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July 16, 1999/3 Av 5759, Vol. 51, No.41
Shultz driven by 'grand service plan'
LENI REISS
Senior Contributing Editor
Marty Shultz
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When Gov. Jane Hull appointed Marty Shultz to co-chair her prestigious Vision 21 Transportation Task Force recently, she obviously had in mind the adage: If you want to get the job done, give it to a busy person.
Shultz, 55, is director of government relations for Arizona Public Service. He lobbies for the enactment of laws that are "beneficial to APS interests," he says, "and that includes the company, our shareholders and our customers."
He also speaks for the company to policy-making government organizations and commissions regarding the establishment of rules and regulations under which public utilities operate.
His biographical information sheet lists 25 business, civic and community associations to which he volunteers time, and an additional roster of professional and industry affiliations.
He says that for as long as he can remember he has been driven by a "grand community service plan that encompasses both Jewish and secular concerns," so it is hard for him to say no when there are needs to be met and work to be done.
His Jewish communal commitments have included leadership positions with the Jewish Federation of Greater Phoenix, Temple Beth Israel, Arizona Jewish Theatre Company, the Anti-Defamation League and Jewish Community Centers. In the secular arena, he says, he directs his energies mostly toward projects "that deal with health care, economic development, education and kids."
The appointment to head the transportation task force, along with co-chair Sharon B. Megdal of Tucson, is the latest, and perhaps one of the most challenging, of his civic projects.
"The governor's expectation," he says, "is that our group of 31 leaders from all over the state will put together a long-range transportation plan for rural and urban Arizona."
A printed overview from Hull's office defines the task force charge as "(evaluating) current practices, resources and infrastructures and (recommending and prioritizing) goals, funding, and specific plans that will establish a vision for transportation in Arizona for the next century."
"We will create a multi-modal, financially feasible plan for the first 20 years of the 21st century," Shultz predicts. "It will include not only freeways, but major streets, state highways, aviation, bus service, mass transit, and even bicycle paths, and trip reduction programs and strategies."
He says that the task force is well positioned to accomplish its goals "because we have Governor Hull's backing."
"In her tenure in office," he says, "she already has shown the mettle to face challenges and accomplish what she sets out to do."
The copper dome of the state Capitol and the spires of City Hall gleam in the mid-morning sun from the oversized window of Shultz's office on the 20th floor of Arizona Two, one of a pair of high-rise towers at Arizona Center in downtown Phoenix. Acknowledging the great view and elegant surroundings, Shultz, sporting cufflinks with the APS logo, smiles at a co-worker's description of the setting as the "pinnacle of power."
He recalls the path that brought him to the 20th floor, going all the way back to 1953, when his father "dragged the family here from Cleveland."
Shultz earn-ed degrees in both business and education from Arizona State University and as an idealistic new graduate, "thought that helping children was the right career path." He served as a reading specialist in public schools, earning the first-ever learning disability certificate granted by the Arizona Department of Education. That involvement led to jobs in school administration and a stint in the Arizona State Legislature as a consultant on school finance.
He went on to serve as chief-of-staff to three Phoenix mayors, John Driggs, Tim Barrow and Margaret Hance. Then "Jerry Colangelo called," and Shultz joined the Phoenix Suns as director of sales, marketing and promotion. As role models go, Shultz puts Colangelo high on his list.
"The bottom line is that he has the ability to create and execute ideas and projects. Jerry envisioned the development of central Phoenix long before it was in vogue. He put his company's money into research and studies to demonstrate that downtown development was viable at a time when the region was deteriorating. I have adopted his mission-oriented approach and ethic of 'doing it,' " Shultz says. "It works."
After three years with the Suns organization, Shultz joined APS, and this year is celebrating 20 years with the Fortune 500 company. Making the case that "lobbying is not a bad word," he elaborates: "I think too many people react negatively and it's an unfair rap. We are doing the job of advancing the interests of some businesses, some constituencies.
"I would say," he continues, "that every reader of this article is affiliated in some way with some organization that is represented by a lobbyist. Detractors should focus on the values and ethics of those doing the job."
Shultz acknowledges that his hectic work and volunteer schedules at times have had a negative impact on the quality and quantity of his family life, especially when his two now-grown daughters (Debbie Ater of Phoenix and Robyn Vizvary of Los Angeles) lived at home, "but my wife, Linda, and I did try to integrate them into many events and activities."
He calls his wife, Linda Shultz, "a good sport and partner."
"She doesn't complain, either privately or publicly," he says, when meetings and other obligations impinge upon their life, or "when she gets dragged to many, many events over and above the call of duty."
Although he describes himself as "incredibly organized - and a little compulsive," Shultz says he is able to take on all that he does only with the help of a very talented team of coworkers and the support of APS top executives.
He squeezes in a little time for himself, working out three times a week with a personal trainer and reading - "for pure pleasure" - everything by fiction writer Jeffrey Archer.
"Relaxation is not an isolated activity," Shultz believes. "I find that work or communal service can be stimulating and relaxing at the same time, if you pace yourself. I even play tournament golf once in a while.
"I have my health, my family. I call my mom every day. I know I'm lucky. I'm in a great place at the right time. I really feel that I have achieved a healthy balance between my professional work, my volunteer activities and all the good things that go along with living here in Arizona."
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