Building World-Class Culture: Alfredo Hildebrandt’s Micro-Moments Leadership Philosophy

Anthony Codispoti (00:01)
Welcome to another edition of the inspired stories podcast where leaders share their experiences so we can learn from their successes and be inspired by how they’ve overcome adversity. My name is Anthony Cotaspoli and today’s guest is Alfredo Hildebrand, general manager and COO of Lakewood Country Club, one of Ohio’s most distinguished private clubs.

Founded in 1921, Lakewood blends a century of tradition with a modern approach to member experience, offering everything from a championship golf course to exceptional dining and recreational facilities. Now, Alfredo is driven by a passion for empowering others to excel. With a track record of leadership at well-respected private clubs, he has consistently helped organizations enhance the member experience

while honoring tradition and embracing innovation. His commitment to fostering a culture of growth, accountability, and collaboration has left a lasting impact on the communities and teams that he served. Now, before we get into all that good stuff, today’s episode is brought to you by my company, Ad Back Benefits Agency, where we offer very specific and unique employee benefits that are both great for your team and fiscally optimized for your bottom line.

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All right, back to our guest today, the general manager and COO of Lakewood Country Club, Alfredo. I appreciate you making the time to share your story today.

Alfredo Hildebrandt (02:02)
Thank you for having me, excited to be here.

Anthony Codispoti (02:05)
So Alfredo, I understand you were born and mostly raised in Peru. What was it that led to you coming to the States?

Alfredo Hildebrandt (02:15)
What brought me here to United States was, I call it chasing the American dream. My, you know, I, young age, I lived with my mom, she passed away. My grandparents took over my custody. And at that point, when I was 15, 14, with a lot of energy, I needed some discipline and just some aspirations. And that’s when my uncle, Marcelo, decided to take over my custody and give me the opportunity to become the person I am today. And it’s a decision that I don’t…

I never took it lightly. took me a little bit. But when I step in, I make the best out of it. And I’m here now in United States. I call it living the American dream.

Anthony Codispoti (02:55)
So losing your mother when you were 12, is that right? Must have been a really difficult experience. How did you get through that time?

Alfredo Hildebrandt (02:59)
Correct.

I am blessed to have an awesome community behind me and that’s the side of my mom, my brother too. Definitely grew up quick when that happened. I had to be the father and also the big brother for my little brother. But I think that shows my character of why I am today and the way I conduct myself and I behave and also the aspirations that I have. It was really difficult but…

having the family behind me and show me the love and support. got me through the tough times and going back to it, like I said, it taught me a lot of great lessons, unfortunately, in a hard way.

Anthony Codispoti (03:44)
Yeah. Did you speak any English before you came here?

Alfredo Hildebrandt (03:48)
I understood a lot, but it was really hard to communicate. my personality, I’m a bubbly person. I want to interact with people, talk. And my first couple of years moving to the United States was really rough because I wasn’t myself. I wasn’t able to communicate the way I wanted or express myself. I was shy, which it wasn’t really the person that I wanted to be in. And like I said, it put me in my discomfort where I needed to feel comfortable with discomfort.

That’s also part of the growing period where I do believe I gain a lot of resilience and grit.

Anthony Codispoti (04:23)
And so you understood some English before you came here, but you weren’t able to speak it very well. You weren’t able to communicate. How did you learn? How did you pick up language skills once you got here?

Alfredo Hildebrandt (04:30)
Correct.

When I got here, just, at one point I needed to flip the switch and said, you know what? I just gotta be myself. If they don’t understand what I’m saying, I have to repeat myself and just be myself and just get out of my comfort zone. Really helped me out. Once I started talking to people, interacting, hang out with friends. And, you know, one thing that really helped me out for me was college. College was for me, what the point when I just exploded, when I was like, you know what? I am myself now. I can tell that I’m afraid of Hildegren now.

but just getting out of the comfort zone.

Anthony Codispoti (05:05)
I love that.

You mentioned that several times. And that’s, think, such a key lesson we’ve talked about on this show before. I’ve got two young boys, nine and 11. It’s something I try to coach them on as well. The idea of getting comfortable with being uncomfortable because growth really happens at those uncomfortable edges of life. When we put ourselves in these situations that are completely unfamiliar, we don’t really know what we’re doing. That’s the opportunity to learn.

new skills to let ourselves grow and kind of surprise ourselves on what we’re to do.

Alfredo Hildebrandt (05:40)
Yeah, and that made me feel comfortable with my own skin, with my own self, just coming out of my comfort zone.

Anthony Codispoti (05:46)
You know, dad is an immigrant as well. He came to this country from Italy when he was eight years old and he didn’t speak any English. ⁓ And the way that they learned, now this was decades ago, was ⁓ American television. Watching American television ⁓ was a big way he would pick up keywords and phrases and even tells the story one time he got lost and he remembered a scene from a television show.

And he was able to use a couple of phrases to talk to a police officer and, you know, help him kind of get to a pay phone and find his way home. Where, I don’t know, obviously much different times, but, ⁓ did you just sort of like engross yourself and what was going on around you in high school? Did you find some help from YouTube or television shows yourself?

