George Steinbrenner: The Boss You Would Have Wanted for Your Startup
The New York Yankees principal owner, George Steinbrenner has passed away this morning at the age of 80. George was a very unique, extremely hard working person. He was a visionary and a leader in all of sports. He changed sports – for the better. When he bought the Yankees in 1973 for what would now be considered a mere $10 million dollars, he was determined to make the Yankees great. Prior to his ban from baseball in the 1990’s, some may say his insistance to win was perhaps overpowering at times; he wanted to be in control of every move the organization made and did not fully utilize the talented scouts and executives he had in the organization.
This did lead to some tough times, but after his ban from baseball ended in 1993, he came back a changed owner. He ended up delegating and utilizing the people within his organization and in 1996, the Yankees won the World Series and then again in 1998, 1999, 2000, and 2009. George was also quite the character, he once said, “Winning is the most important thing in my life, after breathing. Breathing first, winning next.” his determination to win is what let his players know he would do whatever it took to get the job done. Even if that meant spending huge amounts of money to bring in the best. Under George’s ownership, the Yankees won 7 World Series and 11 American League pennants. They also have the highest win percentage of any sports team since 1973 when he bought the team.
From a business perspective, George was always ahead of the curve, he turned a baseball team into a marketing machine. People who don’t like sports are aware of the NY Yankees. Their symbol is widely recognized – that interlocking NY. They continually have the largest fan turn outs at the majority of their games. Even in opposing cities, when the Yankees come to town, the crowds grow larger. It’s amazing. The Yankees started their own TV station (YES Network), another pioneering move by Steinbrenner, one which is starting to gain some popularity by other team owners. George has built an empire which is estimated to be valued at $1-2 billion dollars. His initial investment? A mere $10 million.
A lot of people say you have to spend money to make money, George was the definition of that statement. Not only did he change sports, he also turned himself into quite the celebrity. He hosted SNL and even had a recurring role on Seinfeld.
George was willing to take risks, if he believed the reward would be far greater and that’s important. If you aren’t able to take (evaluated) risks, you might as well call it quits right now. He told it how it was, don’t like it? Too bad. Was he harsh? Yes, but he also understood how important it was to take care of his people. It wouldn’t be unheard of to retire and receive a call stating that you were now a scout in the Yankees organization with your new salary. Of course, you didn’t have to actually do anything, but that’s just one example of Steinbrenner’s generosity and understanding that if you take care of the people who work for you, they are more productive and willing to go out of there way for you.
There are a lot of great CEO’s and owners out there and George was absolutely one of them. RIP George. There’s no owner quite like you.