and positive attitudes. I look for hustle and good attitudes. You can teach the rest.
Skyywalker, WSPK: Work ethic and consistency. It sounds simple but it’s not. A lot of people start off strong but as time fades so do they. Give me as much on day 1 and day 1,001. Buzz Knight, Buzz Knight Media: Curiosity, collaboration, and courage…oh and one more, coachable.
Jonathan Shuford, WRVW: The most important attributes I look for in co-workers/employees are initiative and attitude. If you can self-start, anticipate, and solve problems ahead of time, and have a positive and determined mindset, there’s nothing you can’t accomplish. Everything else can be learned. If you’re lacking those intangibles, you’re limiting your ceiling regardless of what other qualities you possess. Randi West, WRMF: Passion is usually number one. Creative is also a close second. Those are the things you can’t teach. |
Rick Vaughn, KENZ: Strong will to win. Who’s going to have my back when I go into battle? Who’s going to fight until they can’t fight anymore?
Kobe, WZNE: Open and clear communication. I’d rather have someone tell me what they are good at and not good at rather than just always saying yes, so I could clearly put the best people in the best positions to win. Buster Satterfield, Q102: Work ethic, problem-solving skills, and/or star power. Jagger, WKSS: Hard work and willing to put the work in to win, good energy, and a positive attitude.
Chris Michaels, FM100: I look for someone who is always willing to learn, and at the same time, being a problem solver. Someone who can multitask, and is great with digital and social media. |
Jeremy Rice, WBLI: Engagement – especially today. Team – there is no “I” in Team. Embrace the BRAND, LOVE the BRAND, have PASSION for the BRAND (if not, why are you here?) Integrity + treat everyone with respect – no cancers allowed! Embrace NEW technology, data, and trends. Hard Work + be willing to learn and get better. HAVE FUN!
Erik Bradley, B96: Aside from the obvious (talent) – other important characteristics are honesty, team player, can-do attitude, hard workers who pay attention to detail, have passion for + pride in their work, can be coached, have strong work ethic and do the extra things to keep our brands successful.
Jon Zellner, iHeartMedia: Follow through, good judgment, passion, honesty.
Joe Breezy, WNFN: The desire to win and willingness to learn from each other. Just because I’m the Brand Manager doesn’t mean I can’t learn from my staff. Every team member, in every capacity, has the ability to teach and learn from each other. That, and intensity. Championships aren’t won from sitting back and not doing work. Keep pushing and the results will come.
Orlando, WLLD: Ability to make mistakes and learn from them, roll with the punches more than they roll their eyes, and ability to realize this is the best thing cooking.
Matt Johnson, KSLZ: I like to think of it as a construction project. Each project requires different tools to accomplish your goals.
Lee Abrams, MediaVisions: I look for people with High IQ/Low BS, and people who display a natural feel for the vision we’ll be executing. I call it the ‘it’ factor. Once a person has ‘it’ we talk at length to see how they’ll handle a kind of re-education into what we’re doing; will this be annoying or liberating to them? We also send a ‘culture quiz’ which asks everything from films that most inspired them to the websites they visit. Not a hire/no-hire thing, but more of a peek into their cultural identity. These responses actually can be very telling. Most important of all is a future-focused attitude and willingness to explore the possibilities and abilities to execute on them.
Justin Chase, Beasley Media Group: I look for people who are “humble leaders.” These are people who are constantly looking for a chance to take lead on a project and will always share their success with the entire team.
Dom Theodore, Radio Animal Media Strategies: There are many, but the top two are passion and work ethic. Many of the opportunities I’ve had came from the fact that I was willing to do jobs that nobody else wanted to do early in my career. That gave me the chance to prove myself, and that work ethic paid off with bigger opportunities.Next Week’s Question Of The Week:
What new forms of entertainment along the lines of streaming content, digital games and tech toys have you discovered during the pandemic period we’ve been subjected to this year?
e-Mail your responses to: jodorisio@deanemediasolutions.com or bburke@deanemediasolutions.com