Alfredo Hildebrandt (06:34)
At that time YouTube wasn’t a thing for me, 12 years ago, but television and the school was really nice to me and the kids out there too. You can remember I came in when I was 16 years old, right? Where insecurities are building up, right? In high school and private school, different environment. No friends right from zero. Playing sports really helped me out. I played tennis, soccer. So building between the communities and the school really helped me out to kind of just come out on my shelf and then.

⁓ They were really kind and the school was world-class for me.

Anthony Codispoti (07:08)
What school was that?

Alfredo Hildebrandt (07:10)
St. Vincent Mary High School, right in Akron,

Anthony Codispoti (07:13)
I’ve heard of it before.

Alfredo Hildebrandt (07:15)
Yeah, LeBron James went to my high school.

Anthony Codispoti (07:17)
That’s what it is. LeBron James went to your high school. I love that. Okay, so Alfredo, you’ve been working at golf courses and country clubs for years. How did you first get drawn into this space?

Alfredo Hildebrandt (07:29)
is, you I never thought I would be working in clubs. My idea with hospitality was interacting with people, building community. And I always wanted to work in hotels and travel all over the world. I did my first internship working for the Big Mouse in Orlando, at Disney World. And I really just fell in love with that setting. No big fan of Disney itself, but like the way they conduct themselves, was running the business. Huge. That was my first experience. Then Sir Bartender, my local.

College Bar, Kinsley University. And one of my fraternity brothers just mentioning that the club that he was working, Bartonni, was looking for an intern and I applied. And since then, I never came, I just fell in love with clubs. One thing that I love about clubs is the community between the clubs and it’s something bigger than yourself. And the community, it’s just the membership is just incredible. And that’s how I fell in love with clubs.

Anthony Codispoti (08:23)
During this time, you fell in love with clubs and you kind of moved around to some different roles. You had the opportunity to lead some pretty significant transformations at notable clubs prior to Lakewood. Was there a defining moment in one of your previous roles that really shaped how you lead and innovate here at Lakewood?

Alfredo Hildebrandt (08:47)
Yes, I will say my previous club, Silicon More Hills Golf Club, we faced ⁓ out there a complete turnaround situation. The morale was low. Standards had slipped. The culture needed rebuilding. And we knew that before we could raise expectations and improve performance, we had to invest in our people. Through consistent communication, clarity and care, we built trust and create a culture of belief, pride and accountability. ⁓

The fall was nothing short of transformational. We begin going toe to toe with some of the top clubs in the country, despite being in a smaller market. And we started setting trends and not just following them. And the experience really shaped how I live today. And it’s something that was scary with me is you take care of people, they’ll take care of your business.

Anthony Codispoti (09:38)
Did you have a good mentor in that role that kind of showed you the way or was this sort of figuring it out on your own?

Alfredo Hildebrandt (09:45)
I will say I probably have the best mentor in the industry. His name is Chris Hampton. I worked for him for close to 11 years. He’s my mentor, really great friend, one of my best friends as well. He’s my son’s godfather and godmother, but I had the privilege to work with him and he always drilled my brain that you take care of your people and they’ll take care of you and your business. And, you know, I was his sidekick for 10 years and we just accomplished incredible things, but the things that we worked the most

proud of is the way we affected people’s life possibly. And that was things. Yeah.

Anthony Codispoti (10:19)
take care of your people and they’ll take care of you. Yeah,

I like that. And so how did the opportunity to join Lakewood Country Club come about?

Alfredo Hildebrandt (10:29)
It was a calling. Lakewood was going through some huge golf course renovation and they needed somebody that’s going to help them take them to the next era. We had at that point some of the key staff members. I previously worked with them. I considered them great friends and ⁓ mentors. And when that opportunity came along, it was a calling. It was like coming back home. I knew the membership. I deeply care about the community. Cleveland for me is home. And on top of that, I knew that leadership team that I felt like

they will set me up for success. And when I got the call, it was a dream coming true, coming back home and leading the Renaissance of what we are going right now.

Anthony Codispoti (11:09)
Renaissance. Explain that more. What do mean by that?

Alfredo Hildebrandt (11:13)
What I mean with the Renaissance is I would say that probably that we have one of the best teams here at the club in the club industry in the Cleveland area, but we’re just getting started. The golf course was the first stone to what we’re building here at Lakewood Country Club. The golf course is going to set up for the next hundred years and we want to keep building upon what we have to run the club. You know, it’s a vibrant community and we’re to sell out membership. The members are

highly involved and you can feel the culture that we’re creating here. And that’s what I saw when I tell about the Renaissance is we’re just getting started for what is the next future for Lakewood Country Club.

Anthony Codispoti (11:53)
So for somebody who’s never been to Lakewood before, can you explain what the guest experience is like?

Alfredo Hildebrandt (12:01)
Absolutely. What I like to call it here, like what is like when you walk through these doors, you want to feel seen, value and love. ⁓ For me, hospitality is not just great food and great drinks and a great golf course is the way we’ll make you feel the memories we create together. And that’s my number one goal is when you come here, you feel seen love and appreciated and thankful for your business. And that’s something that is something you can you can measure with metrics. It’s just how we make people feel.

