Craig Albernaz was named manager of the Baltimore Orioles — who host spring training in Sarasota — last October. Craig played college baseball at Eckerd College in St. Petersburg and then in the minor leagues for eight seasons, including seven with the Tampa Bay Rays. On this episode, Business Observer Managing Editor Mark Gordon and Craig talked about his rise in baseball, from working in the minor leagues in the Tampa Bay Rays organization to being a coach with the San Francisco Giants and the Cleveland Guardians. A key lesson in all those stops, says Craig: constant communication, on things good and bad, is essential.

Takeaways:

1. (06:10) Cultivate an environment where people can thrive
2. (07:00) Have the conversation before the conversation
3. (09:40) Know the purpose of your role
4. (12:10) “No second class citizens”
5. (17:30) You spend too much time with coworkers to not hire great people

Timestamps:

(00:00) Introducing Craig Albernaz, Manager, Baltimore Orioles

(04:00) Being named Manager of the Baltimore Orioles

(05:40) Learning from Stephen Vogt an elite communicator and Cleveland Guardians Manager

(09:15) Midwest League Coach of the Year

(11:20) Learning from the Rays organization

(13:30) Lessons from parents

(15:05) Top priorities when going to Spring Training

(17:10) What do you look for when hiring a staff?

(19:00) Pete Alonzo joining the Orioles

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Lee Wetherington founded Lee Wetherington Homes in Sarasota in 1981. He has since moved the company, one of the largest-builders in the Sarasota-Manatee region, to Lakewood Ranch. On this episode, Business Observer Managing Editor Mark Gordon and Lee talked about the ups and downs of being in the homebuilding business in Florida for more than 40 years, and the key decisions he had to make — in both good and bad times. They also talked about what he learned about leading from his time serving in combat in the Vietnam War.

3 Takeaways:

1. (12:00) Be patient, give clear and concise commands
2. (13:30) Build trust with transparency and truth
3. (20:00) Always know your numbers

Timestamps:

(00:00) Introducing Lee Wetherington, founder, Lee Wetherington Homes

(03:05) What is Lee Wetherington Homes?

(05:00) Starting Lee Wetherington Homes when interest rates were 18%

(06:40) Restructuring the company in 2010

(10:40) Lessons from the recession

(11:45) Lessons from the Marines in Vietnam

(13:30) How do you build trust in teams?

(16:20) Leading with certainty

(18:30) Mentors

(20:00) Advice to young entrepreneurs

(21:00) Being involved in philanthropy

(25:30) What are you looking forward to in 2026?

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Debbie LaPinska has been chief people office of CabinetWorks Group, based in Michigan, since November 2024. Prior to CabinetWorks, she worked at Venice-based window and door manufacturer PGT Innovations for 31 years, rising to chief human resources officer, and after that, chief customer officer. She joined several other former PGT executives at CabinetWorks Group. On this episode, Business Observer Managing Editor Mark Gordon and Debbie talked about the shifts in her career and she dealt with what she thought, at the time, was a major setback. They also talked about how she won over a group of 50 truck drivers in one leadership role, partially by meeting them as their day started at 3:30 a.m.

3 Takeaways:

1. (08:15) Sometimes you have to make unpopular decisions as the leader
2. (11:20) Being honest and transparent is key in hard decisions
3. (15:50) If you are good with people, you can lead any function

Timestamps:

(00:00) Introducing Debbie LaPinska, Chief People Officer, CabinetWorks Group

(03:45) What is CabinetWorks Group?

(06:30) What did you learn from Jeff Jackson?

(08:45) How did you work through letting people go in the recession?

(10:10) Building trust with teams and communicating challenging messages

(13:30) Defining leadership

(16:30) Don’t have to know everything, just need to know enough to be dangerous

(19:20) Valuable feedback

(22:40) What is coming in 2026?

Join us every week as we interview business leaders to learn what makes them great, what they look for in growing leaders, and much more.

Visit businessobserverfl.com for more.