A Story of Family-Business Succession How Roy H. Park Jr

Out from the Shadow, Into the Light: A Story of Family-Business Succession

How Roy H. Park Jr. Rebuilt Park Outdoor Advertising by Overcoming Betrayal and Charting His Own Course

Abstract

Roy Hampton Park Sr. (1910-1993) was the son of a North Carolina farmer and onetime newspaper reporter who became a multimillionaire entrepreneur and media mogul, with holdings that at one point reached 25 percent of the U.S. population.

The net worth of his conglomerate, alone — Park Communications Inc. of Ithaca, NY, which included seven television stations and 144 newspapers in 24 states with 2,650 employees and annual income of $160 million was $711 million. He also founded several other companies as well, among them: Hines-Park Foods Inc., creator of the Duncan Hines brand of packaged foods (sold to Procter & Gamble in 1956); Park Outdoor Advertising Inc., a billboard company; and RHP Inc., a real estate company. Upon his death, $600 million of his estate was dedicated to creating the Park Foundation Inc.

Park Sr. was known as a difficult and demanding owner and boss. His wife — Dorothy Dent “Dottie” Park (1912- 2016) – provided a moderating influence on some family-business decisions, sometimes siding with her husband and sometimes with their son. She was the longtime leader of the Park Foundation.

Son Roy Jr., born in 1938, eventually became CEO, and finally owner, of Park Outdoor.

Roy Jr. earned a BA in journalism at the University of North Carolina Chapel Hill in 1961, redeeming himself for flunking out of Cornell University as a sophomore. He went on to earn an MBA from Cornell’s Johnson Graduate School of Management. After a seven-year career with the national advertising firm J. Walter Thompson Co., he returned to the family business in 1971, eventually to run Park Outdoor Advertising. But the path to becoming independent from Roy Sr.’s influence was a rocky one, involving many skirmishes, setbacks and betrayals.

Daughter Adelaide Park Gomer, born in 1943, did not participate in the family business, but later became very active in the Park Foundation and currently serves as president.

This case study focuses on how the absence of succession planning for Park Sr.’s vast empire shaped the career trajectory of Roy Park Jr. and Park Outdoor Advertising. His father’s example showed Roy Jr. “what not to do” in both business and succession planning. (Roy Jr. has two children, Elizabeth, born in 1962, and Roy III “Trip,” born in 1967, and seven grandchildren.)

Park Outdoor, of which Roy Jr. remains owner and CEO, is the only property still in the family. Immediate family members serve on the Board of Directors.

Park Communications Inc. and Roy Sr.’s holdings were sold after his death in 1993. Sale proceeds were used to fund the Park Foundation.

This case also explores the role that Roy Jr.’s experience at non-family firms played in building his credibility and rebuilding a troubled family business.

The case is abstracted largely from “Sons in the Shadow, Surviving the Family Business as an SOB * *Son of the Boss” by Roy H. Park Jr. and with personal interviews with the younger Mr. Park. Narrative

Entrepreneurs strive to build something of value – and to be rewarded for that accomplishment. Roy H. Park Sr. worked relentlessly to build a massive media empire, and his success in doing so was handsomely rewarded and recognized.

Having worked in public relations, publishing and advertising, he teamed up with Duncan Hines to franchise a line of over 250 food products throughout the USA, and used a creative approach to sell the idea to a famous gourmet who never endorsed anything.

Worth more than $350 million in 1984, the self-made Park Sr. – media executive, entrepreneur and philanthropist; founder of the Park Communications television, radio and newspaper conglomerate; and creator of the Duncan Hines brand of packaged food products — was named to the prestigious Forbes 400 list that year. (For comparison, this is the same year that Donald Trump first appeared on the list on his own with an estimated individual fortune of $400 million.) Where the majority of those on the list had either inherited wealth or parlayed inheritances into greater wealth, Park had built his empire himself. Further, Park was one of the few on the list who had achieved success in fields other than oil and gas, real estate, or manufacturing.

He would go on to achieve a net worth of $ 711 million, with holdings that included seven television stations and 144 newspapers in 24 states with 2,650 employees and annual income of $160 million. This did not include his real estate and agricultural holdings, his investments, or collection of watches and antique cars.

In a September 1984 article called “Every Decade, a New Career,” Forbes described Park, 74, as a “serious man, a onetime newspaper reporter who became a centimillionaire.”

His son, Roy Jr., then 46 and working in the family business since 1971, had seen firsthand much of what it had taken for his father to achieve such heights. What he also was about to see, though, was his father’s talent for dealing his son a devastating blow, even while basking in the glow of his own achievements.

Roy Jr., who had rejuvenated Park Outdoor Advertising Inc. not once but twice, was shocked to read the following in Forbes: “Roy Park has a son and a daughter, but neither is likely to succeed him.” The article continued: “The implication (was) clear: Park’s son had yet to prove himself.”

The article quoted Roy Sr. as saying, “You can’t treat somebody special just because he’s your son,” adding that, even when he did name a successor, he probably would find new projects rather than retire. “Every decade or so, I need a different career.”

While the coverage thrilled Roy Sr., brought the company national publicity, and generated excitement among the people of Ithaca – where the Park family had lived for four decades — Roy Jr. was reeling. His father had taken the national stage to publicly denigrate his business acumen and leadership.

Roy Jr. promptly prepared his letter of resignation, telling his father that, “expressing (your) true sentiments (in Forbes) leaves me no choice.” In particular, he objected to Roy Sr. characterizing Park Outdoor as unproven, which he saw as unfair to the entire staff.

The younger Park also released a memo to all Park Outdoor employees explaining his abrupt resignation. (Park Outdoor was a separate company and not part of the Park Communications conglomerate.)

Roy Jr. had managed the company profitably from 1971 to 1975, at which point his father reassigned him. In the memo, he detailed how, in 1981, his father had asked him “to take back an operation which had been badly mismanaged, was losing money, and was faced with a bleak future.” He lamented his father’s choice to publicly convey “the impression that I had failed to prove myself and was … unworthy of succeeding him.” Roy Jr. noted that he never expected special treatment as the boss’ son, but instead insisted on treating all employees with respect. Further, he told his employees: “Hard work and teamwork from people like you in the field restored the company to profitability, and indeed, this year we are headed for record profits for Park Outdoor.”

