David Freund, Chief Leadership Officer at the Manufacturers Association of Central New York (MACNY), reflected on his experience writing weekly blog posts for the organization since 2016. Freund credited Randy Wolken, MACNY’s President & CEO, for encouraging him to begin writing and acknowledged Marisa Norcross, now Chief Operating Officer, for her support in editing and preparing his posts.
Freund explained that during periods when Norcross was unavailable, colleagues Marissa Beck and Lauren Alexander stepped in to help edit his work. Over nearly a decade, Freund estimated he has written approximately 187,200 words in blog posts alone, with additional content published in magazines and monthly newsletters.
He emphasized the importance of teamwork throughout this process. “I’ve always believed that teamwork makes the dream work, and that’s certainly been true here. After all, it’s one thing to have a dream, but without the right people beside you to help make it real, that dream stays just that — a dream,” Freund stated.
Freund also discussed his original goal upon joining MACNY ten years ago: “My dream was to change the mindset of leadership throughout Central New York — to help shift from transactional management to values-based, transformational leadership. It was an ambitious goal, but I’ve never walked that path alone. My colleagues at MACNY have supported that vision every step of the way.”
Looking ahead, Freund announced a new collaboration with Steve Maloney, who recently returned as Director of Training at MACNY. Together they will co-author a new shared blog titled The Next Shift: Where People and Performance Advance. Weekly posts are set to resume as part of this initiative.
The official launch of The Next Shift blog will take place during MACNY’s 10th annual Live2Lead event on November 7 at The Lodge in Skaneateles. Registration for Live2Lead is open through Friday, October 24.
