Post by ironmaiden on Aug 16, 2009 5:30:23 GMT -7
SAEN Cowboys' Jerry Jones Jr. finds his niche
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Cowboys' Jerry Jones Jr. finds his niche
John Whisler
For more than a decade, John Tatum has worked with Dallas Cowboys owner Jerry Jones and his children, all executives with the team.
Tatum's company, Genesco Sports, handles marketing for several Cowboys sponsors. Over the years, he has learned what buttons to push, what tactics to employ to complete a deal.
Jerry Sr., son Stephen and daughter Charlotte all are sharp, savvy negotiators.
Then there's Jerry Jr., the baby of the family.
“Don't let that fool you,” Tatum said. “He's as tough as any of them. Sometimes, even more so.”
It's not always easy keeping up with the Joneses, even when you're one of them.
For most, if not all, of his 39 years, Jerry Jr. has been up to the task.
Not that it can't be challenging.
As the youngest of Jerry Jones' three children, Jerry Jr. has often lived in the considerable shadow cast by his billionaire father and successful, older siblings.
Jerry Sr., of course, is the face of the organization. Now 66, he still runs the show with the vigor and vision of a 46-year-old.
As owner, president and general manager, his profile with the team couldn't be higher if he were standing on top of the new, gazillion-dollar Cowboys Stadium.
Stephen, 45, is executive vice president, chief operating officer and director of player personnel. That's a lot of hats to wear and a lot of responsibility.
He's the boss' right hand man.
Charlotte Jones Anderson, 43, is executive vice president of brand management, charities and special events. A leading figure in bringing the Super Bowl to Cowboys Stadium in 2011, Anderson has been described as a “little Jerry.”
Three people, three strong personalities, three success stories. That's made it hard for Jerry Jr. to get noticed. But not anymore.
While the team has not performed up to expectations on the field in recent years, Jerry Jr. has helped the Cowboys reach new heights off it.
A powerhouse in sports merchandise sales — No. 1 in the NFL the past two years — the Cowboys also are the only NFL team that produces some of its own products. And now they're building a 400,000-square-foot facility to continue to do exactly that.
As executive vice president and chief sales and marketing officer, Jerry Jr. has put his imprint on the new stadium, too. Projected sales of its premium-priced club seats and suites — an area Jerry Jr. oversees — could make the Cowboys the top revenue producer in the NFL this year at more than $360 million, surpassing the Washington Redskins.
“He's got great vision, and he's a very creative guy,” Stephen Jones said. “I think he's definitely found his niche.”
The Jones men
When Jerry Jr. got married three years ago, Jerry Sr. was the best man at his wedding.
So was Stephen.
That says a lot about the power of their relationship and the special bond that exists among all three of the Jones men.
Both of the boys revere their father and maintain he is a misunderstood figure.
Known for his flamboyance and super-sized personality, Jerry Sr. has always been a family man, first and foremost, they say.
Jerry Jr. recalls that his father was always driven to succeed in the oil and gas business before he bought the Cowboys for $140 million in 1989, a pursuit that often took him away from the family home in Little Rock, Ark.
Both sons played football growing up, and Jerry Jr. said his dad at one point moved his office into an eight-story building next to the high school just so “he could look out the window while he was on the phone and watch practice.”
“He was gone a lot, but he always made it a point to be involved in all of our lives,” Jerry Jr. said. “He and my mother did a wonderful job of raising us.”
Although five years apart in age, Jerry Jr. and Stephen have always been close. Stephen was the protector, Jerry Jr. the little brother who wanted to tag along.
An All-State quarterback at Catholic High School in Little Rock, Stephen was a backup safety at Arkansas. He often brought teammates over to the house for pickup basketball games.
Jerry Jr. wanted to be included.
“We'd put him right in there,” Stephen said. “He was a good little player, but he'd get roughed up, and you could tell it upset him. But he held his own and never gave up. He never backed down.”
People who know them say Stephen is more like his mother than father — a little calmer, and more deliberate, a good listener.