Roy Jr.’s resignation was big news in the regional business community. In reaction to his son’s move, Roy Sr. – true to form — again turned to the media to respond. The Ithaca Journal wrote: “Roy H. Park Sr. said today he regrets the decision of his son, Roy H. Park Jr., to resign as Vice President of Park Outdoor Advertising.”

When the senior Park eventually did reach out directly to Roy Jr., it was to begin negotiating for the son’s return to Park Outdoor. By late fall 1984, they had hammered out a proposal that would name the son as President and CEO of Park Outdoor and would call for Roy Jr. to buy the company from his father within seven years. The agreement also gave Roy Sr. the right to sell one division – the profitable poster and paint plants in Scranton/Wilkes-Barre, PA – if he could do so by Dec. 31 of that year. Given the tight time frame – Dec. 31 was mere weeks away — the son dismissed any serious concerns about that provision.

But that final clause — whether borne of Roy Sr.’s ruthlessness or his desire to see his son prove himself, or of the son’s kinder instincts or naiveté — set up perhaps the most explosive betrayal Roy Jr. was to experience. Just ahead of the Dec. 31 deadline, the younger Park learned that his father had secretly negotiated the sale of the Scranton/Wilkes-Barre division— to their closest competitor, at a bargain price.

Roy Jr. learned the news only when his employees called on Christmas Eve to tell him of their layoffs. According to the Ithaca Journal, Roy Sr. “dumped the Scranton plant at a discount price to thwart and hopefully discourage his son. … The expensive and unsuccessful transaction was never discussed. … It was a preemptive strike not easily justified, and in any event vindictive.”

The sale eliminated Park Outdoor’s largest and potentially most profitable division, and reduced the company’s size by a third.

“It was beyond comprehension that a father would do that to his son,” Roy Jr. recalled. “I trusted him but should have known better.” Twice in a single year, the son found himself deeply wounded by his father and considering his next move.

Rebounding would mean revisiting his habit of, when facing a challenge or disappointment, identifying the key event(s), reflecting on the learning opportunities presented, carefully considering his options, and emerging a stronger, wiser businessman and human being.

Background

Failing at Cornell – and bouncing back. (For more details, see Case History #1.) Roy Jr. coasted through his freshman year at Cornell University. Because his courses duplicated those he’d already taken in prep school – at Lawrenceville in New Jersey — he maintained high grades with minimal effort. He skipped a lot of lectures and classes, not realizing he was amassing demerit points. As a fraternity member with his own car on campus, Roy lived large. But his “hell-raising” behavior caught up with him in his sophomore year, and in 1957, Cornell kicked him out.

Ashamed of busting out of the hometown university where friends and high school classmates were continuing their education, Roy Jr. had to face his father, admit his mistakes and demonstrate his commitment to getting back on track.

Equally embarrassed, Roy Sr. offered to help his son get back into college, as he had contacts at many other universities. But he would hesitate to stick out his neck out for a poor risk.

To prove his intent, Roy Jr. enrolled in two courses at Cornell’s extension school and worked part-time with his father’s construction crew. He promised that, should he enroll at another university, he would live in a room alone, avoid fraternities, restrain his social life, maintain a strict budget and keep his grades up.

In 1958, Roy Jr. started over as a sophomore at the University of North Carolina. He stayed on track and, in 1961, graduated with a BA in journalism.

A father’s wisdom. (For more details, see Case History #2.) When Roy Jr. turned 21 in 1959, his father sent him a letter containing personal wisdom, business philosophies and other guidance. As Roy Jr. made more of his own decisions, his father advised, he would see benefits from the right ones and suffer from the faulty ones. He offered suggestions on making day-to-day decisions regarding time, health, character, friends, personal finances and planning.

Roy Sr. emphasized that time would be his son’s most precious resource and urged him to make full use of each minute. He also urged Roy Jr. to remain healthy by ensuring ample sleep and rest along with hard work. The elder Park identified character – based on reason, not emotion – as the strongest personal thing one owns. Building character means holding on to unpopular beliefs, being self-reliant and staying the course in tough times, his father wrote.

Roy Sr. advised his son that he would be judged by his friends, their deeds and the impressions they projected. Friendship depends on mutual respect and understanding, his father wrote, predicting that Roy Jr. would make a few deep and lasting friendships, which would be worth maintaining even at personal sacrifice.

His father advocated for self-respect and self-support. Freedom comes with responsibility, he wrote. The father advised his son to live within his income and invest 10 percent in permanent things like property and securities, and discouraged incurring debt for consumables.

He encouraged Roy Jr. to establish goals for future years and to maintain a consistent effort toward achieving them. He cautioned against laying out a too-ambitious program. Roy Sr. also advised against putting off the unpleasant parts of the plans and encouraged patience in waiting for the benefits to appear.

Early-career challenges and decisions

Duncan Hines guidebooks (For more details, see Case History #3.) Among Roy Sr.’s growing business empire was the Hines-Park Foods Inc. franchise, created in 1952 when he successfully courted restaurant critic Duncan Hines to lend his world-famous name to the packaged-food operation Park was building.

As a traveling salesman in the 1920s and 1930s, Hines had begun rating and ranking restaurants across the nation to guide friends and, later, other travelers. Hines’ series of guidebooks, starting with Adventures in Eating, debuted in 1936 and came to be known as the Michelin Guides of America. As automobile travel gained popularity, travelers needed reliable information on where to eat. Later, Hines added Lodging for a Night motel guides, Vacation Guide covering resorts, and then Adventures in Good Cooking.

By the mid-50’s the Guidebooks as well as the Duncan Hines food line licensed by 124 companies became a factor in America. Despite distribution in only 23 states, its cake mix line, alone ranked #2 among all brands in sales. This led to a merger proposal from Procter & Gamble and Mr. Park had a strategy to name the price he wanted and got it. (For more details see Case History #4)

When Proctor & Gamble bought the entire franchise in 1957 — two years before the death of Hines — Roy Sr. stayed on as an executive. By 1961, P&G had decided to phase out all the food licensing arrangements except for the cake mix. P&G also wanted to onload the Duncan Hines guidebooks – then valued at some half-million dollars.

