DSF: Tell us about yourself.
DV: I was actually born in Japan while my father was serving in the military there. I was one of five kids, and as I mentioned, I grew up in a military family so we moved around a lot during my childhood. We lived in places like Fairbanks, Alaska, West Point, New York, Oklahoma, Texas, and Louisiana.
DSF: What made you decide to go to Northeast Louisiana University (now University of Louisiana Monroe) and what was your major while there?
DV: Well, my Dad was stationed at Fort Polk, and we lived n DeRidder, Louisiana, where I went to high school. A lot of my friends were going to Northeast Louisiana, and I really liked their curriculum, so I decided to go there. I majored in Management and Business Administration.
DSF: What made you join the Zeta Pi chapter of Delta Sigma Phi, and what was your time in the chapter like?
DV: Well, one of my best friends, Wesley Harbison, who was actually my roommate in college and I went to a rush party, and right away I knew that the guys in Zeta Pi were a group who we wanted to associate with. They shared the same values that I had, and I really enjoyed my time in the chapter.
DSF: You were extremely involved wit the chapter and after graduation. How did your service on the executive board in the chapter prepare you for your life, and for your career?
DV: Well, I served as president, vice president and secretary while I was in the chapter, and I wouldn’t change a thing about it. I would do it again in a heartbeat. You really can’t gain in a classroom the real world experiences that you do while leading a group of 125 men.
In a Fraternity like Delta Sig, you have the chance to learn how to mold, lead, and Coach young men that you can’t get anywhere else, and I feel as though that experience was an invaluable asset in my career and in my life.
DSF: How did the roles you played within the Fraternity after graduation help you grow?
DV: Well, at that time, from the Zeta Pi chapter, we had a number of RLDs who went and worked for the Fraternity after graduation, so I heard about all of the great experiences they had and really liked what those guys seemed to be doing. As an RLD for the Fraternity, I got a great deal of experience that I wouldn’t have gotten the first year in any other job, and that really added to the experience of working for the Fraternity. I was put in front of University Deans, and people in the high levels of running a university at a young age, and it really forced me to mature at a quicker pace.
DSF: Tell us about your post-Delta Sig Headquarters career, and your road to working for Disney.
DV: After my RLD experience, I went to work for Hyatt Hotels in the Corporate Training Program in Greenville, SC. I was with Hyatt for 12 years, and moved every year and a half ending up as a Divisional Director of Sales and Marketing for the East Coast.
I knew some people at Disney, and I was recruited to work there while I was with Hyatt. I have now been with Disney for 5 and a half years and love what I’m doing.
DSF: Disney is such a HUGE corporation. Talk about what your responsibilities are in your current position, and how you fit into the overall goals of the company.
DV: You are right, it is an enormous company. There are actually 55,000 employees in Orlando alone who work for Disney. I am a Managing Sales Director in the Resort Sales Division of the company. In essence, Disney owns about 25,000 hotel rooms and six specifically convention hotels which have over 700,000 sq. ft. of space. We have national sales offices located in Atlanta, Chicago, New York, and Washington, DC that all fall under the resort sales division as well.
My role is to coach and manage the team at these specific hotels and help them get through the high level red tape that sometimes happens in large corporations. Essentially, I am here to give them anything they need to get their jobs done.
In addition, I do some new business development for us as well.
DSF: Where do you see yourself in five years?
DV: I really actually hope to retire with Disney. I do want to take on another responsibility within the company, perhaps something significantly different from what I am doing now.
DSF:What do you like to do in your spare time?
DV: I enjoy cycling, golfing and traveling. I have traveled all over the world, to places like France, Italy, Germany, Greece and many more. That is a passion of mine.
DSF: Who has had the greatest impact on your life?
DV: Well personally it has been mo Mom and Dad. They are the most amazing friends that anyone could have.
Professionally, probably Pat Engfor, who was a General Manager at Hyatt. I worked with Pat for five years, and she is one of the best leaders that I have ever worked with. She surrounds herself with good people and let’s them do their jobs, which is very important to having a successful business.
DSF:What is the best piece of advice you’ve ever been given that you’d like to share with the other Delta Sigs who will read this?
DV: I think it is what I was just saying, about surrounding yourself with great people, and not being afraid to hire people who are brighter or smarter than you.
Dan Valha is a 1986 initiate of the Zeta Pi Chapter at the University of Louisiana Monroe. He and his wife, Joy, reside in Windermere, FL.
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