From Paris to Palm Beach

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Kentucky native Paul N. Leone makes his mark in the hospitality industry

Paul N. Leone bleeds Kentucky true blue. Every facet of his life has prepared him for taking the helm at The Breakers, the 125-year-old iconic luxury hotel in Palm Beach that Leone leads today. He remains family-loyal to his South Florida team and his Bluegrass roots.

To watch Leone—chief executive officer and president of the Flagler Systems, Inc., of which The Breakers is a subsidiary—in action is to watch the embodiment of a Kentucky work ethic instilled at a young age. Season that with a hands-on leader who places full trust in his team, and you have The Breakers’ secret to employee success and guest satisfaction.

Growing up, Leone worked on the family farm; lived at his family’s Starlight Motor Court motel in Paris for two years while in high school, where he swept the parking lot and washed laundry; and waited tables, prepped food, washed dishes and developed relationships with guests at his family’s 50-seat Italian restaurant. From those experiences, Leone got the hospitality bug early. “It was natural at our mom-and-pop operation to treat everyone on our team and our guests like family,” Leone said. “That led to great employee engagement and retention, as well as superior guest retention—all key drivers of our business today here at The Breakers.”

After graduating from the University of Kentucky in 1980 with a degree in accounting, Leone embarked on a three-year stint with the Coopers & Lybrand accounting firm, first in Louisville and then at the company’s West Palm Beach office. While still new to the Palm Beach location, Leone was selected by the firm’s largest client, The Breakers, to complete a six-week audit. Soon afterward, he was named controller at the five-star hotel, beginning a three-decade career there.

Opened in 1896 by oil, real estate and railroad tycoon Henry Flagler, The Breakers is world-renowned. Still run by the same founding family, the Kirks, the Italian Renaissance-style hotel includes a who’s who guest list. Rockefellers, Vanderbilts and Astors have been registered guests, along with heads of state and European nobility. Noted Kentuckians—including former Gov. John Y. Brown Jr.; Jack Givens, the star of the 1978 UK NCAA men’s basketball championship team; past UK football coach Fran Curci; and UK President Eli Capiluto—have all stayed at The Breakers.

The resort’s team members are family for Leone. When The Breakers Vice President of Human Resources Denise Bober and Director of Team Member Development Pat Ciavola approached Leone and The Breakers leadership with the precursor to the Johnson & Johnson Human Performance Institute’s well-being program, the program was quickly embraced and developed. In 2002, a well-being program second to none in the United States was established. Guest surveys and cost benefits of the program pour in each year. The Breakers has achieved an 82 percent employee retention rate, putting the resort well below the U.S. industry average turnover of 31 percent, according to a 2015 Deloitte hospitality industry report. The Breakers hires approximately one of 23 job applicants.

In October 2017, The Breakers hosted the 11th Annual Global Wellness Summit (GWS). This marked the first time an individual hotel property was selected as the host sponsor. According to Susie Ellis, CEO and chairman of the Global Wellness Institute, “The Breakers-Palm Beach is one of the world’s top resort hotels, and much of that credit goes to their CEO, Paul Leone. Paul has been in the leadership role there for nearly three decades, and the culture he has created—with its extraordinary emphasis on employee well-being—is second to none. This was the key reason we selected The Breakers for the 2017 GWS and also a critical reason that The Breakers team was interested in hosting our Summit. It allowed them [Leone, Bober and owner Garrett Kirk] to communicate a strong message to their team about their commitment to their well-being and was a tremendous way to showcase the incredible things they’ve accomplished to global leaders in wellness.”

As part of the keynote group on stage at the Summit’s opening-day program with The Breakers team, Ellis reflected on Leone’s legacy following the event. “Paul shared his leadership philosophy that has resulted in best-in-class employee fulfillment, guest satisfaction, community service and financial performance. To me, he described his philosophy as ‘servant leadership’: the servant leader shares power, puts the needs of others first and helps develop and perform at the highest levels possible. It’s no wonder that he has created a team of 2,000 happy employees, thousands of satisfied guests, a strong bottom-line and a reputation for unparalleled community service.”

When not hosting the GWS or other major events or directing Flagler Systems, Leone likes to catch his beloved Kentucky Wildcats on the big screen. The Breakers’ leader is equally at home sporting a UK silk tie or a UK T-shirt and makes annual courtside pilgrimages to Rupp Arena. “I’m nothing short of a UK basketball fanatic!” he said with a laugh.

Elisabeth A. Doehring, PHR, GPHR, SHRM-SCP, CWWPM is an award-winning business writer and human resources professional. An Honorary Kentucky Colonel, Doehring has worked in Kentucky and written previous features and book reviews for Kentucky Monthly.