Roy Sr. saw an opportunity, which he brought to his son – who was about to begin an MBA program at Cornell’s Johnson School. P&G had offered Roy Sr. the opportunity to continue publishing the books but without the Duncan Hines name, and would allow three years for the transition to occur.

His father put it to Roy Jr. this way: Come up with a new name, agree to run the operation, hold on to the country’s best guidebooks, and become a national celebrity.

Having spent a summer inspecting and recruiting Duncan Hines guidebook listings on Cape Cod, Roy Jr. knew the contacts and the intensive professional work required to list or de-list restaurants, resorts and lodgings. He briefly considered taking on the opportunity. Using his middle name, he toyed with rebranding the series the Hampton Park Adventures in Good Eating and so on.

But Roy Jr. also was wary. The move would immediately involve him in the massive transfer of a national corporate business into a family operation. Further, maintaining celebrity and a national staff would be demanding, and would eclipse other opportunities such as graduate school and alternative careers. Ultimately, he declined the offer. (For more details see Case History #5)

Thriving at Thompson – and navigating politics. Upon earning his MBA in 1963, Roy Jr. – by now married to the former Elizabeth Tetlow Parham of North Carolina — joined the J. Walter Thompson Co., the world’s largest advertising agency. Thompson employed 3,000, and its New York City headquarters occupied 11 floors. Roy would continue with Thompson for seven years.

One early assignment involved creating billboard copy for the Ford Motor Dealers Association. Roy learned that if he couldn’t convey his message in seven words, he didn’t have a message worth conveying or one that people had time to read.

Shortly after, Roy Jr. was assigned an account that required a complete campaign in one week. If he succeeded, he would save the account and be handsomely compensated; if not, he would likely be humiliated and lose his position.

Roy Jr. met the deadline – delivering a name for the product along with a logo, packaging and design, plus marketing campaign, media plan, budget, television commercial storyboards, billboard copy, magazine and newspaper ads, direct mail and brochures. The client was thrilled.

Thompson rewarded him with a plum assignment in Coral Gables, Florida — as account executive for Pan American Airlines’ Latin American division. There, he worked on additional marquee accounts — RCA, Kraft, Oscar Mayer — and quickly ascended the company ladder. He enjoyed working independently from the family business and benefited from the preparation that it provided, particularly in navigating office politics.

In 1964, just back from his Florida stint, Roy Jr. was assigned to the Institute of Life Insurance account, which had been created by Norman H. Strouse, who by then had become chairman of the Thompson board.

One day, Roy Jr. had picked up reels for his latest commercials and, while riding in a crowded elevator, heard Chairman Strouse’s distinctive voice asking, “Those wouldn’t happen to be the reels of our Institute commercials, would they?” Strouse suggested that Roy Jr. set up the screening room so everyone could see them right away, but Roy first wanted to clear it with his supervisor, who was taking an extended lunch. Despite multiple efforts to reach the supervisor, by 3:30 pm Roy decided he couldn’t stall the chairman any longer, and he screened the commercials.

When the missing supervisor returned at 4:30 pm, he was not happy; the next day, he dismissed Roy from the Life Insurance Institute account.

Though the dismissal was a blow, Roy calmly accepted his fate and weighed his options. He considered going to Strouse to explain what happened but held off.

He was moved to the 14th floor with the researchers and other “people in transition.” At Thompson, employees being let go were given an office and plenty of time to look for another job.

Roy’s reputation internally for quality work served him well. Though he underwent successful interviews with other ad agencies, the offer he accepted was internal – from Thompson’s creative director, who cited Roy’s “customary effectiveness and good spirit” in hiring him. Roy was assigned to the Creative Forum Papers and to coordinate the corporate luncheon speakers program.

Soon after, the personnel department at Thompson hired him away from the creative director, and named him head of the personnel group. “Because of certain characteristics one finds in good and intelligent men, we discovered you could handle this assignment in addition to your other duties.” Roy took on a sophisticated new national program for recruiting senior managers and top-graded people, and began bringing into the agency extremely high-profile talent. His career was expanding into new management areas.

In 1969, as Thompson was about to go public, Roy was tapped to help shore up the struggling RCA account. Thompson brought in a former top manager from another agency who had previously worked with RCA, and he added Roy Jr. to the team dedicated to helping save the high-profile account. (For more details see Case History #6.)

Dad seeks son’s advice (For more details, see Case History #7.) While Roy Jr. was building his career at Thompson, Roy Sr. was branching out into broadcasting. First buying AM and FM stations in Greenville, NC, in 1961, Roy Sr. then added a television station in the same market. Within eight years, he had acquired 11 more radio and television stations.

In 1969, Roy Sr. received a call from the visionary Robert A. Moog, a PhD in engineering physics at Cornell who had invented the first modular synthesizer in nearby Trumansburg. Moog had just patented the invention, and asked Roy Sr. to consider investing in his venture.

Valuing his son’s experience at a major advertising agency, Roy Sr. asked for his opinion. While Roy Jr. knew the part that music played in television and radio ads, he couldn’t begin to imagine the breakthrough role that the electronic music ultimately would play. In drawing on the advice of great advertising men – “Stick with what you know” – Roy Jr. advised his father to pass, and he did.

Despite the overwhelming success of Moog’s invention, Roy did not regret forgoing the opportunity to invest, as one can never know whether the appeal of a shiny object will turn into an expensive distraction. Family-business opportunity knocks – and knocks again

Offer No. 1 to join the family business. (For more details, see Case History #8.) In 1970, after seven years and weary of the hectic New York City pace, Roy Jr. moved his wife and school-age children to Charlotte, NC. He had accepted the position of vice president of marketing, account management and new-business development at a small in-house firm, Kincaid Advertising Agency. Kincaid’s reputation for creativity had landed the agency national and several prestigious regional accounts.

There, Roy, Jr. would enjoy a people-centric culture, excellent relationships with his partner and clients, prestigious accounts, a growing business, and tremendous recognition and satisfaction in his creative endeavors. He would receive annual raises, a company car, and paid life and medical insurance.

