Some Quality Hires Indeed

As CEO of Bozo Enterprises, Inc, the parent company of Sportsbozos.com, LLC, I am also the HR director. Dozens of high-quality candidates in Sports Journalism, IT and Sales personnel come across my desk every day and determining the best hires is a significant part of our organization.
Besides evaluating the talent of the applicant, we must maintain integrity by putting forth our most marketable individuals, and character and reputation are clearly defining qualities that we look for in this industry.

Occasionally, I look for guidance from one of our competitors, my Friends at FOX SPORTS.
On Air broadcasting or in-studio talent for FOX SPORTS has included such high-character former players as Alex Rodriguez, Ray Lewis, and Michael Vick.

A-Rod, who has several duties, including Sunday Night Baseball Analyst, is the perfect choice to represent MLB. A stellar overpaid athlete with Seattle, Texas and the Yankees, and World Series Champion, A-Rod was a certain first ballot Hall of Famer until he soiled the game with his 2014 suspension for violation of MLB’s Performance Enhancing Drugs Policy. The Biogenesis scandal which included Alex taking Testosterone and HGH among other banned substances cost Alex both his reputation and his Hall of Fame.

So, who is better than A-Rod to be the in-studio and in-game MLB analyst? As a lifelong fan of Pro Baseball, I cannot think of a better man. You always want integrity in you hosts.

Ray Lewis is another favorite of mine. A violent and intimidating former NFL Defensive Player of the Year, Ray led the Baltimore Ravens to a Super Bowl victory in 2000. Ray was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in his first year of eligibility as one of the greatest linebackers in NFL history.

Just one thing, Lewis, after initially charged with murder, pleaded guilty to obstruction of justice in connection with the stabbing deaths of two men outside of an Atlanta nightclub in 2000. Ray barely dodged a double-homicide in this unsolved case where the whereabouts of Lewis’ blood-stained suit remain unknown. The NFL fined him $250,000, about 1% of his contract salary at the time.

Again, FOX decided Ray would be perfect for the Pre-game shows on Sunday. A quality individual and role model all NFL fans can look up to, both young and old.

My favorite hire though is Michael Vick. A standout college star at Va.Tech, Vick was the number 1 pick in the 2001 NFL draft for the Atlanta Falcons. An NFL MVP, Vick was the most prolific running QB in the league’s history.

But Mike had a hobby. Vick and a few partners created a Dog-fighting operation around the time he was first drafted in 2001, and they operated the ring out of his house in Virginia. Many of the fights that Vick ran would end with one dog killing another. Vick personally killed multiple dogs, some with his bare hands. He initially denied involvement and blamed family members, and later lied to the FBI during their investigation. In December 2007, he was sentenced and served 18 months in prison and was required to pay nearly $1 million in restitution. That’s like two weeks and 40 grand per dog.

After being released from prison, a rehabilitated Vick won the NFL Comeback Player of the Year Award and signed a contract worth more than $40 million.

After FOX got a look at his resume, Vick was immediately hired to bring his unique and colorful insights to the Sunday Pre-game Show. Another former athlete that the network simply could not pass on.

I am certain in other industries and corporations that these gentlemen would Indeed rise to the very top of the candidate pile on the HR desk. Quality individuals with high moral character are hard to find so they need to be scooped up right away before another company makes an offer.

-HB