They want to come in here with a smile and I want him to live with a smile.

Anthony Codispoti (12:35)
And so for somebody who comes to Lakewood that they’ve been to other nice clubs before, what do you think they’re going to see is a difference? What sets you guys apart?

Alfredo Hildebrandt (12:45)
is how we make people feel. Like I said before, could be a club with a nice building, it’s just a clubhouse. A club with a nice culture, great hospitality, it’s a club. And we have a beautiful club where you can feel a culture, you can feel the love, and you can feel that it feels different when you walk in here. It’s a big family.

Anthony Codispoti (13:09)
Can you say more about the culture piece? ⁓ How do you build that? How do you establish that? How do you grow it? How do you get it to be what you want it to be? It’s gotta be more than just sort of putting placards on the wall and repeating slogans. What are some of the practical steps that you’ve used to foster that culture?

Alfredo Hildebrandt (13:31)
For me, first was building trust. Once you build trust, you have a clear communication, ⁓ clarity and accountability. For me, those are the fourth key thing for great culture. But once you build trust, then you can say, communicate your vision, share your inspired vision. And then from there, that’s when you start moving from point A to point B to point C. in the meantime, you also have to hold people accountable, right? Accountability is key. Sometimes showing some type of love.

But tough love is good. That’s where people grow. To most.

Anthony Codispoti (14:03)
I wonder

if maybe you can share a personal story that kind of illustrates your leadership philosophy that emphasizes energy, empathy, empowerment. Maybe a personal specific example that kind of shows up in the day to day there.

Alfredo Hildebrandt (14:23)
Yeah, for me, it’s like I talk to every single staff member that I have here. ⁓ I always allocate, you know, culture. People think that for culture, you have to to spend money. You don’t. have to spend five seconds per person. Seven days. Little things like how you doing? How’s your mom doing? How’s your vacation? How’s your kids doing? Those simple interactions. That’s what you start building trust. I spend probably

two to three hours a day just talking to members or employees. And you say, that’s probably a waste of time. It’s not. It’s not because when they walk in, they’re excited to talk to me. They’re excited to tell me about their vacation. And if the big cheese, the CEO cares about their life, their personal life, that means like that’s really powerful. It’s a little thing like the dishwasher. Hey, thank you for staying later. I see you doing a great job. I appreciate you for the cook, a great dinner service. Hey, great job. Everything came out. The food came out sexy.

Thank you very much. That means something. You they always remember that. They always remember those little simple interactions. And I always remind my managers, my entry levels and mid-level managers that micro interactions create macro impacts. It’s those little interactions that make a big thing. For example, a young family coming with the kids and I straight up gives a little kid a fist bump. Guess what? That kid is so excited to come to the club because the big boss gave him the fist bump. So for me, those micro moments make micro moments and

It’s key, it’s key. And that’s what I was telling you.

Anthony Codispoti (15:54)
Those micro moments

made macro moments.

Alfredo Hildebrandt (15:57)
Yeah. And you have to spend as much money to create culture. It’s just be a genuine true leader and be a world-class human.

Anthony Codispoti (16:07)
So Alfredo, your culinary offerings have gotten a lot of attention for their bold seasonal flavors. What’s your approach to pushing creative boundaries while also ensuring that consistency and quality that people expect?

Alfredo Hildebrandt (16:22)
You know, I have incredible chef. He’s actually, when I first started here at the club, he was a sous chef and now he’s executive chef. I was the food and beverage manager, grew to clubhouse manager, now a gel manager. But him and I, we have a great relationship and ⁓ collaboration helps. ⁓ Social media, seeing what’s out there, ⁓ pushing the envelope. You know, I’m always constantly challenging him. Yeah, okay, you did a great one dinner. What else can we do better? What else can we start?

steal an idea from different places and bring it back here. I encourage them to go outside the box. It’s a great relationship between the back and the front of the house, right? Like the plating look good, but the way we presented and sell the plate is also part of the experience. So that communication between both front and back of the house are key. And also offering plates the members feel comfortable with, with a more in touch, right?

We sell our chicken piccata. That’s a signature dish here at the club. It’s such an old dish. But Chef does his little spin into chicken piccata to bring it to the more nice style, right? And there’s times where I let him go crazy and there’s times that, hey, we gotta go back to the basics where members feel comfortable eating. Because at the end, we’re not a Michelin restaurant, right? You come here three times, four times a day, and you can’t imagine, members can get really tired with your food real quick. And my goal is for these guys to come in as often as they can.

So we’re constantly challenging my culinary team to be creative with flavors and colors, presentations, and a variety of dishes that we offer.

Anthony Codispoti (17:53)
Excuse me. You were talking about Alfredo, how you spend a lot of time just being present and talking with your employees, quick little interactions. Probably some of them are a little bit lengthier, you know, where you get an opportunity to coach or mentor them. Can you think of a particular instance where your coaching, your mentoring really helped a team member at Lakewood and

kind of seeing the long-term impact that it had on their growth as well as the club’s success.