His wife was happy to be closer to her ill mother, and their two children thrived.

But, within a year of joining Kincaid, Roy Sr. asked his son to move back to Ithaca and learn the family business by working as his father’s assistant at Park Communications. Roy Jr. would be expected to work long hours in order to earn respect, and would be required to keep his emotions down. He would not be allowed to buy a home in the Ithaca area for at least a year.

Roy had reservations. His father seemed to be deprecating the job and seemed worried about his associates’ reaction to the hire. Being an errand boy would be a dead end, with no freedom to pursue his own projects. Worse, as his father’s direct mouthpiece, he might become a pariah in the company, and the job was likely to be unpleasant and demanding. Roy suspected that his mother, who described the offer as perhaps his last chance to return to the family, had hatched the plan.

Roy Jr. told his father he’d think about it.

Offer No. 2 to join the family business. (For more details, see Case History #9)

Then Roy Sr. upped the ante – offering his son the opportunity to be general manager of Park Outdoor Advertising Inc., his father’s billboard division.

Returning to the family business would mean giving up some financial perks along with the Kincaid culture. His father imposed other restrictions: For one year, he would minimize his time with Dottie, would rent rather than buy a home, and would not expect a raise.

Both Roy and his wife were wary. Roy told his father that he wanted to stay in an environment where his success or failure depended on his own effort – but asked his father to keep the door open. Now a father himself, Roy Jr. was warming to the prospect of bringing together three generations of the Park family. And he was determined to prove to his father that he had enough practical business sense to handle anything that was thrown at him.

Shoring Up Park Outdoor, first by managing people better. (For more details, see Case History #10.) Finally, in 1971, Roy Jr. accepted his father’s offer to run Park Outdoor, the 20th-largest billboard company in the country. At the time, Park Outdoor employed 62 people, including five field officers servicing some 3,000 outdoor billboards covering 25,000 square miles – roughly half of New York and one-third of Pennsylvania.

Park Outdoor had grown via multiple acquisitions. But it lacked sales and management expertise and a well- trained staff. Old receivables were still on the books. Most important, the poor condition of its many antiquated billboards was driving away national accounts, which accounted for 80 percent of its billing. The New York operations faced added hurdles: strict zoning, local condemnation proceedings, competitive builds and lease jumping, and environmental opposition.

With his son on board, Roy Sr. promptly assigned him to confront the division’s financial officer and “establish control.” But Roy Jr. took a different approach. Knowing he’d need the officer’s help to understand and run the company, he chose to treat him collegially – which led to a working relationship that would last 46 years.

The senior Park also expected his son to fire the current supervisor, but only after learning as much as possible from him. Roy Jr. sensed that the supervisor, who was close to retirement age and came across as a “sly old fox,” would want to survive in the job and demonstrate his cleverness.

Roy quickly grasped the supervisor’s routine for garnering more praise then he’d earned. To build rapport, Roy praised the older man’s savvy in getting longtime cronies at New York ad agencies, who already planned to buy services, to call him and say they were about to issue some Park Outdoor contracts. Though the new business was already signed, the sly fox would tell management that he was going to New York to drum up new business. He would then call headquarters from New York to praise his own sales presentations. Later, at the next management committee meeting, he would present the same contracts to them, one by one.

By playing along, Roy Jr. prolonged the sly fox’s departure for nearly a year – so he could learn as much as possible but also to ensure the man would qualify for Social Security and any other retirement benefits. The latter were important, as Roy Sr. never offered severance pay packages.

Union activities test Roy Jr.’s people skills. (For more details, see Case History #11.) In 1973, the Teamsters union out of Buffalo had identified three New York plants – in Utica, Binghamton and Elmira – as rich targets for unionization: The employees were poorly paid and poorly trained, and worked under a loose and remote management that welcomed turnover because it depressed pay.

The AFL-CIO had already unionized two Pennsylvania divisions in Scranton/Wilkes-Barre, and that contract was coming up for renewal. By instructing his attorneys to refuse to negotiate, Roy Sr. had effectively invited a strike. And he had asked his son to “get rid” of the unions.

When Dottie offered opinions about the business, she sometimes sided with her son and sometimes with her husband. Regarding the unionization push among the New York workers, Dottie channeled her husband in writing to Roy Jr: “Get people who will work hard or make other arrangements. Get a chip on your shoulder with your employees and keep it there. … They must have a fear of losing their job if it is not done well … let them know they have to tow the mark, make them fear you!”

But it was precisely that attitude, Roy Jr. believed, that had driven the New York employees to consider unionizing.

Rather than antagonize, Roy Jr. opted to get to know the men, to instill trust rather than fear, and give them good reasons to vote against unionizing. He sat down with each employee and listened to his concerns. Realizing that Roy Jr. represented a new way of doing business, would care about them, and would secure their families’ future, the men rejected the Teamsters.

Then came the AFL-CIO strike in Scranton. Billposters from Binghamton, Elmira and Utica – whose loyalty Roy Jr. had worked hard to cultivate – went into Scranton territory to keep the contracts posted. Roy Jr. also assigned managers and sales personnel to patrol the boards and protect them from vandalism.

Meanwhile, Roy Jr. interviewed replacement workers at a makeshift headquarters in Scranton, and assigned experienced billposters from New York to train them.

In time, the strikers voted to disband. While some left the company for good, Roy made an effort to create a balanced, motivated workforce in Scranton with two groups: the replacements he had hired and trained, and the former strikers who chose to return.

Firing a dishonest non-family manager. (For more details, see Case History #12.) When the general manager in Scranton retired, Roy Sr. recommended a younger employee – one of his earlier hires — to take the position. Later, when Roy Sr. announced a contest to generate sales, that new manager seized the opportunity.

The prize for bringing in the most in sales contracts during the one-month contest would win a briefcase full of money — roughly $500. The new Scranton general manager won, with contracts for long-term bulletins advertising resorts in the Poconos.

Soon after, however, Roy Jr. realized he’d been had; the new “contracts” involved locations that didn’t exist or locations where zoning would prevent the construction of new units.

It wasn’t the first time the manager’s behavior had triggered a red flag. Roy Jr. also had noticed the manager requesting reimbursement for a phone that had not been approved. Production companies were asking where to send the manager’s cut. And he was dating Roy Jr.’s secretary in Ithaca.