Jerry Jr., like Charlotte, is more like their father.
“That's what I'm told,” Jerry Sr. said. “I take that as a compliment.”
Finding a home
Jerry Jr. was a basketball point guard in high school and a cornerback on the football team his senior year. He made all-conference in football the only season he played it.
What kind of player was he?
“Tall and skinny,” he said.
He went to college at Georgetown and played Division III football for two seasons. He received a law degree from SMU in 1995 and joined the Cowboys a year later as general counsel.
It didn't last.
“I found that I was always going into my father's office with something negative, about a player or a lawsuit,” Jerry Jr. said. “No one wants to be the bearer of bad news. I told him, I'm going to refocus some energies and start bringing some good news to you.”
He moved into marketing, where he has found a home.
This past spring, he engineered a joint-concessionaire agreement with the New York Yankees to provide food and merchandise at all home games for both teams.
Revenue estimates for the company's first year of operation exceed $100 million.
But his work on the new stadium might be his finest hour. Much of the commercial inventory — sponsorships, club seat and suite licenses — was already sold long before the facility's opening this summer.
“He's locked up every single major sponsor category under a long-term deal for the Cowboys, with the exception of naming rights,” Tatum said. “He's done his part to lead the Cowboys into the future.”
For his efforts in marketing, Jerry Jr. recently was named to the Sports Business Journal's “Forty Under 40” list of young, up-and-coming executives.
He called it an honor but says his biggest reward is just being able to work with his father and older siblings every day.
In the family business — the Dallas Cowboys. For Jerry Jr., keeping up with the Joneses has been well worth the effort.
Jerry Jones Jr.
Age: 39
Title: Executive vice president and chief sales and marketing officer
Education: B.A., Georgetown, 1992; J.D., SMU, 1995
Career: Associate, Godwin Pappas Ronquillo LLP, 1995; vice president and general counsel, Dallas Cowboys, 1996; president, Dallas Desperados, 2000; president, Dallas Cowboys Merchandising, Ltd., 2001; named to current position in 2001
Personal: Wife, Lori; children, James, 3, Mary Chambers, 1.
__________________
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Cowboys' Jerry Jones Jr. finds his niche
John Whisler
For more than a decade, John Tatum has worked with Dallas Cowboys owner Jerry Jones and his children, all executives with the team.
Tatum's company, Genesco Sports, handles marketing for several Cowboys sponsors. Over the years, he has learned what buttons to push, what tactics to employ to complete a deal.
Jerry Sr., son Stephen and daughter Charlotte all are sharp, savvy negotiators.
Then there's Jerry Jr., the baby of the family.
“Don't let that fool you,” Tatum said. “He's as tough as any of them. Sometimes, even more so.”
It's not always easy keeping up with the Joneses, even when you're one of them.
For most, if not all, of his 39 years, Jerry Jr. has been up to the task.
Not that it can't be challenging.
As the youngest of Jerry Jones' three children, Jerry Jr. has often lived in the considerable shadow cast by his billionaire father and successful, older siblings.
Jerry Sr., of course, is the face of the organization. Now 66, he still runs the show with the vigor and vision of a 46-year-old.
As owner, president and general manager, his profile with the team couldn't be higher if he were standing on top of the new, gazillion-dollar Cowboys Stadium.
Stephen, 45, is executive vice president, chief operating officer and director of player personnel. That's a lot of hats to wear and a lot of responsibility.
He's the boss' right hand man.
Charlotte Jones Anderson, 43, is executive vice president of brand management, charities and special events. A leading figure in bringing the Super Bowl to Cowboys Stadium in 2011, Anderson has been described as a “little Jerry.”
Three people, three strong personalities, three success stories. That's made it hard for Jerry Jr. to get noticed. But not anymore.
While the team has not performed up to expectations on the field in recent years, Jerry Jr. has helped the Cowboys reach new heights off it.
A powerhouse in sports merchandise sales — No. 1 in the NFL the past two years — the Cowboys also are the only NFL team that produces some of its own products. And now they're building a 400,000-square-foot facility to continue to do exactly that.
