University of Minnesota Athletics
Dave St. Peter joins Leadership U Speaker Series
2/20/2020 2:54:00 PM | Student-Athlete Development, Leadership U
President and CEO of the Minnesota Twins, Dave St. Peter, spoke to the athletics department to kick off the 2020 Leadership U Speaker Series. The Bismarck native and University of North Dakota graduate had a unique story to tell. In 1990, St. Peter began working for the Minnesota Twins as an intern and has since then worked his way to now overseeing the same major league baseball team. St. Peter's experiences from his time working with the Minnesota Twins organization contributed to many stories and insights that he shared with the group of athletic department staff, coaches, and student-athletes.
Leadership U Director, Dr. Justin Anderson, facilitated the event asking St. Peter questions regarding his noteworthy path of getting to the level of leadership he currently serves in. Here are a few brief highlights from the event:
Dr. Justin Anderson: What are some trends you see being implemented within the organization?
Dave St. Peter: It's so many different things. From a development of people perspective there is an insatiable effort to develop the people of our organizations. I certainly mean our athletes- we want to allow them to be the best versions of themselves. But I also mean the intern that comes to work in our box office. We want to invest in them the tools, feedback, perspective, and frankly the runway to have success, learn, and even to fail.
I would also say our facilities. The reality of facilities is you have to continue to make this place great. If you're not actively thinking about what's coming up next, you will fall behind.
JA: You start with the Twins as an intern in 1990. And then you've developed all the way into the CEO position. How did you go from internship in 1990 to President in 2002?
DSP: The real story is that I got an internship with the Minnesota North Stars and was absolutely smitten by the pro sports bug. When I started with the Twins I never aspired to be the President of the team. I wanted to be part of the organization, I wanted to work in sports and see where it went. My first full time job was running the pro shop in Richfield, MN. They (Twins employees) tapped me on the shoulder a few times and asked, 'Dave, would you have an interest in this role?' The first one was a communications manager and the biggest break of my career was when I was thrust into a team where we were trying to understand the idea of a new ballpark. And of course we failed for 10 years. That ten year window, in which during that time I was named President, I was meeting regularly with ownership, built relationships and trust, demonstrated skill set, value, ability to handle public gatherings like this one, and state legislature in a high profile setting. That allowed me to demonstrate 'This guy knows what he's doing.'
JA: How do you set expectations and how do you hold others accountable to those expectations?
DSP: I think expectations are a good thing. The Twins are a great example. We're going to spring training this year and the expectations are going to be sky high. I will welcome the expectations. I think setting goals, putting things out there, and having stretch goals are absolutely vital. I think the environment that you want to have is you want people to understand that we have a business we're operating. Holding people accountable is a tough thing for a lot of managers and leaders. Maybe one reason I've had some success within our organization is because I am willing than most to have tough conversations. Going back to holding others accountable- I think it requires some level of honesty on where you're at in your journey.
JA: What's the first thing you look for in future hires?
DSP: For me it's about a cultural fit. It should be a given that integrity is the most important piece. One of the first things I look for is ego. I've seen ego trip up people more in our organization and sports in general than any other thing. Ego gets in the way. You have to keep it (ego) in check.
JA: What is the best piece of advice you have been given and what is one piece of advice you would give to the audience?
DSP: I was reminded by a number of people to try to have fun. We work hard, there's a lot of long hours, and sacrifices made. I think a lot of times we forget this is major league baseball- we need to have fun. The best piece of advice I would give is to find your passion. As I look back, I was extremely passionate about sports in general. I was fortunate enough to find something I was passionate about and make a difference. There's too many people who get discouraged early on in a process or find themselves pigeon-holed in an organization- don't give up on greater heights and your dreams.
Under Dave St. Peter's leadership, the organization has introduced several new initiatives, broken attendance records, built a new stadium, and achieved championship seasons. St. Peter has been named to the Street and Smith's Sports Business Journal and Minneapolis-St. Paul Business Journal's "Forty under 40" lists. He is also active in the community and serves on several boards and committees at the local and national levels. During games, you may find him walking around Target Field cheering on the Twins among the fans or lending a helping hand to the staff.