Tipped off by the secretary to his impending firing, the Scranton manager responded calmly to the news, relinquishing the keys to the company car without a fight. But when Roy saw that the manager’s briefcase was already packed and ready to go, he asked him to open it – revealing copies of company leases and sales contracts.

Unsolicited detour into PR job. (See Case History #13.) By 1976, Roy Jr. had been running Outdoor for five years, and the division’s operating profit had reached $600,000, representing an annual return of 10 percent. He had upgraded the plant and reclaimed national business from New York and Chicago.

But 10 percent wasn’t enough for Roy Sr. His radio, television and newspapers were generating operating profits of up to 50 percent.

So he reassigned Roy Jr. to head public relations for the entire company. As vice president of advertising and promotion for Park Broadcasting, Roy Jr. would generate advertising and promotion for the Outdoor division; 14 radio stations, seven TV stations and 39 newspapers; and real estate in 18 states.

He created an eight-page monthly tabloid newspaper for the company’s 2,500-plus employees. The tabloid – which Roy Jr. named Park Communications — contained something about each of the 100 subsidiaries that Roy Sr. owned, from south Florida to the West Coast. Pictures and feature articles highlighted employees, births, marriages and other news.

The tabloid also went to network executives, offsite suppliers and advisers, and any media outlets that Roy Sr. was considering buying.

Every caption and headline had to be approved by Roy Sr. And, every month, in all weather, Roy Jr. drove 150 miles to Ogdensburg, where the general manager of a Park-owned newspaper would reset the layout and supervise the printing and folding. Roy Jr. would drive the papers back to Ithaca for mailing the next day.

Though the PR position had not been his choice – and he was aware of declining performance in the Outdoor division – Roy Jr. sank his teeth into the new job. He wrote press releases, developed logos and slogans for the television stations, attended public relations events, and launched new programming for the television networks. That involved attending annual kickoff celebrations around the country for the new network shows and sitcoms, and rubbing elbows with stars like Jack Lemmon and Bernadette Peters.

At the same time, Roy Jr. attended his father’s weekly meetings and developed the visuals for his annual address, which covered every Park property, with graphs illustrating the company’s progress in national and local sales, expenses and operating profit lines.

Roy Jr. also was managing director of Park Broadcasting’s advertising agency, which handled promotional advertising by all of the company’s newspapers and broadcasting. During this period, its commissions increased 300 percent.

In addition, Roy Jr. represented the company in community affairs and on charitable boards, serving on Chamber of Commerce and Arts Council boards and committees in Tompkins County. While chairing the Ithaca Assembly over six years, be brought the Junior Olympics to Ithaca.

Discovering the value of a small town headquarters. It was during this time, dealing with all the managers in the Park far-flung operations, that Roy Jr. realizes the value of keeping the headquarters of a 3,000-person corporation in a small town. Particularly in regard to the top broadcasting and newspaper experts Park recruited to head up the operational divisions. (For more details see Case History #14.)

Without Roy Jr., Park Outdoor suffers. (See Case History #15.) From 1976 to 1980, Park Outdoor clearly suffered from Roy Jr.’s absence. The two “professional” managers hired by his father only made things worse – turning a $600,000 profit into a $275,000 loss.

The first manager failed to invest in plant improvements, and passed up opportunities to acquire billboards within and adjacent to the Park Outdoor markets. He lacked connection with clients and employees. The second manager eliminated the five managers, and hired specialists in sales, leasing and operations to work under him at central headquarters. He did not join any outdoor advertising associations or hire outdoor auditing firms. He also made deals with certain national clients at the expense of others.

Meanwhile, though Roy Jr. had not asked for the PR job, was pleased to be promoting the other divisions of Park Communications and building stronger connections among employees in far-flung locations.

By 1981, Roy Sr. was ready for his son to return to Outdoor and repair the damage.

Though regretting that the move would mean suspending Park Communications, Roy Jr. accept his father’s offer. Thanks to his increased bargaining power, he obtained a commitment for new capital investment in the Outdoor physical plant, a more efficient poster system, and a doubling of construction crews.

Forbes bombshell prompts Roy Jr. to resign. (See Case Histories #16 and # 17.) By 1984, Roy Jr.’s team was on pace to post record profits at Park Outdoor – representing the second time he’d rejuvenated the company. He had retained and hired good people, and had gained a national reputation for quality management.

Which is why he was so shocked that in the Forbes interview, Roy Sr. made it clear that his son had not earned the opportunity to inherit control of Park Communications. As justification, Roy Sr. explained: “When NBC was at the bottom and young Sarnoff was running it, they lost a lot of good employees.”

Roy Jr. was stunned and hurt – that all of his efforts to maintain productive, loyal employees and generate excellent numbers were not enough. Now tagged with the reputation of having failed at his family’s business, he worried he might not find another job.

In his resignation letter, dated Aug. 31, 1984, Roy Jr. wrote: “The Forbes article expressing your true sentiment leaves me no choice. I regret having left a productive eight-year career to join your company, only to have you feel that my efforts over the past 13 years have not been worthwhile.”

Roy Jr. also felt an urgent need to share with his employees his dismay that Roy Sr. had denigrated the operation. In a memo, he wrote: “Exactly three years ago, my father asked me to take back an operation which had been badly mismanaged, was losing money and was faced with a bleak future. Hard work and teamwork from people like you restored the company to profitability and, indeed, this year we are headed for record profits for Park Outdoor.”

“Every employee deserves to be treated with respect,” he wrote. “(To imply) that our success with the Outdoor divisions is a failure indicates lack of confidence for all of us.” His values and priorities were clearly different than his father’s.

Expressing regret about the short notice, he concluded: “I count each of you among those good friends and … thank you from the bottom of my heart for your tremendous efforts to help rebuild Park Outdoor to its present healthy position.”

Roy Jr. negotiates return to Park Outdoor. (See Case History #18.) After the Forbes article appeared, Roy Jr. had turned down an offer from Rollins Outdoor in Philadelphia. News of his resignation and Roy Sr.’s attempts to bring him back encouraged Roy Jr. to work the press and perhaps rejoin the company. His lawyers advised him to consider returning but only if he set the terms.