Alfredo Hildebrandt (18:29)
You know, I, like I said, of everything I have accomplished, you know, top seven culinary programs, best wine list, increasing the bottom line. The thing that I’m the most proud is the way I impact my team’s life on a positive way and the last impact I can make. Through my 10 years of leadership, I had a lot of coaching. I like to say that I’m a part-time, ⁓ part-time CEO, full-time life coach for my employees. ⁓

You know, unfortunately, three years ago, I have an employee that was living with depression, highly. Abusing drugs, depression, great kid. I saw the potential that he had in him. I spent a lot of time with him, even though sometimes I questioned why I kept him that long, but I spent a lot of time with that person. And now seeing him how he’s striving now on the other side, making an impact on the club that he’s working is probably one of the biggest rewards that I have on my career.

because changing people’s life is what gets me excited. Like I said, all these accolades and everything that I do in the club, anybody can do it, but the way I live a place, a better place, my people, my team, I think that’s something that people will always remember. He’s the joint manager that takes the time to talk to me, takes the time to listen to me, and if I’m in bad day, I can go and just, know, blue steam with him and just feel better.

But I think that’s the thing that I love the most about my job is like every day I have a chance to make somebody’s life better from a member to a kid to an employee and that’s what I love about my job. If you tell if you ask my wife is like she goes listen You love your job. I do because I come to work and I talk to people all the time and have an opportunity to make the difference in somebody’s life from doing a special celebration on their anniversary to a wedding to

just celebrate little things wins and then the same thing goes to the other side.

Anthony Codispoti (20:26)
I think you used the phrase, the ability to change someone’s life. In this particular example, it sounds like you may have had a role in saving his life.

Alfredo Hildebrandt (20:37)
I did, I did. And when he was, I don’t want to share too much of his story, it was, we did and we have a constant communication all the time and I’m happy he’s doing great. And it just keeps going on. But like, I have so many of those moments with college kids that come here and I became their mentors. And now I see him in a professional world being doctors, nurses, lawyers, ⁓ architects.

in the financial world and that’s my legacy, the memories I was able to create with them and help them take the next step.

Anthony Codispoti (21:12)
That’s awesome. What was the job that you had where you increased food and beverage revenue by over $750,000? And how did you do that?

Alfredo Hildebrandt (21:26)
That was my previous club, Sycamore Hills Golf Club. We have a team of killers. At that point, we were really young. We had this ship on the shoulders where we’re a small club, but we’re going to show the world that you can do great things in a small market. And we did. And part of that, it sounds cliche, but it was the culture that we built. was when you walk into those doors, people fell in love and appreciated. And that’s why they came so much to the club.

You know, it wasn’t that we brought more members. was just members using the club more often. It’s because they love the experience. As soon as they walk in, the ballet will say hi to them, recognize them by the names, the hostess to myself, to the staff. They feel seen, loved, and then even the chef will come out and talk to them and just we create a culture that it was hard to miss. And people just wanted to be around that happy energy. Of course, we did increase our culinary offerings.

Did we increase our menu and make it better? Yes, 100%. But it was just a culture that people love, walking through those doors. It was the way they felt when they left, that they make us help.

Anthony Codispoti (22:36)
Yeah. And the

thing I want to call out about your answer there is you immediately said we had a killer team. You deflected the credit to the folks that were with you rather than saying, here’s what I did. ⁓ no, we had a great team in place. I think that says a lot about your personality. keeps coming through and a lot of the answers that we’re getting from you. I just want to call attention to

Alfredo Hildebrandt (22:59)
I appreciate it. Like I said, we had a team of just world-class humans and everybody was a killer when it came to operational. But the most important, was the world-class humans and the members just felt connected. It was a connectivity we were able to create that sense of community.

Anthony Codispoti (23:15)
So at Lakewood, you’re known for your tradition, right? That’s central to your identity. But you also really emphasize this forward thinking innovation. What have you found most challenging about trying to blend those two perspectives? And how do you work to overcome that?

Alfredo Hildebrandt (23:36)
It’s challenging, especially for clubs, but a clear mission, vision, and communicating that is key. And of course, results. you want to change the culture of a club and modernize it, it takes more than just one person. It’s also buying two from the leadership team to the board of directors, all the way to the membership, and just become a unified.

unified front and the challenges is communicating and having members buy into it. You know, because the reality is like, why would you want to change something that works? It’s like because we could do better, right? And it would take the risk too. And I’m blessed that I have an amazing board that’s willing to take calculated risk for a better. The perfect sample is Org Golf Course Restoration. It was a calculated risk that’s paying tremendously dividends.

There were a lot of naysayers, a lot of ⁓ doubts, and we proved everybody wrong that that was the right call, and now we have some credibility. We have some cash in the bank that if we want to do anything like this, something like that, we will accomplish it.

Anthony Codispoti (24:52)
And what’s the metric? do you sort of look at that decision and say, yes, that was the right move?

Alfredo Hildebrandt (24:58)
is the membership levels, the membership and just the bottom line, right? Seeing the balance sheet and seeing where we are and see the activity levels of the club, how members are proud walking in and saying like, that’s incredible, we accomplished there. I’m glad I’m part of this and telling their friends, you should join our community, come over here. You know, I think that’s the biggest compliment is when a member recommends another potential member to join the club. That’s a testament that we’re doing something right.