Gopher Athletics wishes the Twins the best of luck in this upcoming baseball season!
Leadership U Director, Dr. Justin Anderson, facilitated the event asking St. Peter questions regarding his noteworthy path of getting to the level of leadership he currently serves in. Here are a few brief highlights from the event:
Dr. Justin Anderson: What are some trends you see being implemented within the organization?
Dave St. Peter: It's so many different things. From a development of people perspective there is an insatiable effort to develop the people of our organizations. I certainly mean our athletes- we want to allow them to be the best versions of themselves. But I also mean the intern that comes to work in our box office. We want to invest in them the tools, feedback, perspective, and frankly the runway to have success, learn, and even to fail.
I would also say our facilities. The reality of facilities is you have to continue to make this place great. If you're not actively thinking about what's coming up next, you will fall behind.
JA: You start with the Twins as an intern in 1990. And then you've developed all the way into the CEO position. How did you go from internship in 1990 to President in 2002?
DSP: The real story is that I got an internship with the Minnesota North Stars and was absolutely smitten by the pro sports bug. When I started with the Twins I never aspired to be the President of the team. I wanted to be part of the organization, I wanted to work in sports and see where it went. My first full time job was running the pro shop in Richfield, MN. They (Twins employees) tapped me on the shoulder a few times and asked, 'Dave, would you have an interest in this role?' The first one was a communications manager and the biggest break of my career was when I was thrust into a team where we were trying to understand the idea of a new ballpark. And of course we failed for 10 years. That ten year window, in which during that time I was named President, I was meeting regularly with ownership, built relationships and trust, demonstrated skill set, value, ability to handle public gatherings like this one, and state legislature in a high profile setting. That allowed me to demonstrate 'This guy knows what he's doing.'
JA: How do you set expectations and how do you hold others accountable to those expectations?
DSP: I think expectations are a good thing. The Twins are a great example. We're going to spring training this year and the expectations are going to be sky high. I will welcome the expectations. I think setting goals, putting things out there, and having stretch goals are absolutely vital. I think the environment that you want to have is you want people to understand that we have a business we're operating. Holding people accountable is a tough thing for a lot of managers and leaders. Maybe one reason I've had some success within our organization is because I am willing than most to have tough conversations. Going back to holding others accountable- I think it requires some level of honesty on where you're at in your journey.
JA: What's the first thing you look for in future hires?
DSP: For me it's about a cultural fit. It should be a given that integrity is the most important piece. One of the first things I look for is ego. I've seen ego trip up people more in our organization and sports in general than any other thing. Ego gets in the way. You have to keep it (ego) in check.
JA: What is the best piece of advice you have been given and what is one piece of advice you would give to the audience?
DSP: I was reminded by a number of people to try to have fun. We work hard, there's a lot of long hours, and sacrifices made. I think a lot of times we forget this is major league baseball- we need to have fun. The best piece of advice I would give is to find your passion. As I look back, I was extremely passionate about sports in general. I was fortunate enough to find something I was passionate about and make a difference. There's too many people who get discouraged early on in a process or find themselves pigeon-holed in an organization- don't give up on greater heights and your dreams.
Under Dave St. Peter's leadership, the organization has introduced several new initiatives, broken attendance records, built a new stadium, and achieved championship seasons. St. Peter has been named to the Street and Smith's Sports Business Journal and Minneapolis-St. Paul Business Journal's "Forty under 40" lists. He is also active in the community and serves on several boards and committees at the local and national levels. During games, you may find him walking around Target Field cheering on the Twins among the fans or lending a helping hand to the staff.
Gopher Athletics wishes the Twins the best of luck in this upcoming baseball season!
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Thursday, May 11
Speaker Series - Laura Halldorson
Wednesday, April 05
Speaker Series - Kamal Mohamed
Tuesday, February 14
Speaker Series: Tony Sanneh
Thursday, December 01