In this instance, Dottie sided with her son. She hung a sign over the toilet in Roy Sr.’s office bathroom saying “Time Wounds All Heels.”

Though his father reached out, Roy Jr. took his time in responding – but eventually entertained a written offer. Roy Sr. would name him president and CEO of Outdoor, and within 10 years would sell the division to him.

Roy Sr. also slipped into the agreement his right to sell the Scranton division, but only if he could do so within weeks — by December 31, 1984. Confident that his competition in Scranton did not have the money to buy the operation, Roy Jr. dismissed any concern about the clause. And he was able to negotiate down to seven years the point at which Roy Sr. would sell him Outdoor.

The surprise sale of Scranton. (See Case History #19.) What Roy Jr. didn’t know was that his competitor was indeed positioned to buy Scranton – having obtained a backer and the support of GE Capital.

When the shock of his father’s Christmas Eve move wore off, Roy Jr. saw that he had been naïve to accept the Scranton clause. He should have realized, since his father had mentioned wanting to sell Scranton and had invested in massive capital improvements, that he probably already had a deal in the works. Further, his father had wanted to eliminate the union – which also would boost the property’s value.

Timing the event for Christmas Eve also served the symbolic purpose of punishing of some eight employees who had sided with Roy Jr. against the competitor during unionization activities. While most of the employees now out of work were told they would be invited to join the competitor, in the end, those who had supported Roy Jr. most strongly were not hired.

Roy Jr. starts rebuilding Outdoor — again. Roy Jr. moved quickly to hire the rejected employees at his Binghamton plant, 50 miles away. The foreman from the Scranton operation demonstrated his loyalty by making the hourlong commute to Binghamton for years. And a former salesperson from Scranton who eventually joined Binghamton later was named by Roy Jr. to become vice president and general manager of that division.

He began to see more silver linings: The capital improvements he had overseen in Scranton would provide a template for upgrading the New York operations. Further, the loss of the geographic outlier would allow him to better focus on strengthening New York.

As a result of his strategies, Park Outdoor grew. Operating profits increased from $587,000 in 1984 – which still included Scranton/Wilkes-Barre – to $603,000 in 1985. By 1986, profits had increased 58 percent by 1987, the company had grown another 43 percent, with operating profits reaching $1.328 million.

Though Roy’s efforts were paying off, he still longed for autonomy. His father still owned the company, participated in weekly meetings and daily operations, and scrutinized his son’s every move, frequently thwarting opportunities for improvements and expansion. Roy Jr. knew he could not trust his father to act in the company’s best interests.

Several factors increased his urgency to break free.

First, Roy Jr. wanted to expand into a new, large-city market. When a paint bulletin plant in Erie, PA, came on the market, Roy Jr. presented the case for pursuing it. His father resisted – apparently because he believed Erie was infiltrated by organized crime.

Second, his father began selling off the parcels on which Park Outdoor billboards sat – without giving Roy Jr. an opportunity to buy them. Park Outdoor was forced to either remove billboards or negotiate potentially higher lease payments.

Third, Park Outdoor’s basement office space belonged to RHP Inc., his father’s real estate company – a relationship he was eager to sever.

New headquarters. (See Case History #20.) After returning to the company as CEO in 1984, without telling his father, Roy Jr. began looking for a larger headquarters for his dozen or so employees. His team found an overpriced building in an ideal location that would need substantial renovation.

To ensure his father would not learn of his plans, Roy Jr. he concealed his identity by hiring a broker. To create an incentive for the broker to negotiate for a lower price, he offered him the regular commission plus double the percentage on the difference between the asking price and the eventual sale price. Ultimately, Roy Jr. saved thousands of dollars on the deal, even after paying the outsize commission.

He designed the renovation, bartered with various advertising clients for new furnishings and equipment. When he learned of an impending increase in lease payments by RHP, Park Outdoor quickly cleared out – giving his father no opportunity to quash the plan.

His father learned of the company’s departure only when his real estate representative entered the empty basement to get Roy to sign a new lease.

The Erie acquisition. (See Case History #21.) Despite his father’s distaste for Erie, Roy Jr. pursued the deal. He met with the Erie owners, who had requested that neither party bring lawyers. Roy Jr. had prepared a letter of intent that required their signatures. Knowing that they would shop the offer, he refused to let them think about it overnight.

The meeting took place over a late dinner, with the discussion dragging on even later. With the table cleared, Roy laid a check for $50,000 on the table as a good-faith down payment, telling them they could cash it once they signed the agreement.

By 11 pm, they insisted on calling their lawyer, who arrived with pajamas on under his coat. That’s when Roy exercised his right to call his own lawyer 250 miles away in Ithaca. But he first gathered up the check and the unsigned agreement.

Roy stuck to his guns and, shortly after midnight, the Erie owners signed the deal and collected the $50,000 check.

The Erie acquisition was just one piece in Roy Jr.’s strategy to rebuild Park Outdoor since the Scranton debacle. He and his team had bolstered the physical plant, retained much of their national business, strengthened their base of operations, and retained a competent and dedicated staff.

Finally breaking free

A creative strategy for buying Park Outdoor. (See Case History #22.) When Roy Jr. approached his father about buying Park Outdoor four years earlier than agreed upon, Roy Sr. immediately refused, citing tax considerations. And his father had instructed his attorneys to maintain that no purchase value could be determined for a company that was to be purchased three years hence.

To build his case, Roy Jr. sought alternative valuation strategies. He consulted other outdoor-advertising associations and advertising brokers; he determined that recent formulas indicated that evaluating a billboard company involved multiples of gross income, net income and operating profit. Alternatively, the company might be evaluated based on the number of boards and the length of leases at each location.

Working with attorneys, Roy Jr. developed an approach that would be difficult for his father and attorneys to contest. It would base the value on what an outside buyer would pay for the company assuming 10 percent return over three years. He calculated the projected increase using income and operating profit based on the past three or four years with existing inventory, and factoring out any new builds.

Ultimately, Roy Jr. determined the highest offer by an outside buyer would be $1.5 million. If the value were questioned, Roy Jr. reasoned, he would tell his father to find another buyer to pay that amount, and then Roy Jr. would buy it in three years from that party.