Anthony Codispoti (25:26)
And you mentioned this word early on about the Renaissance that’s taking place. As you look ahead, how do you envision Lakewood Country Club evolving even further over the next few years?

Alfredo Hildebrandt (25:39)
I want to be this place to be the hub for families and young professionals and professionals of the West Side, know, or focus and we have a championship golf course, our hope is that we can transition to focusing on lifestyles. I like to say we don’t sell membership, we sell lifestyle. And I think that’s powerful, right? Like it was where you not only just come here to play golf, but you come here to play golf, to work out, to have a great breakfast.

work from home, hear the interact, where you celebrate your important anniversaries, your birthdays, your big life milestones, and I want to be a hub for community here in the Westside Cleveland.

Anthony Codispoti (26:22)
So we’ve been talking a bit about the Renaissance, the transformation, if you will, that’s taking place there at Lakewood Country Club. Alfredo, I want to hear about your personal transformation that’s been taking place recently.

Alfredo Hildebrandt (26:37)
Yes, year and a half is been incredible for me, both professionally and personally, you know, I took this role being 34 years old in the midst of moving from Fort Wayne to Cleveland. I had a newborn baby. I have a three year old and two year old. ⁓ We moved into Cleveland with when he was two, two weeks old. My wife was really to kill me.

I take over these new challenge and three months later after I took the role, we’re, you know, six months later, we’re taking ground for a new golf course restoration. ⁓ we’re, you know, building the new culture here at the club, breaking records, both from, you know, member involvement to revenue. ⁓ and in the, in the midst of all the stuff, I decided to take over my own personal health as well. And, and, you know, just take over my ownership of my life. And, you know, I lost me 90 pounds since then. And, and,

combination of that I celebrated of doing I have Ironman this past week ⁓ which it was probably the hardest thing I ever done in my life but I got it done and now what I learned from that is like anything is possible if you your mind into something and if you put some grit and discipline and

Anthony Codispoti (27:51)
What was kind of

the catalyst to the losing weight?

Alfredo Hildebrandt (27:57)
I just, you know, I will talk about excellence all the time to my team, but then on my personal life, it’s like, I’m 260 pounds walking around, not taking care of my body. It’s like, I gotta, I gotta do what I say. Right. And I decided just to flip the switch and say, if I’m going to talk about excellence, I’m going to do excellence. And I was doing excellence at work. Every time I walk in, I’ll be dialing, but it was more on personal life. And I do feel like the way you conduct yourself before you show yourself as a mirror of. ⁓

your habits and your discipline. And I needed to make the change and that helped me to be more presence at home, more presence at work and be a better leader. You know, there’s no bigger challenge now that I cannot tackle. And that’s the mentality I take when any problem comes in. If I can do an Ironman and lose 90 pounds in a matter of 12 months, I can tackle any challenge. And that’s the mentality that I bring to work every day. It’s like, okay, if somebody brings a problem, okay, what’s the solution? You know, like

We know the problem, let’s come up with a plan, let’s come up with a solution, let’s try it out, let’s figure out a way so we can come your way as winners.

Anthony Codispoti (29:02)
When you decided that you wanted to embrace excellence for your personal fitness, what was the first step that you took? Did you immediately make the decision that I’m going to enter a half ⁓ Ironman? Did that kind of come later? Like, what were those first steps like that kind of got you some inertia, some momentum?

Alfredo Hildebrandt (29:20)
I have a great group of friends, leaders, managers that work with me. And like I said, we’re a big family. They’re the ones that hey, you got kids, you got to take care of yourself. And between that and my family too, it reminded me like you’re working too much, like you should be taking care of your body. But also for myself, I just wanted to be more presence and have the energy. know, I was giving everything I have to my job. And when I go home, I was just tired. I didn’t have the energy.

and seeing that I’m missing those times with my kids playing around because I was tired, that was kind of flipped the switch. It’s like, you know what? I need to do better, not only for me, but for my family, for my kids, for my employees, for my team, for my club community. They deserve the best version of myself. And that’s when I flipped the switch and it started with little things with my diet to just moving around a little bit when I felt like I can do more than this crazy idea of the half Ironman came along in.

Everybody doubt me said you crazy. There’s no way I’m like no I’m gonna do it then I got it done. I got it done

Anthony Codispoti (30:23)
Do you have any other goals like that? Do you want to do another half Iron Man? Do you want to do a marathon? How do you think about this going forward?

Alfredo Hildebrandt (30:34)
Yeah, you know, this is when I cross the finish line, it wasn’t just I’m done. This actually was was crossing the finish line. I’m starting a new journey, right? This just they just sparked something in me. And I’m knowing that I’m to I’m knowing I ease down on that. It’s just a lifestyle now. And I got actually in two in a week. have an Olympic triathlon. I’m going to do the Akron marathon, half marathon in September. And I do a full marathon in January.

in Miami and sounds crazy. haven’t asked, tell anybody, but my mind now is in a full Ironman, but I want to give my family and my team a little, a little more time. You know, it was kind of crazy when I took over these challenge first, a lot of stress and my wife is, is the queen. She took a lot of that responsibilities while I was absent and working out, I was putting close to 17 hours a week training for these. And I want to make it a little more.

build a foundation and I want to do a full Ironman hopefully by 2027. But I do have another half Ironman on the books for next year to beat my time.

