From Pinot Noir to Public Policy: John S. Dyson ’65 Shares Lessons in Leadership

Cornell alumni, faculty, students, and guests gathered in midtown Manhattan April 10 for Dyson Leads, a speaker series launched by the Charles H. Dyson School of Applied Economics and Management that brings the school’s community together to explore leadership in business and public life. The evening honored John S. Dyson ’65—entrepreneur, public servant, longtime Cornell trustee, and this year’s recipient of the Dyson Alumni Leadership Award.

Hosted by Andrew Karolyi, Charles Field Knight Dean of the Cornell SC Johnson College of Business, and Jinhua Zhao, David J. Nolan Dean of the  of the Dyson School, the event featured a fireside chat where Dyson shared stories from across his career. His remarks centered on three defining chapters: his acquisition of a boutique California winery, his role in launching New York State’s “I Love New York” campaign (the mention of which drew immediate, enthusiastic nods of recognition from the audience), and his long involvement in shaping the Dyson School into the institution it is today.

Each story, drawn from Dyson’s experiences in the private sector, public service, and higher education, underscored the values and strategies that have guided his leadership style: fairness in negotiation, strategic risk-taking, and a clear grasp of the systems he sought to influence.

Buying Williams Selyem: A private sector lesson in trust and timing

Dyson opened with a story that began in the early 2000s, when he was already well-established in the wine industry through his Hudson Valley-based Millbrook Vineyards & Winery. He set his sights on Williams Selyem, a small California winery producing world-class Pinot Noir. At the time, the winery was largely off the radar outside of serious wine circles, yet deeply respected within them. With a cult following, a years-long mailing list, and a refusal to sell to anyone not already “on the list,” Williams Selyem had become known for quality, scarcity, and simplicity.

What it lacked, however, was formality. There were no financial statements, no organized data—just a strong brand and an even stronger relationship with loyal customers. “They didn’t operate like a business, at least not in the traditional sense,” Dyson said. But he saw potential. And when the opportunity arose to purchase it, he didn’t haggle.

“They were asking $8 million. I offered $9 million,” he recalled. “It was worth that to me and I wanted the deal to feel fair from the start.” The sellers, known for their handshake-style agreements and skepticism of corporate buyers, appreciated the gesture. The deal went through, and Williams Selyem remained in careful hands.

The story wasn’t just about a good investment. Dyson used it to highlight key principles: trust matters, timing matters, and being direct and respectful can go a long way—especially when legacy and passion are involved.

Launching “I Love New York”: Reimagining public sector marketing

Dyson then turned to his time in public office—specifically, his tenure as New York State Commissioner of Commerce in the late 1970s. Faced with declining tourism and budget inefficiencies, Dyson decided to take a new approach to economic development.

At the time, state funding for tourism was scattered across dozens of local campaigns. Dyson argued that instead of small, disjointed efforts, New York needed a unified message—and the data to back it up. “We weren’t getting enough return on our spend,” he said. “We needed to take a step back and ask: what would it look like to do this well?”

That led to the development of the “I Love New York” campaign—one of the most successful and enduring tourism campaigns in U.S. history. Working with Mary Wells of the advertising agency Wells, Rich, Greene, along with designer Milton Glaser and a team of marketing researchers, Dyson helped build not just a slogan, but also a strategy. His team set measurable goals tied directly to the success of the campaign, including hotel occupancy rates, county-level tax receipts, and ticket sales from New York’s entertainment sector.

Initial resistance from lawmakers and local tourism groups was high. “A lot of people were upset they weren’t getting their piece of the pie anymore,” he said. But the results were hard to argue with. A $4 million campaign generated $28 million in new tax revenue within its first year.

The lesson, Dyson said, was simple: “You have to know how you’ll measure success before you begin.” That protected the governor and Dyson politically and provided evidence of the results, he noted.

Shaping the Dyson School: A long-term commitment to Cornell

Dyson’s third and final anecdote focused on his decades-long involvement in higher education, including at Cornell. A trustee for over 25 years and an emeritus trustee for 25 more, Dyson played a central role in elevating what was the Department of Applied Economics and Management within the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences (CALS) to become the Dyson School.

Then, in 2016, when Cornell announced the creation of the Cornell SC Johnson College of Business, combining the Dyson School with the Samuel Curtis Johnson Graduate School of Management and the Peter and Stephanie Nolan School of Hotel Administration, Dyson was instrumental in negotiating the structure of the new college, he said.

“There was real concern that the Dyson School’s connection to CALS—and to applied, mission-driven education—would be lost,” he said. His solution was a shared governance model. The Dyson School would remain part of CALS but also operate within the SC Johnson College. This hybrid structure allowed the Dyson School to retain its focus on agriculture, sustainability, and public-sector impact, while still benefiting from broader business school resources.

It was a delicate balance, but one Dyson believes was necessary. “We needed to preserve what made the Dyson School unique while still evolving. That meant pushing back when needed, but also finding common ground.” The final result is the broadest business program in the country, from agriculture to hotels, which no other business program in the nation can offer, Dyson added.

Principles that carry across sectors

As the conversation wound down, Dyson offered a few reflections about what had carried him through such a wide-ranging career.

In business, he said, fairness isn’t just ethical; it’s strategic. It builds trust, especially in industries where relationships matter more than spreadsheets. In public service, success comes from being able to define impact clearly and defend it with data. And in all fields, preparation is key.

“You have to know your brief,” he said. “If you’ve done the work, and if you really understand the material, you’ll be able to adapt and make decisions that hold up.”

The event concluded with questions from an eager audience. Dyson’s remarks, both practical and personal, offered a rare look into how leadership plays out across sectors—and how long-term thinking, integrity, and clarity can drive meaningful, lasting change.