Roy Jr. also believed that his mother would side with him in the matter and, if necessary, would ask Roy Sr. why he would sell to an outside buyer before to his own son. He also knew it would be difficult to find a buyer that would consider the deal a good short-term investment, given the intensive management it would require.

With his mother’s backing and the managing partner of one of the largest firms in New York as independent legal counsel, Roy, Jr. eventually broke the stalemate and convinced his father to sell. But it was no “sweetheart deal,” as his father tried to claim. In fact, he described persuading his father to sell as “the most difficult job (he) ever faced.”

To raise the funding, Roy Jr. had to pledge the company assets, his home and virtually everything he owned as collateral to Chase Bank. It was a gamble, but he was confident he could succeed. Finally, in 1988 at the age of 50, Roy Park Jr. was out from under his father’s domain.

Acquisitions and divestitures. In 1989, Park Outdoor acquired 400 faces by buying a smaller company in the Binghamton/Triple Cities market. The same year, the company added 600 faces in northern New York and the Mohawk Valley.

In 1990, the company traded some of its Pennsylvania inventory for 55 30-sheet faces in Elmira, Watkins Glen, Bath and Utica.

Then Roy Jr. turned his attention to consolidating the company’s geographic footprint; controlling costs, especially for labor, would be easier if the company were concentrated in a single, large market.

In 1994, he sold the western division based in Jamestown. Next up was the northern division, which extended to the St. Lawrence River – where cold, snowy weather required special paste additives and involved frequent

cleanups after massive storms. Proceeds from those sales allowed Outdoor to significantly reduce the $8.8 million outstanding on the loan.

He then concentrated on upgrading the remaining inventory — covering 15,000 square miles in an area surrounding the Ithaca headquarters.

Small to mid-size acquisitions, new leases and vegetation bill. Roy Jr. continued to strengthen the company’s position with small to mid-size acquisitions close to its geographic base. Park Outdoor in 1999 purchased 12 bulletin faces on the grounds of the New York State Fair; in 2001, 49 faces in the Utica-Rome/Mohawk Valley region; and in 2003, 43 faces in Fulton and Montgomery counties.

Park Outdoor also sought leases for new locations on which to build structures.

Further, the company benefited from a vegetation bill passed by the New York State Legislature, which allowed the company to reactivate dormant holdings – simply by trimming trees obscuring existing billboards. The legislation was the result of lobbying from the Outdoor Advertising Council of New York State, which Roy had served as president and then chairman from 1985 to 1991.

In 1989, the first full year of ownership under Roy Jr., sales exceeded $5 million, up from $4 million the previous year. By 1991, Park Outdoor topped $6 million before dropping to $5.5 million after the western and northern divisions were sold. By 1998, sales had rebounded, reaching the previous high of $6 million – representing 5 percent annual growth from 1989 to 1998.

By 2014, annual sales topped $9.3 million.

As of 2018, Roy Jr. now 80, remained as CEO of Park Outdoor; general managers run each of the four divisions, in Binghamton, Utica, Syracuse and the Finger Lakes.

Profit-sharing for employees. Roy Jr. has been consistent in crediting his employees with the company’s success – and always believed in “putting one’s money where one’s mouth is.” Since 2013, Park Outdoor has provided its employees not only payroll and medical benefits but also bonuses and profit-sharing. Roy calculated that, since then, Park Outdoor Advertising has returned up to 40 percent of net annual income to employees.

Death of Roy Sr. and creation of Park Foundation. (See Case History #23). When Roy Sr. died in 1993, his will stipulated that 70 percent of his estate – some $600 million – would fund a nonprofit foundation he had created. Dottie was to run and staff it, and Roy Sr.’s longtime attorney, who had drafted the will, was to join the board of trustees. Roy Jr. wrote the mission statement and bylaws.

Dottie named Roy Jr. and sister Adelaide Gomer to the board, along with Roy Jr.’s daughter, Elizabeth Park Fowler, and an outside financial manager. (Later, Adelaide’s daughter, Alicia Park Wittink, and Roy’s son, Roy III “Trip,” would join the board.)

Soon, however, sibling rivalry surfaced regarding the direction the Park Foundation would take. Adelaide favored progressive policies and radical environmentalism, which Roy Jr. believed did not reflect the legacy Roy Sr. would have wanted to leave. Continued grants to environmental and political activism were crowding out other grant categories.

Roy began to see these conflicts putting a strain on their mother, who was president. She added two more conservative trustees who had been lifelong directors of Park Communications – a former U.S. senator and a bank CEO. But even their influence did not noticeably shift the foundation’s direction. Nor did a two-day session in New York, in which a family-business consultant attempted to mediate the differences.

Finally, in 2003, Roy and his two children formed a second foundation that would closely adhere to Roy Sr.’s wishes. The joint press release read: “The Trustees of the Park Foundation Inc. announces today the formation of a second family foundation, Triad Foundation Inc. The new structure will permit the two foundations to pursue the philanthropic objectives that best reflect the diverse interests of their respective boards.”

Roy Jr. continues to serve as president and chairman of Triad. His children, Elizabeth of Tampa, FL, and Trip of Charlotte, NC, serve as officers. In 2013, the Triad board voted to add spouses as full directors and in 2017, Triad welcomed third-generation family members based on a generational succession plan.

Conclusion

In a 2001 address to Park Outdoor’s sales managers, Roy Jr. recounted the company’s growth, acknowledging and applauding his employees’ contributions and success.

He shared some wisdom he had borrowed from others. In quoting Kenneth I. Chenault, CEO of American Express, he said: “There are three traits you should bring with you in all sales contacts: a sense of humor, humility and honesty.”

Employees, he said, needed to be cooperative and collaborative, while the company itself must be innovative and adaptable. He also stressed the value of organization.

“(Being organized) is the single most important ability you must acquire. It applies to any business you run, people you manage, your personal life, and commitments you make to your spouse, children, suppliers, bankers, lawyers and brokers. Keep organized files. Throw nothing out that could come back to bite you later. This will allow you to confront any challenges or problems that will come up, even outside of your business. … It will allow you to stay on course which means survival.”

