Personality+: David Jones Throwing Punches

By Cara Sievers

Above the door at the legendary Gleason’s Gym in Brooklyn is this quote by Virgil: “Now whoever has courage, and a strong and collected spirit in his breast, let him come forward, lace on the gloves and put up his hands.”

Twelve years ago, David Jones, a partner with technology general contractor and consultant Saxon Technologies LLC, heeded this challenge and stepped into the ring. This was a counter-intuitive move for David, who turned down his Penn State roommate’s entreaties to join the college boxing club. “I thought he was crazy,” said David. “Ten years later, I found myself fat and stressed out about starting my first company.”

David started taking non-contact boxing classes at his health club as a way to get in shape. Within six months, he had lost 25 pounds and found himself in the best condition of his life. After a year, he began training in full-contact boxing. “It is the best stress relief on the planet,” David said. “You can get all your day’s frustrations out in under an hour. Much better than a martini!”

David has worked with several personal trainers, including Dan Connelly at Gleason’s Gym, but this pugilist currently is working out solo. “I get up at 5 a.m. for a run and to hit the heavy bag – like Rocky, only without the bad acting,” he said. He’s cut a five-day-a- week boxing schedule to a few times a week to make time for his family and work. Surprisingly, his work and boxing lives have crossed.

Until amateur boxing competition was outlawed in New York, David often competed in “white collar” boxing events; and for one of the fights, he sent invitations to some key clients. To his amazement, his business associates attended. “I’m not sure if they were there to cheer me on … or see me get hit,” he said, jokingly. Another memorable spar was with Zab Judah, a Gleason’s legend.

When David entered the ring, he thought he was fighting another amateur, and it wasn’t until it was over that he realized he had been sparring with the undisputed Welterweight Champion of the World at that time. “He was throwing combinations at lightning speed without really hitting me … that was a great experience,” said David. And, of course, like a lot of kids growing up in the ’70s, David idolized Muhammad Ali. “His blend of size, speed and power had never been seen before (or since). The truly amazing thing about Ali as a boxer was his adaptability,” explained David. “In his early years, he beat people with his pure athleticism. In his later years (Foreman fight, the three Frazier fights), when his skills had eroded somewhat, he outsmarted and outboxed his opponents. That philosophy of adapting is something I try to emulate in my business and personal life.”

David’s day job: When David isn’t looking to deliver his next TKO, he works as a partner at Saxon Technologies, an agency he owns with his wife, Rebecca. In this position, he performs sales, marketing, project management and channel management for the company, which designs and installs phone systems, both traditional and VoIP, and other IT systems, including audio/video conferencing, electronic security systems and voice/data cabling.

Family business: David has sister Sue, a lifelong AT&T employee, to credit for his career in telecommunications; she set up his first interview in the industry.

David’s first job: At age 14, David was a golf caddy in Huntington, N.Y., where he said he learned his first life lesson: “Women with heavy makeup are bad tippers.”

David’s movie obsession: David admits to being a superfan of the movie, “Midnight Run,” with Robert De Niro and Charles Grodin – a film he’s watched at least 150 times. “I think it is De Niro’s best role and Charles Grodin matches him – it’s funny, sweet and genuinely uplifting.”

Thoughts on telecom: “The industry has seen great leaps in technology in just the last five years, but the carriers still seem to lack focus on service, which has been a consistent problem since I entered the industry in 1993. It’s a well-worn subject, I know, but it still astonishes me to see how some carriers treat their clients. Of course, that’s why agents are needed!”

Do you know someone who has Personality+? We’re looking for interesting characters in telecom to take the spotlight! Please send nominations to Cara Sievers at [email protected].