As executive vice president and chief sales and marketing officer, Jerry Jr. has put his imprint on the new stadium, too. Projected sales of its premium-priced club seats and suites — an area Jerry Jr. oversees — could make the Cowboys the top revenue producer in the NFL this year at more than $360 million, surpassing the Washington Redskins.
“He's got great vision, and he's a very creative guy,” Stephen Jones said. “I think he's definitely found his niche.”
The Jones men
When Jerry Jr. got married three years ago, Jerry Sr. was the best man at his wedding.
So was Stephen.
That says a lot about the power of their relationship and the special bond that exists among all three of the Jones men.
Both of the boys revere their father and maintain he is a misunderstood figure.
Known for his flamboyance and super-sized personality, Jerry Sr. has always been a family man, first and foremost, they say.
Jerry Jr. recalls that his father was always driven to succeed in the oil and gas business before he bought the Cowboys for $140 million in 1989, a pursuit that often took him away from the family home in Little Rock, Ark.
Both sons played football growing up, and Jerry Jr. said his dad at one point moved his office into an eight-story building next to the high school just so “he could look out the window while he was on the phone and watch practice.”
“He was gone a lot, but he always made it a point to be involved in all of our lives,” Jerry Jr. said. “He and my mother did a wonderful job of raising us.”
Although five years apart in age, Jerry Jr. and Stephen have always been close. Stephen was the protector, Jerry Jr. the little brother who wanted to tag along.
An All-State quarterback at Catholic High School in Little Rock, Stephen was a backup safety at Arkansas. He often brought teammates over to the house for pickup basketball games.
Jerry Jr. wanted to be included.
“We'd put him right in there,” Stephen said. “He was a good little player, but he'd get roughed up, and you could tell it upset him. But he held his own and never gave up. He never backed down.”
People who know them say Stephen is more like his mother than father — a little calmer, and more deliberate, a good listener.
Jerry Jr., like Charlotte, is more like their father.
“That's what I'm told,” Jerry Sr. said. “I take that as a compliment.”
Finding a home
Jerry Jr. was a basketball point guard in high school and a cornerback on the football team his senior year. He made all-conference in football the only season he played it.
What kind of player was he?
“Tall and skinny,” he said.
He went to college at Georgetown and played Division III football for two seasons. He received a law degree from SMU in 1995 and joined the Cowboys a year later as general counsel.
It didn't last.
“I found that I was always going into my father's office with something negative, about a player or a lawsuit,” Jerry Jr. said. “No one wants to be the bearer of bad news. I told him, I'm going to refocus some energies and start bringing some good news to you.”
He moved into marketing, where he has found a home.
This past spring, he engineered a joint-concessionaire agreement with the New York Yankees to provide food and merchandise at all home games for both teams.
Revenue estimates for the company's first year of operation exceed $100 million.
But his work on the new stadium might be his finest hour. Much of the commercial inventory — sponsorships, club seat and suite licenses — was already sold long before the facility's opening this summer.
“He's locked up every single major sponsor category under a long-term deal for the Cowboys, with the exception of naming rights,” Tatum said. “He's done his part to lead the Cowboys into the future.”
For his efforts in marketing, Jerry Jr. recently was named to the Sports Business Journal's “Forty Under 40” list of young, up-and-coming executives.
He called it an honor but says his biggest reward is just being able to work with his father and older siblings every day.
In the family business — the Dallas Cowboys. For Jerry Jr., keeping up with the Joneses has been well worth the effort.
Jerry Jones Jr.
Age: 39
Title: Executive vice president and chief sales and marketing officer
Education: B.A., Georgetown, 1992; J.D., SMU, 1995
Career: Associate, Godwin Pappas Ronquillo LLP, 1995; vice president and general counsel, Dallas Cowboys, 1996; president, Dallas Desperados, 2000; president, Dallas Cowboys Merchandising, Ltd., 2001; named to current position in 2001
Personal: Wife, Lori; children, James, 3, Mary Chambers, 1.
__________________