The youngest of the four siblings who own the Chicago Cubs, Todd Ricketts had long before proposed going incognito among their employees. Then the Undercover Boss producers came calling--and Todd left his office to clean bathrooms, park cars, and sell hot dogs, among other things. Be careful what you wish for.
On Undercover Boss, a Cubs Owner Gets His Wish
On Undercover Boss, a Cubs Owner Gets His Wish
Will the Cubs ever win?
BNET: What did you think about the World Series?
Ricketts: I was secretly rooting for the Rangers because they've never won. Cub fans can identify. Still, it was nice the way the Giants won with a rag-tag team assembled from all over.
BNET: The Cubs are best known for their ability to come up with creative ways to lose. Their last Series win was 1908. When are they going to win?
Ricketts: Someday. Sooner rather than later. We're getting close.
BNET: Spoken like a Cubs fan.
On Undercover Boss, a Cubs Owner Gets His Wish
Would more parity help?
BNET: Other teams are helped by their mega-stars. Would more payroll parity help you?
Ricketts: There's more to winning baseball than just payroll. Look at the Yankees. Even with their giant payroll, they don't win every time. Or the Giants. They won the World Series and they're not even close to the top in payroll. And look at football. For all their efforts at parity, you still find the same teams in the playoffs year after year. I don't think it would make a huge difference in baseball.
BNET: So what's the Cubs' plan?
Ricketts: If you look statistically at the playoffs every year, the difference between who's good and who's better is minute. Who wins often hinges on tiny things like a misplaced changeup. We want the Cubs to be playoff-ready every year, so that we have a shot at making the Series every year. If we do that, eventually it will pan out.
On Undercover Boss, a Cubs Owner Gets His Wish
What's the role of the manager?
BNET: You just named Mike Quade, who has never managed a major league team, as manager. Why did you pass up big-name contenders like Cubs great Ryne Sandberg and ex-Yankees skipper Joe Girardi?
Ricketts: The question isn't, do you have the most prestigious manager? It's, do you have the right manager for the players you have? When you do, when the chemistry is right, you know things are clicking, but you can't predict when it's going to happen.
BNET: Is a manager more or less important to a baseball team than, say, a football coach is to his?
Ricketts: Yes and no. In football, there's more strategy, so the coach can have a bigger impact on a given game. What you find in baseball is that the difference between the best team and the worst is really small. The best win 60 percent of the time and the worst win 40 percent, a tiny difference relative to other sports. Since the spread is so narrow, over a season, the right manager can make a big difference.
On Undercover Boss, a Cubs Owner Gets His Wish
How much longer will you keep Wrigley Field?
BNET: How much longer will you keep the Cubs at Wrigley Field?
Ricketts: Anyone who comes to Wrigley absolutely feels the magic of the place. It can't be described but everyone feels it. We need to keep it going as long as we can.
BNET: You could make more money at a more modern field.
Ricketts: I don't know about that. If we move to a different stadium, we'd lose the affinity we have with fans. Wrigley is part of what makes the Cubs.
BNET: What's so magical about Wrigley?
Ricketts: Some of it's nostalgia. The grandad can bring his grandkids to a game and tell them exactly where he sat when he was their age. But it's also the communal feeling that Wrigley generates. The sightlines are such that you see other fans on every play. You're very close to the field, The walls are low. Other ball parks just don't create that same feeling..
On Undercover Boss, a Cubs Owner Gets His Wish
Why did you go undercover?
BNET: What was your reaction when Undercover Boss proposed that you do one of shows?
Ricketts: It's funny. My siblings and I talked about doing this long before there was an Undercover Boss. When the opportunity came along to do the show, we said, "Here's our chance." We'd learn about our employees and it would be good for the fans, too.
BNET: Why the fans?
Ricketts: They could see what Wrigley is like when they're not around. They could get to know some of the people that they always see at the game.
BNET: Would you recommend other managers go under cover on their own, even if CBS doesn't ask them to do it on TV?
Ricketts: I think so. Even if you feel like you've got a good bead on your organization, and even if going under cover doesn't reveal any inefficiencies in your operation, it still lets your employees know that your cognizant of what they go through, and it can't help but build rapport .
On Undercover Boss, a Cubs Owner Gets His Wish
What was the worst moment in the show?
BNET: What was the worst moment on the show for you?
Ricketts: When my college roommate recognized me as I was helping to park cars. I had to leave what I was supposed to be doing and tell him to keep it down. It was a close call, but it didn't blow my cover.
BNET: And the best?
Ricketts: The day I was working the scoreboard, the Cubs won, so I got to raise the "W" flag. That was the best moment.
On Undercover Boss, a Cubs Owner Gets His Wish
What did you learn?
BNET: What will you change as a result of Undercover Boss?
Ricketts: We're looking at fixes that will make the working experience better for employees. We'll fix up the break rooms and locker rooms. We'll put in suggestion boxes so that employees can give feedback to management. Many of our people have been here 20 years or more. They're an untapped resource for ideas on how to makes things work better.
BNET: What kind of boss are you?
Ricketts: I like to give people as much freedom as possible. When they feel in control of their fate, they work harder. Plus, if you allow them to work on their own ideas, it's easier to hold them accountable.
BNET: Did doing the show make you a better boss?
I don't know. It didn't point out any glaring errors in our operation. But I didn't expect it to: We have a lot of people already looking to maximum the profit potential of every last square foot of real estate. Looking more broadly, It was fun and and good way to meet people and build rapport with employees I'd otherwise never get to know..