Michael Ruiz

Michael, the longtime manager on the Carnegie Hall fundraising campaign, is one of the most capable and dependable campaign managers on the SD&A roster. In fact, whenever a manager is needed in a hurry—to troubleshoot a campaign, to launch a new campaign, or to take over for another manager—Michael is the company’s trusted “go-to guy”.

As Campaign Manager Development Officer, Michael leads the training, development and ongoing support of the professional management team. He works with both new managers and seasoned managers to make them the best leaders they can be. Since joining the SD&A team, Michael has trained and mentored nearly a dozen new managers who have gone on to lead successful campaigns of their own. He has also worked as an advisor/troubleshooter on a variety of campaigns for SD&A clients, including New York Philharmonic, New York City Ballet, Philadelphia Orchestra, Baruch College, and Great Performers at Lincoln Center.

Throughout his 20-year career in sales management and customer service, he has enjoyed a reputation as a self-starter with a steady supply of creative ideas. He’s a genuinely warm and friendly person who gets along well with everyone he meets, which has allowed him to build strong working relationships with clients and co-workers alike.

Live theatre is one of Michael’s passions in life. Having spent time as a writer, a director, a stage manager, and an actor, he understands the complexities associated with getting major productions up and running. Before joining SD&A, one of Michael’s career highlights was managing the day-to-day operations at Ray-Ban’s 24-hour call center in Rochester, New York. Not only was he responsible for supervising a large team of customer service representatives, but he was also in charge of executive training and presentations. One such presentation took him to the Cannes Film Festival, where he presented Ray-Ban’s new product line to an audience of celebrities and film executives.