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Executive Summary
Company. Feld Entertainment Industry. Live entertainment Key. Chairman and CEO Ken Feld says trust is the most important element in employees.
After 45 years in show business, Feld Entertainment CEO and Chairman Ken Feld is rarely surprised.
That changed when a pair of princesses, Anna and Elsa, came into his life. The sisters are the stars of the blockbuster Disney movie “Frozen,” and more recently, “Disney on Ice Presents Frozen.” The live ice show is produced by Feld Entertainment, which operates a $30 million global production headquarters in Manatee County. The show is a smash hit: More than 1 million people have seen it since it debuted last year.
“I've never seen anything like it,” says Feld, both on ticket sales and the audience frenzy. “This is the greatest thing I've ever seen, and I was around for the Beatles.”
Feld, 66, chatted about “Frozen” and many other aspects of his career during the second annual USF Sport & Entertainment lecture series held Jan. 13 in Tampa. He talked about the company's history, the extensive process behind making a show and how the use of analytics has transformed the live entertainment industry. Feld also talked about the joys and challenges of overseeing a business where his three daughters are top executives. “Every day is take-your-daughter-to-work day for me,” quips Feld.
Feld has been in the live entertainment industry since he was a young boy, when he sold circus books at shows promoted by his father, Irvin Feld. The younger Feld scouted acts in Eastern Europe when he was in college, and he later ran the business behind the shows.
Today Feld Entertainment is a billion-dollar live show business juggernaut, with performances in more than 75 countries. About 30 million people attend one Feld's 5,000 shows held every year. Feld, in a rare one-on-one media interview, spoke with the Business Observer before his USF presentation. Here are edited excerpts of the conversation:
What were some obstacles you faced when you were a young executive?
My dad died suddenly when I was 35 years old, and I had this whole company. One day, literally overnight, I had to figure out how to run this thing. It probably took me 10 years to figure out what to do, what to restructure and to take it to a place where we could really grow and expand.
What did you learn about leadership back then that helped shape the core of what Feld Entertainment is today?
You have to be able to get smart people, but it's more important to give them authority, responsibility and more than anything else, trust. Once you can trust people, then you can sleep at night. I had that relationship with my dad, and having my daughters in the business gives me a great feeling. It's the most gratifying thing ever for me to work with my daughters.
Why is trust so important?
Trust and being right are two different things. If you trust people, you know they will make the best decision to get to the similar goal. None of us is always right.
Has trust helped you navigate the dynamics and challenges of running a family business?
You navigate every day. You are on the ship and in the ocean every day. There's no dry-dock time on this thing. You talk about stuff, and it gets heated. Every CEO of every company spends a disproportionate amount of time figuring out what the truth is. I have to tell you: When you are there with your three daughters there isn't one thing you can get away with. No punches are pulled. They are absolutely honest and tell me things no one else on the planet would tell me.
What did you learn about hiring talented people when you scouted circus entertainment in Eastern Europe in the late 1960s and early 1970s?
I went with a gentleman who was in the circus business and spoke seven languages. We would sit and watch acts, and he would tell me this person is really good. I would say a flip is a flip. But it's also technique — you don't want people who do something right one time, then get hurt.
We would watch circus acts for three days, eight hours a day. They would bring in an audience and the best band you ever heard. But the biggest thing I learned is you can get fooled by the audience and the surroundings. So I never hired an act I maybe loved in the show before I saw the act with no music or anything. I didn't even care if they had costumes. I wanted to see the act. If I still liked it in that atmosphere, then I knew it was a good act.
What are some keys to making good hires on the business side of Feld Entertainment?
When you hire somebody, and you are looking at resumes, you never know. It's a gamble we all take. But the one thing you have to assume is you are hiring people who are smart. So if you make the assumption smart people will be right nine out of 10 times, that's a given. The problem is if they are afraid to make a decision, no one will ever know they are even smart.
What defines your approach today to running a business with such a large and complex array of shows and business interests?
I view everything as a connection. Every deal that I make today is to set up the deal I will make tomorrow. Every show we have is to figure out what's the one after that. People ask me all the time what my favorite show is. My answer is always the same: the next one. And that's the real key to growth and the key to our success. We are always looking ahead and we are always looking to be better and improve on what we do.
How do you top a big show the next time around?
When the end product turns out the way you envisioned it years before, it encourages you take the next step. And in life, nobody goes backwards. So the next one will be more complicated, but we will be better prepared and better educated because of the last one.
What are some characteristics that make for a good leader?
Someone who can listen. Someone who embraces change and is willing to change direction if they realize there is a better idea in the room. It's very important to give people credit, to encourage them and make them feel like they own the process.
Why is embracing change a key characteristic?
Change is so important. I'm always looking to find the new thing, the next thing, to change whatever we have. If something is great, that's the time to figure out how to change it and make it better. It's not when you have a big problem, because then you probably missed your opportunity.
What decisions have you made in your career that you would like to have back?
I don't look back. It's not about that. But what I learned, and it took me a long time because my dad and I were so close, is I would think 'what would my father do?' Biggest single mistake I ever could have made. I wasn't my father, and I could never be him. We are completely different types, different styles. I had to do what I thought was best for the company, not what I thought he thought was best for the company. Once I understood that, that was the game-changer in how I went forward and I restructured everything.
Runner Runner
A conversation Ken Feld had with a friend about getting old more than 25 years ago changed his life: The friend told Feld, CEO and chairman of Feld Entertainment, that what you are like physically in your 40s is what you will be the rest of your life.
Feld, 66, says that was his epiphany to live a healthier life. He quit smoking. He started eating better. And Feld, who has a home in Tampa and Sarasota, took up running. He loved running so much he eventually became a marathoner. He ran his first long distance race, the New York City Marathon, in 2004 — when he was 55. He has since run in several others, including the Chicago Marathon with two of his three daughters.
Running is a cathartic experience for Feld. “Some of my best thinking comes when I'm running,” says Feld, speaking at a recent event at USF in Tampa. “It's something that no one else can do for you.”
READ ABOUT MORE SPEAKERS FROM THE USF SPORT & ENTERTAINMENT LECTURE SERIES - "The Speakers"
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