United Way head has a passion for public service

Scott Emerson is no stranger to chaos. He’s spent his entire career making order out of it, first as a deputy sheriff, then in disaster relief with the American Red Cross, and, now, in helping nonprofits navigate uncertain economic times as president and CEO of United Way of Southern Nevada.

Public service has been a passion for Emerson, 47, since he was a kid growing up in Clinton, Missouri, a town of about 8,000 south of Kansas City. In fact, Emerson’s public service career can be traced back to his days as a Boy Scout.

“I wasn’t active in sports in school, but Boy Scouts, that was that outlet for me,” Emerson says. “I went to 4-H for two years, but got tired of county fairs and pigs. So I did the whole Boy Scout thing, and one of their mantras was service in the community.”

Emerson gave serious thought to pursuing a career in nursing, and even worked for a time as a nurse, but took a turn after college to law enforcement and criminal justice. After college, he was a sheriff’s deputy for seven years, eventually leaving the department as a sergeant.

“During that time, I was also a Red Cross volunteer,” Emerson says. “That’s what helped to keep me in balance. You deal with one set of the population, then you deal with another, good-feeling part of the population. It balances your perspective a little.”

Emerson spent 12 years as a Red Cross volunteer before becoming a Red Cross paid staffer. His positions included director of emergency service in Springfield, Missouri, before moving to Las Vegas 13 years ago to work in the Red Cross’ national headquarters branch office here. He spent a total of 31 years with the Red Cross as staff member and volunteer before officially becoming United Way of Southern Nevada’s president and CEO in February.

Review-Journal: Did your law enforcement skills translate to working with the Red Cross?

Emerson: The skills I learned in law enforcement served me incredibly well in disaster response, because it’s all (about) making order out of chaos. Then, when I became an executive director of the organization, detective and investigating skills I used every day because, by the time something got to my desk, it’s really good and screwed up and somebody was trying to fix it and it hasn’t worked.

Being able to juggle lots of things at once probably came in handy, too.

Handling multiple priorities. We’d get multiple calls, real rapid-fire sometimes. (Laughs) Also, part of my job is to be a referee between staff, and sometimes that equates, kind of, to breaking up a bar fight.

Did disaster relief work ever become emotionally exhausting? You’re probably always dealing with people in dire straits.

You are, but it’s much easier than law enforcement, to be honest. You do have some folks who kind of retreat, understandably. But then you have another group of folks who are in the same situation and who have tremendous resolve that reaches almost heroic standards.

What prompted your move from the Red Cross to United Way?

I got a call from somebody saying, “We’re doing a CEO search and your name came up.” … They reached out to me and said, ‘Will you consider applying for the position?” I thought about it and, said (yes) because I love community activism, I love problem-solving, and this way I get into different arenas of problem-solving than I had been in.

What are your goals with the United Way?

We’ve got a rich legacy — more than 60 years being here in Las Vegas — and we’ve gone through several (business) models where the community has changed, and we need to evolve again. … I don’t know if it’s re-branding, but re-positioning. At its fundamental core, United Way convenes donors and partners to solve community problems.

Most of us probably know United Way only as a place where 10 bucks out of every paycheck goes. In a dozen words, what should we know about United Way that we probably don’t know?

That we are your trusted advocate to maximize your investment in our community’s social future. (Laughs) Don’t ask me to repeat that. We vet our partners pretty extensively to make sure they’re doing what they say they’re going to do … That $10 investment is (getting) much more traction because we work with them to make sure their strategy is sound and efficient, versus 10 bucks going to an organization that’s not as efficient and you’re getting six bucks of value.

What do you do to decompress?

When people need decompression, oftentimes it’s because they’re in a job, not in a career that they’d do voluntarily for free. So I never see myself as being in a paid job. I see myself as getting a stipend so I can do my volunteer work full time.

Favorite Pet

An Australian cattle dog, Playa. She’s a mutt, but mostly a cattle dog.

Favorite music genre

Honestly, house music. I’ve been to EDC twice. I love people watching. That’s one of my hobbies, and that’s a fascinating place to watch people. And I surprised myself, but I was not the oldest one there by any means.

Favorite work of art

I have to say, John (Williams), my partner, had done a big piece and it’s hanging in our living room.

Best movie you’ve seen lately

“The Greatest Showman.” I didn’t realize it was a musical, but it’s one I could probably go back and see 10 times, I think, because many story lines speak to everybody at some point in time.

Ring tone

“Phantom of the Opera.” The main theme.

Personal motto

Integrity in everything.

Best book you’ve read lately

“The Tipping Point: How Little Things Can Make a Big Difference” by Malcolm Gladwell. I gave it to my staff as well. It was recommended to me by a mentor of mine. It reminds us that we don’t have to solve the whole problem, we just have to get it to a certain tipping point, so that makes our work a little more attainable.

Favorite food

My favorite food is a big steak. My partner’s vegetarian, so this gets interesting.

Contact John Przybys at jprzybys@reviewjournal.com or 702-383-0280. Follow @JJPrzybys on Twitter.