Alumni Spotlight: Marcus Hayle

Marcus Hayle graduated from Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University with a degrees in Business Administration and Aeronautics. He currently works at Intuit.

What has been your career path since graduation from Embry-Riddle?

I worked at Air Jamaica while doing undergrad at ERAU. During Grad school I worked at Virgin America. The first thing they teach you in grad school is that you won’t get wealthy working for somebody so I started a company called In-Range Telecom. We did outsource customer support for few different companies such as AT&T, AAA and Intuit TurboTax. That went well for 2 years but I missed travel benefits and airplanes so I went to work for Southwest Airlines doing domestic Pricing & Revenue Management then unto American Airlines to do International Pricing & Revenue Management.

After American I worked for the 4th busiest airport in the world, DFW International Airport, as part of their Airline Analytics & Retention team. From that role I got promoted to Senior Manager of Yield Management and launched the first variable pricing & revenue management system for garages at a US Airport. After a very successful stint launching that system and building the team I wanted to challenge myself to do well outside of aviation. Also knowing the cyclical nature of aviation, I knew a downturn was on the horizon. With that in mind, I took on my most recent role at Intuit as Senior Manager of Pricing, Revenue Management & Strategy in early 2019. A year after, Covid came and turned the world upside down.

You have worked in a variety of fields, what lessons have you gained from varied experiences?

· The more you learn, the more value you bring to the table.

· Show up! One of the key attributes of a leader is knowing that they can be relied on to be there. How can you count on someone who you’re not even sure if they’ll show up. Showing up speaks dedication to the cause. It says to those around you, ‘This is important to me, so I’m going to make every effort to be there.” If the leader doesn’t show up then why would the followers? People mimic your actions not what you say.

· Things don’t just happen. We have to intentionally make the time for the things we consider important and the things we want done.

· Don’t spend time micromanaging weeds, hire people to manage those. Instead work on keeping your focus above the tops of the trees and beyond.

· Sometime we get so caught up fighting in the trenches that we forget to look up to see the land that we are trying to capture or reclaim.

· Hire hard, manage easy.

· Leaders keep their promises (even when it’s inconvenient)

What has been your greatest professional accomplishment?

My greatest accomplishment was to launch DFW Airport’s Prepaid Parking program. I had to lead a global matrix team in implementing the 1st revenue management platform for garages at a US airport.

The team implemented the website and mobile app user interface (UI) 2 months ahead of schedule and under budget. We grew the business from 0.3% to 8% of total transactions in 6 months with 55% representing new business. That business has now grown to a $22M a year enterprise despite Covid impacts

Most people get to manage an existing revenue management system but few get to build one from the ground up. We built a great team, delighted customers and exceeded revenue targets.

What advice do you have for graduating students to be successful in the job search?

1. Network, network, network. Start building relationships before you need them. It’s pretty transparent when you only hear from somebody when they’re looking for a job or want something.

2. Volunteer, learn as much as you can, stay intellectually curious. Don’t be afraid to try something different than what the crowd is doing. I learned a lot just by being willing to raise my hand and help people.

3. When you get to a job as a new hire, don’t immediately try to boil the ocean and execute 10 new initiatives in the first 6 months. You’ll only tick off your tenured teammates off who have been doing it a certain way for the past 5 years. Be strategic. Give it some time, learn as much as you can, listen and listen some more. Take lots of notes, observe processes. Lead with inquiry, ask why do we do it that way? Take notes. Build relationships, those relationships will help you to implement your 10 initiatives in year 1 or 2. Spend the first year earning your street credibility with your peers. Once those relationships are built, it’ll be much easier to implement change.

4. Learn about stocks, real estate investing and managing tax liability early. Some good books are Rich Dad, Poor Dad and Cashflow quadrant. Educate yourself on what’s happening around you. Stay tuned and be conversant in what’s happening in the economy, in sports, in politics, in entertainment. Learn about multiple things so that you know enough to drive to a conversation.

5. Learn to speak fluent PowerPoint, be able to turn data into digestible visuals and master public speaking by joining a speech club like Toastmasters.

6. Aim for 10-15% contribution to your 401K. You’ll thank me in 10 years.

7. Listen in order to understand, versus listening to respond

What are some of your tips for successful networking for students/alumni?

Happy hours, lunch and dinners are where most deals are done. Learn how to dine appropriately and learn about multiple topics so that you can engage in conversations.

Remember names, birthdays, details about family, interests etc. Really take the time to know people. At the end of the day, whether it be a CEO, a VP or a peer, we are all people. Invest time in listening to their stories.

Volunteer as often as you can. Don’t be afraid to share your skills with your community. Good deeds always come back around.