Tampa Downtown Partnership’s new leader has a long tenure on the staffÂ
Why Lynda is a big deal: Lynda has nearly 20 years of experience with the Tampa Downtown Partnership, joining the staff as director of district operations in October 2000. The Tampa native manages and coordinates the daily operations of the Tampa Downtown Partnership including organizational structure, management and vision, company policies, and supporting the organization’s strategic initiatives, as well as leading efforts to expand the special assessment district. The TDP is expanding its special service district for the first time since its creation in 1994 in response to continued city center growth and expansion. Previously as COO, Remund led the reorganization of the corporation’s structure to better align with its goals and growth strategy, resulting in improved efficiency and operational output. Lynda holds a SHRM-CP certification in human resources, and serves on the Greater Tampa Chamber of Commerce’s board, and Visit Tampa Bay’s Advisory Committee. In her earlier life, Lynda was a flight attendant. She also spent nine years with Chase Manhattan Bank, first supervising in the Bankcard division and later appointed community and special events coordinator.
What do you want to see for downtown? A vibrant, diverse 24/7 community, with more retail options and a robust transportation system that supports our growing workforce, residential population and visitors.
Now that you are in a leadership role, what’s your vision for the TDP? Being a stronger advocate; fostering downtown projects for the betterment of Tampa’s downtown, and strengthening our relationships with other organizations and partners such as the EDC, Tampa Bay Partnership and Greater Tampa Chamber of Commerce. We will continue to align and develop the wonderful talent we have on staff to focus on our strategic initiatives. I want us to be an advocate. One of our strategic initiatives is relevancy. So we want to get our word out there and we want people to know who we are and that we are here to help.
Your path did not include a college degree. Has that had an impact? I’ve been fortunate to have worked at wonderful companies that provided career training and instilled a work ethic based on dedication, integrity and hard work. It has served me well and allowed me to take advantage of the many blessings I’ve had throughout my career. Life experiences and the support of many talented mentors has given me strength and endurance to face the most difficult challenges. It takes hard work and dedication and being true to yourself and your company – that has been good for me.
Now in the leadership role, what has been your focus? One of the first things we did was to align staff with their talents so we did a little but of reorganization internally. We’ve hired a few new positions. We have an events coordinator which we never had before. We’ve been able to promote a couple of people internally and we’re fully staffed again so we will soon have 11 people on staff. We are excited by that and we just have some great young talent.
How do you describe your management style? First – to be fair. One of the first things I learned in management is to appreciate and treat your employees with respect and fairness. I strive to “do the right thing” and base my decisions on facts. I typically don’t like to sit on an idea too long and want to take action if everything aligns. One of my most recent mottos has been to stop talking and start doing, and we certainly have a lot to do. I like to listen and learn from the experts and surround myself with great talent, as the Partnership certainly has with our executive committee, board and staff.
Where do you find downtime or work/life balance? Travel. I’m ready to go at any moment – now it’s just finding the time. Family is also very important to me so I capitalize on spending as much time with them as possible. I’m blessed to have a wonderful husband and to have my family locally, including my daughter and three grandsons; twin four-year-olds and a five-year-old. That keeps me quite busy.
What’s the craziest thing you saw as a flight attendant? I probably can’t say that on the record. It’s an interesting job. I got to meet a lot of celebrities. It’s an exciting time. I got to see a lot. I traveled a lot on the west coast and sometimes down to the islands, the west coast and Canada. I did it at 30 years old.
You have had to deal with loss, specifically the death if your son in 2001 when he was 18. That’s made me a stronger person. My daughter told me one time, you know mom, always remember you are the mother of two children, don’t ever forget to mention Bobby. So I always try to do that. It makes you a stronger individual. It certainly can break you. You can’t let it define you.