Anthony Codispoti (31:40)
Now that’s incredible.

Wow. What were, what was the biggest dietary change that you made?

Alfredo Hildebrandt (31:49)
For me, fast, I fast, independent fasting. That really helped me set up some discipline on when I’m eating, when I’m not eating, and then from there to just be more alert of what I’m eating, right? Like processed food, to fried food. I eat pretty clean now. ⁓ I try to eat organic as much as I can from home, but also that’s exempt from my kids too. My kids are eating pretty healthy too. Like we don’t eat sweets.

And I feel like too, all the habits that I’m creating for me and my family is gonna pay dividends for my kids as well. My kid sees me working out, now he wants to run. He goes, daddy, let’s go ride a bike. He will let’s go swim. So my oldest one is so active and it’s one of the proudest moments seeing my oldest kid running with me as I was cramping out on mile seven of the half marathon of the Ironman and him being so excited and calling me Ironman. ⁓

I think that’s going to leave a big impact on my family and I hope I can leave that, you know, when you put your mind to something, you always, you need to accomplish it and you don’t quit.

Anthony Codispoti (32:55)
What’s your superpower, Alfredo?

Alfredo Hildebrandt (32:58)
My superpower, I would say, is connecting with people. I have these, I won’t say skill, connecting with people. That’s what I love the most. Like you put me in a room and I’ll make, if you put a room with five people, they will become my best, we’ll become best friends in a matter of 30 minutes. And I think that’s why I was able to be successful in this industry, because at the end it’s all about people. Anybody can do my job, but connecting with people and how you make people feel, that’s what makes.

us taking from one level to the next one.

Anthony Codispoti (33:31)
So aside from the culture piece, which I know you’re a big fan of, what are some other things that you’ve tried and found success with when it comes to recruiting and retaining team members?

Alfredo Hildebrandt (33:43)
I will say invest in your people, right? I invest a lot of my, not only just resources and money and tools on my people, but also my time. Like I said, conversations and making them feel like they’re seeing the love and I appreciate it. And the other thing is people want tough love. As much sounds bad, but they want good feedback, you know? And I give a lot of tough love. I’m honest. And I think when they come join my program,

I’m upfront with them. like, you come over here, I’m going to make sure that you’re successful, but also I’ll make sure that you’re world class, world class human and that I’m going to hold you accountable. And that accountability is key. as much, you know, sometimes it could be tough on my, of my employees in a good way. They appreciate it. They go back and go, you know what? I’m glad you call him out. I’m glad you hold me accountable for what I could do better because at the end, that’s why they joined me is because they joined our team here at Lakewood is because they want to be better people. They want to be better leaders and better managers.

It’s my responsibility to pay tribute to that.

Anthony Codispoti (34:46)
What advice would you give to a leader on how to approach some of those tough love conversations?

Alfredo Hildebrandt (34:55)
It’s just getting comfortable with this, with uncomfortable, right? Like if, for me it’s hard because I’m a yes person, I am a less connect, I’m a people person. So I know that those conversations at the beginning were hard for me, but also I understand as a leader, it’s my responsibility to develop other leaders. And the only way you can develop is by giving true feedback and it’s the bad, the good and the ugly, you know? I…

give high five when somebody does a great job in front of everybody, but somebody fails or can do better, I close the door, bring them over here and we have a good conversation. Say, hey, listen, here’s my feedback. Here’s how we can do better. Help me help you understand how can we can be, you what can I do to help you be successful? ⁓ But it’s always a coaching, you know, I’m not the guy that closed the door and just ripped somebody apart. That’s not the way I manage or lead. I will never do that. It’s always an opportunity to learn.

Anthony Codispoti (35:52)
Alfred, if you were going to recommend a resource to somebody that’s been helpful for you and your development, whether it’s a book, a podcast, a course, what would that be?

Alfredo Hildebrandt (36:06)
⁓

I will say, I love Simon Sinek. I will say, leaders is last. That’s one of my favorite books. Everything starts with Y.

Anthony Codispoti (36:24)
I think everybody got

to know him through What is Your Why, right? That famous TED Talk.

Alfredo Hildebrandt (36:28)
Yeah, Where’s

your why? like leadership last test true serving leadership and that’s what I feel like my leadership philosophy hits the nail. The leadership philosophy, right? You empower people, you hold them accountable and you give space to grow.

Anthony Codispoti (36:48)
Say more about that. Say more about how servant leadership shows up for you in your day-to-day at Lakewood.

Alfredo Hildebrandt (36:56)
It’s the micro moment, right? Listen to them, empower them, offering the tools and resources and hold them accountable. I’m the first one and it’s the same thing. I want also my employees to hold me accountable if I’m not doing great. I always constantly ask for feedback from my employees to my managers because it’s the only way you can get better. And for me, one of the biggest tools and resources that I can have is just raw feedback from members to employees. It’s the only way you get better.