While Roy Jr. often disagreed with his father’s approach, he mirrored Roy Sr. in at least one trait: an aversion to bragging about his successes. Both believed in letting their accomplishments speak for themselves.

“(While) my father could make my life a living hell,” he concluded, “there was some good with the bad. The lessons I learned were what to do — and what not to do. And I survived and carried on.”

Appendix I – Roy Park Sr. Enterprises

Roy H Park Enterprises (as of 1993 at his time of death)

Park Outdoor Park Communications Advertising of Park Park Park Displays RPH Properties, Inc. RHP Holdings Inc. Scranton-Wilkes Outdoors Foundation (Prior Park Broadcasting Barre, Inc & Duncan Hines)

Appendix II

Roy Park Jr.’s Performance Metrics

1) From 1971 – 1975 when Park Jr. was General Manager a. Annual sales average $1.7 M and operating profits ranged from $250K - $400K. 2) From 1975- 1981, after Roy Park Sr.'s "pros" ran the company into the ground a. Operating profit first dropped back to $250K and then to a loss of $275K in 1981. 3) In 1981 to 1984 when Roy Jr. was manager again a. The division went from a loss of $500K to a $40K operating profit in 1983. 4) Even after the sale of Scranton in 1984 a. The operating profit increased to $587K. 5) With Roy Park Jr now as CEO but not owner, in 1985 a. Operating profit increased to $603K to $943K in 1996, and in 1987 to $1.3 M. 6) Then from 1989 with Roy Park Jr as owner in its first year a. Sales increased by $1M exceeding $5M. 7) In 1991, the last year of tobacco business a. Sales reached $6.5M 8) In 1996, even after the sale of Watertown, the Northern division and the Western/Erie division a. Sales dropped to $5.3 M with an operating profit of $963K. 9) In 2001, after the purchase of the Fairground boards a. Sales exceeded $6.5M with $1M in operating profit. 10) In 2009, after the stock market crashed a. Sales hit $8.2M with an operating profit of $1.3M. 11) Finally, in 2017, eight years later a. Sales hit $9.7M with an operating profit of $1.3M.

Appendix III Roy Park, Sr. & Jr. Timeline

1910 Roy Hampton Park born in Dobson, NC 1923 RHP diagnosed with Rheumatic Fever (age 13). Home schooled for one year. 1924 RHP returns to high school. 1926 RHP graduates from High School (age 16) RHP rejects Duke, attends NC State RHP gets job as office boy at Associated Press in junior year of college 1931 RHP graduates from NC State with a business degree and a minor in journalism RHP hired by Cotton Growers Cooperative for 10 years 1936 RHP at age 26 marries Dorothy Goodwin Dent (age 23) 1938 Roy Hampton Park, Jr. is born 1942 RHP (age 31) moves his family to Ithaca, NY to head the ad agency for the Grange League Federation 1943 Adelaide Park is born 1946 RHP runs the Farm Campaign for Dewey 1948 RHP persuades Duncan Hines to join him as a partner in Hines-Park Foods to offer a quality franchise food line to include cake mixes 1952 RHP, Jr. attends Ithaca High School for freshman year 1953 RHP, Jr. attends Lawrenceville School for the next three years. 1956 P&G buys Hines-Park in stock trade, RHP remains a consultant for 6 years RHP, Jr. graduates from Lawrenceville and accepted as a freshman at Cornell University 1957 RHP, Jr. busts out of Cornell (second semester of sophomore year) 1958 RHP, Jr. starts over as a Sophomore at UNC 1961 RHP. Jr. marries Tetlow Parham RHP, Jr. graduates from UNC with a BA in Journalism and begins business school at Cornell RHP Purchases first radio stations WNCT AM/FM in Greenville, NC 1962 RHP purchases first television station WNCTV in Greenville, NC

RHP, Jr.’s daughter Elizabeth Park is born 1963 RHP, Jr. graduates from Cornell University’s Johnson Graduate School of Management RHP, Jr. is hired by J. Walter Thompson Co. in New York City and then relocated to Coral Gables, Florida later that year as account executive for Pan American Airlines. RHP continues on path to purchase more broadcasting stations. 1964 RHP purchases first Outdoor Advertising Companies RHP, Jr. is brought back to New York by J. Walter Thompson Co. after completion of Pan Am headquarters RHP brings Giants and Redskins to Ithaca as fundraiser 1967 Roy H. Park III is born 1969 RHP buys former GLF offices for Park Communications Headquarters. RHP buys more Outdoor Advertising companies 1970 RHP, Jr. joins the Kincaid Advertising Agency in Charlotte, North Carolina 1971 RHP asks RHP, Jr. to return to Ithaca to work in the family business. RHP, Jr. returns as the manager of the Outdoor Division. 1972 RHP purchases first newspaper – Daily Sun in Warner Robins, Georgia 1976 RHP, Jr. is shifted from the Outdoor Division to VP Advertising and Promotion for Park Broadcasting, Inc. 1977 RHP is first broadcaster to own legal limit of 7 television station, 7 AM & 7 FM radio stations 1981 RHP, Jr. returns as the manager of the Outdoor Division 1983 Park Communications becomes publicly traded 1984 Forbes magazine article interview makes it apparent that RHP does not feel that RHP Jr. has proven himself. RHP, Jr. resigns from Park Communications. RHP, Jr. negotiates the right to purchase Park Outdoor Advertising from RHP in 1994. RHP sells the Scranton division on Christmas Eve. 1988 RHP, Jr. purchases Park Outdoor Advertising from RHP 1993 RHP death 1995 Park Foundation, Inc. is created with the funds from the sale of Park Communications. RHP, Jr. is name First Vice President.

2003 RHP, Jr. and his children form the Triad Foundation, Inc. after splitting from the Park Foundation, Inc. RHP, Jr. named President and Chairman, children: Treasurer and Secretary. 2004 To provide for elected succession of family members, plan initiated for lineal descendants to become eligible for Junior and Associate Directorships. 2013 Vote taken to elect spouses full Triad Directors. 2016 Dottie Park death 2017 Vote taken to install the first Generation 3 member as an Associate Director of Triad.