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Tatum and his wife enjoy exploring the
Raleigh food scene |
Name: Brian Tatum
Position: Hurricanes Assistant GM
Age: 41
Where I’m from: Dothan, Ala.
Where I call home: Raleigh, N.C.
Focusing on right now: Changing team culture with new Exec VP & GM RON FRANCIS and new coach BILL PETERS.
Best advice: Treat everyone with respect. I learned very early on to listen a lot more than you talk. You can learn a lot from any type of situation if you’re willing to listen to what’s being said. You go through situations where you learn to do the right thing, but you could also learn what not to do just by listening to an opinion.
A must for a new hire: We hire a lot of entry-level people here for jobs, and we look at their work ethic. In our business, you have to be able to work with other people, work with other departments. It’s important to be able to communicate well so everything gets done in a thorough manner.
Exec I most admire: Growing up in this area, I really looked up to DEAN SMITH. I grew up a big Carolina fan and had a chance to meet him a few times. I went to one of his camps when I was younger, read a few of his books and just always had a lot of respect for the way he made players, coaches, staff members -- whoever -- feel important. He really cared about what was going on with them. We try to be the same way here. We try to have a family mentality with our coaches, players and anyone else in the organization.
Best book I’ve read: "Unbroken," by LAURA HILLENBRAND. It's about LOUIS ZAMPERINI, and it's an amazing book about survival and character. My grandfather served in World War II, and you just don’t see where these world-class athletes end up going to war. This guy was a world-class athlete and next thing you know he’s fighting a war and is a prisoner of war. I haven’t seen the movie yet, but the book was great.
First thing in the morning: My iPad or my phone. If I don’t see these late games on the West coast, I’m checking out scores and different things that way. I’m not a coffee guy at all -- I drink a lot of water. Then I’ll spend a little bit of time with my wife and my dogs before I head in for the day.
Talking tech: With the trade deadline recently, we’re seeing information on Twitter before it’s even come out yet. Unfortunately, some players are finding out from Twitter that they’re getting traded before they hear it from their GM. I’m on Twitter, but I don’t tweet. I follow certain media people, in sports and business.
Must have music: Growing up in the South, I’ve become a big country music fan. We get a lot of country shows here in Raleigh, so during the summer it’s nice to get out and go to some of those shows.
Food for thought: My wife and I are big food people -- we go out to quite a few restaurants. She’s a vegetarian, but can usually go most places. One of our favorite places here in Raleigh is called Humble Pie. We’ve been going there for five or six years now.
How I unwind: Believe it or not, my wife and I like to travel, even though I do it all season. We go down to the Caribbean, somewhere warm. We did California last year, the whole Pacific Coast Highway tour.
Day in the life: Ronnie (Francis) really learned from former GM JIM RUTHERFORD, so he’s got a lot of the same characteristics as far as respecting people and having trust in the guys who work with him to do their jobs. He gives us leeway to do our jobs. He probably sees things a little bit differently than Jim, but I don’t think there are a ton of differences in the way they conduct their business. Ron’s pretty good at doing a lot of stuff on his own -- he’s done a little bit of everything -- so I think that helps him be able to relate to each facet of our job.