Anthony Codispoti (37:27)
How about some daily practices, Alfredo, that either help to get you started or keep you on track, keep you centered throughout the day?

Alfredo Hildebrandt (37:35)
Yeah, so I started this when I started this new transformation of me in 2024. I start with movement in the morning. I have to work out, go on a walk or play with my kids, but just move. I try to spend a little quiet time for myself too. I started my gratitude journal. So it’s been what, close to eight months since I started every day. I have my gratitude journal. I write something I’m grateful for, something that I’m looking forward to.

and just thanking anybody could be my wife, my employees and just recognizing something. And what it does for me is that I start my day, just be thankful for, thankful and grateful for what I have or what I’ve done and for the people that have my life. it me keep grounded, humble and just it’s a way, it’s a perfect way to start my day. And if I miss it that morning, I start doing the day, but it’s two things that I always start every morning. Those two things is movement and just be

grateful.

Anthony Codispoti (38:35)
Yeah, I think that gratitude element is ⁓ so key. This kind of showed up in a funny way for us the other day in our house. ⁓ We were going through the calendar. My kids have days off from school coming up next year. And so my wife and I are kind of coordinating which days she’ll stay home, which days I’ll stay home. And I was getting a little bit frustrated because most of the days were kind of falling to me. And I had to kind of flip the switch and…

as I’m sort of sighing on each entry I’m making into the calendar, I said, you know what, I love my kids and I’m grateful that I have the flexibility and the opportunity to stay home with them. And so I think sometimes it’s just finding that gratitude in those small moments where you find yourself kind of veering off into being ungrateful or frustrated. Now I see you’re nodding your head, you agree.

Alfredo Hildebrandt (39:28)
Yeah, just life gets so busy, you know, like I have 200 plus employees 395 families Working along the summertime and working out and all that stuff and sometimes you just you just forget the little things make a big impact and Little things like just being grateful about my wife and taking over our responsibilities at home and for my absence where I’m you know

working or working out ⁓ or like little things that I’m employed for me so I can be successful in my job. It’s incredible. I highly suggest it to anybody. You realize how lucky we are and all the things that we have in life.

Anthony Codispoti (40:08)
You know, Alfredo, sometimes our mistakes, and I put that in air quotes, end up becoming our greatest teachers. What’s one early career moment that seemed like a setback at the time, but actually propelled you forward?

Alfredo Hildebrandt (40:24)
I would say early in my career, I tried to prove myself by doing everything alone. I learned quickly that delegating and trust aren’t signs of weakness, but they are foundation of great leadership. And if I try to do everything here in my role, I’ll be here all the time. And that’s probably one of the things I struggled the most my first two quarters of the new general manager role, transition from assistant general manager to general manager CEO is completely deaf in dynamics.

trusting your employees, delegating, empower them. ⁓ It’s not only key for you to accomplish more stuff, but just also give the outlet for your mid-level and head departments just to grow as well.

Anthony Codispoti (41:08)
What’s something you do for fun?

Alfredo Hildebrandt (41:13)
Lately, pure enjoyment. I like boating with my kids. just, you know, I’m so stuck with my phone all the time because employees, members, it’s the way that I roll with the business. I always want to be present, but like when I do that, I just flip the switch and I’m just there. I’m just there with my kids and my wife.

Anthony Codispoti (41:13)
Just pure enjoyment.

Alfredo, what’s the best decision you’ve made for your career and why?

Alfredo Hildebrandt (41:43)
The best decision I made was investing in people. Investing in people and then prioritizing the culture and team development results fall after that. And it’s not confidence, it’s a formula, right? Investing in your people. And ⁓ that’s my profession, but personally was choosing my boss, not my work.

When I follow my boss, it was because I chose my boss, not the work. And I think sometimes people just want to take these glamorous jobs and go to this beautiful place. But you really, when you’re young and hungry, picking the right boss can play a lot of dividends down the road. And for me, was the best decision. I worked for one boss for 10 years and listen, he was tough to work with sometimes, but he gave me all the tools and resources and the tough love that I needed to be successful on my job right now.

And to this day, I’m so grateful and thankful that I made that decision to pick my boss, my job.

Anthony Codispoti (42:47)
That’s so interesting. That mentorship really provided a framework for you going forward on how to approach your roles and how to approach managing people.

Alfredo Hildebrandt (42:57)
And I tell any young manager is like, don’t pick the job, pick your boss. That person’s gonna help you become the person you want if he’s the right person that you choose. And that’s what I did. I worked for the same person for 10 years and I don’t think I will learn or even experience what I’ve experienced somewhere else.

Anthony Codispoti (43:19)
As you think ahead for the next couple of years, Alfredo, what do you think some of the, or maybe one of the biggest changes that are coming to your space is?

Alfredo Hildebrandt (43:32)
⁓ Clubs are becoming a lifestyle communities and the future is in holistic experiences, fitness, family, food and flexibility. Those who embrace change while honoring tradition will lead the way. I think that’s…

Anthony Codispoti (43:47)
And so what does that

look like, that holistic kind of experience? What are some things that people are introducing to clubs or thinking about introducing to clubs that maybe 20 years ago were unheard of?

Alfredo Hildebrandt (43:51)
wellness.

It’s a lifestyle, right? So one stop shop is where you walk in and that’s where you get a massage. That’s when you work out. That’s when you’re getting your hair done. That’s where you play tennis. That’s you play golf, dining room. ⁓ How people see food now too, right? It’s a holistic way. People want to see what calories they’re eating, what kind of food they’re eating, where they’re getting their food, and just a lifestyle. That’s your ballot proposition.

It’s not just a beautiful clubhouse, it’s more than just that. It’s lifestyle communities.

Anthony Codispoti (44:35)
Yeah.

What’s one thing you wish more people knew about your industry, Alfredo?

Alfredo Hildebrandt (44:44)
It’s more engulfed in fine dining. I discord the industries about people and connection. We create spaces where members feel the true sense of belonging, where we celebrate life, meaningful moments that happen here. ⁓ Behind every experience, there’s a team committed. And we’re here, know, it’s all about experiences and memories.

I will say that it’s not just about golf and fine dining, it’s about experiences, how we make people feel.

Anthony Codispoti (45:18)
I like that.

Alfredo Hildebrandt (45:18)
And not just from the member side, but also from the staff side. It’s incredible when you walk in as an employee and the members truly genuinely want to know about you. And I see so many stories where a server starts here when they’re 16, 17, 18, 19, and then they’re not working for a member. So it’s a place to network. It’s a place to get the soft skills that we’re losing nowadays with AI technology. think soft skills is what’s going to set us apart.

forward.

Anthony Codispoti (45:49)
Is AI become part of your day-to-day operations there? Are you guys leveraging it in any way?

Alfredo Hildebrandt (45:57)
We do, we do. And if you are not using it, I feel like you’re behind, right? That’s why technology is there. It’s available for anybody. And that’s why we’re talking about traditions with modernization, right? Like it’s the tools to use it out there. And from accounting to marketing to communication, we’re gonna use it. We’re gonna use it to simplify it, to make it easy. And that’s the world we’re going.

Anthony Codispoti (46:27)
And so what’s your favorite tool? What do you like to use?

Alfredo Hildebrandt (46:31)
You know, I use grammarly a lot. know, English being my second language. I tell everybody that I have to work harder than anybody, right? I’m in a position where I communicate with members and staff and I want to be concise. I want to be precise and I want to make sure that my message goes across. So communication is key and I use any tools that I can to be able to communicate that. If I wouldn’t be using it, I don’t think I would be doing anything deserving to my membership because those tools are there for anybody and I encourage everybody to just

just explode us in, know, club industry is one of those dinosaur industries where we’re so behind in many ways. But the clubs that are evolving are the ones that use the technology in their advantage.

Anthony Codispoti (47:14)
Yeah, amazingly powerful tools when used the right way. I agree.

Alfredo Hildebrandt (47:19)
Exactly. Yeah, you gotta be careful, of course, you know, and you can’t solely on that because at the end is AI, but there’s some things that some great things you can use.

Anthony Codispoti (47:30)
Yeah. So Alfredo, I’ve just got one more question for you, but before I ask, I want to do a couple of things. First of all, everyone listening today, I’m to ask you just to pause for a second. Go ahead, hit that follow or subscribe button on your favorite podcast app. want you to continue to get more great content like this. If you’ve got a free moment, leave us a review or a comment. It’s a really helpful way to encourage other people’s to find the show and benefit from these interviews as well.

Alfredo, I also want to let people know the best way to either get in touch with you directly or to follow your story or that of Lakewood Country Club. What would that be?

Alfredo Hildebrandt (48:07)
There’ll be two LinkedIn, I will say. I’m pretty active for LinkedIn. It’s one of my goals for 2025 is write one article a month. So between that and showcasing what we’re doing here at Lakewood Country Club, showcasing my people, our team, and then also following Lakewood Country Club and seeing all the great things we’re accomplishing. Our team keeps growing, our culture keeps getting better, and our membership keeps growing as a result of that. And really excited to just…

Anthony Codispoti (48:36)
That’s awesome. So last question for you Alfredo, you and I reconnect a year from now and you’re really excited. You are celebrating something big. What’s that one thing that you’re celebrating a year from now?

Alfredo Hildebrandt (48:55)
From here to now, what I want to celebrate is…

that I can sustain what I’m doing in my personal life. Right? Be presence, be a presence father, husband, leader. And my goal hopefully by then I accomplish a full Ironman, which is a big task to take. hope that I can say, I accomplished that 140 miles plus. And in a professional world is that I set up Lakewood to be the standard in the West side of Cleveland and in Noyce, Ohio. It’s a standard club to follow.

We’re not just following trends, but setting the trends.

Anthony Codispoti (49:34)
Well, I’m rooting for you. Alfredo Hildebrand from Lakewood Country Club. I want to be the first to thank you for sharing both your time and your story with us today. I really appreciate it.

Alfredo Hildebrandt (49:36)
Thank you.

Thank you, Anthony. I appreciate having you.

Anthony Codispoti (49:45)
Folks, that’s a wrap on another episode of the Inspired Stories Podcast. Thanks for learning with us today.