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When you ask people about MIKE POLITO, they will tell you he is hard-working, aggressive, determined and capable all the sorts of things you'd expect colleagues to say about a business leader and successful construction company owner. Then, they will pause and mention Polito has lost weight recently. A lot of weight.

It's the sort of gossipy tidbit you might expect to hear from folks in a growing city that still behaves like a small town. But then, you realize it's really a relevant detail.

Because losing upwards of 50 pounds was no small feat for this strapping Italian-American, who enjoys rich dinners and the kind of tailgating parties where the beer never stops flowing. It required a whole lot of discipline and determination. He went on a liquid diet and stuck to it religiously. He started working out and now subsists on Diet Coke to maintain his trimmed-down physique.

But the thing about Mike Polito is when he makes up his mind to do something, it happens. So his weight-loss success is something of a metaphor for the story of a guy who has used his drive and determination to remake himself.

'You talk about resolve and self discipline, look at that as an example,' says Lane Grigsby, Polito's former business partner and the owner of Cajun Constructors.

It's not just the physical Mike Polito that has undergone a transformation of late. In the past few years, the 45-year-old Baton Rouge native has evolved personally and professionally. He has gone from being 'just a regular guy,' as childhood friend Kevin Talbot describes him, to becoming a successful business owner, civic leader and, now, a power broker--quite an achievement in a close-knit community with an even closer-knit circle of power brokers.

'In the last two or three years, he's been like a rocket,' says Baton Rouge Area Chamber's executive director Stephen Moret. 'Today, he's one of the most significant business leaders in Baton Rouge.'

Indeed, since around 2003, Polito has emerged as the man of the hour, the guy at the center of every relevant discussion. He chairs the Chamber of Commerce and runs the nearly $110 million MAPP Construction, Inc., he co-founded from scratch just 15 years ago. He heads the United Way's Capital Campaign and maintains his involvement with A6, the high-profile group of young civic activists pushing for change.

'He is becoming ever more influential,' says local businessman Bill Slaughter, who could also count himself in the power broker set. 'I was in a discussion with some key players in the city recently, and the discussion of leadership came up. When people mentioned names, his name came to mind. That's indicative of the influence he has.'

Now that he has that influence, Polito is using it to try to transform Baton Rouge, much as he has transformed himself. He is working from inside the establishment to shake things up and remake Baton Rouge---to which he is fiercely committed---in the image of more progressive Southern cities such as Austin and Atlanta. It means changing conservative, WASP-y attitudes and forcing closed circles to open, at least a little. So far, it hasn't been easy. But Polito is determined to make it happen, which means it just might.

'He's a combination of passion and initiative,' Moret says. 'Mike Polito is a guy where there's a very little distance between a good idea and getting it done.'

Polito might have possessed that doggedness as a child, but it wasn't readily apparent. He wasn't born into money or power either. He grew up in Sherwood Forest in a solidly middle class family. His mother, Merle, worked as a bookkeeper at the same chemical plant where his dad, Joseph, was a transportation supervisor. He went to St. Thomas More, the neighborhood Catholic elementary school then attended public Broadmoor High School.

'He was never the type who was going to set out to rule the world,' Talbot recalls.

But he was popular and athletic, a team player who did well on the softball field and even better on the gridiron. He excelled as a defensive end and could've gone on to play at a small college somewhere. But Polito's roots are firmly planted in Baton Rouge, and he aspired only to go to LSU and, perhaps, even work there one day in the athletics department.

'That was the ultimate for him growing up,' says Talbot.

By his own account, Polito didn't set out to climb the social ladder or become a construction magnate. His only real desire as a young adult was to stay in Baton Rouge. He did outgrow his athletic ambitions fairly quickly, however, and after a couple of semesters in college settled on a career in construction, as had many of his relatives before him.

'There are more Politos in construction than not,' he says.

Problem was, when he finished LSU in 1985, oil was bottoming out at record lows of $15 a barrel, and Louisiana's economy was in the tailspin from which it would never fully recover. Construction jobs were evaporating seemingly overnight, and ambitious 20somethings like Polito were leaving the state.

'You had to go to Dallas or Houston or Atlanta to get a job,' he recalls.

So Polito went to Atlanta. He worked for Beers Construction and, like many Louisianans who move away for the first time, saw other places move faster, think more aggressively and value the change that so many in this state fight constantly to prevent. The experience opened his eyes and made him realize why south Louisiana so often lags behind the rest of the country. It also sparked in him a desire to bring southeast Louisiana up to speed with the rest of the country--to make it better.

That's when he decided to come home, though New Orleans was as close as he could get at first. He took a job with T.L. James Construction and commuted everyday, a sacrifice by some standards but a worthwhile trade in his opinion. He hoped to eventually become successful enough to manage a large construction company in the area. Owning his own firm seemed so far outside the realm of financial possibility, he never gave it much thought.

Then in 1991, he met Grigsby, whose Cajun Constructors was one of the largest industrial contractors around. The two were attending a luncheon and awards ceremony at the Baton Rouge Country Club and hit it off immediately.

'I asked him why he didn't work for a contractor in Baton Rouge,' Grigsby says. 'He said, at the time, he didn't think there were any up here that would appreciate his abilities.'

Grigsby, however, appreciated what he saw right away. He was impressed by Polito's ambition, determination and commitment to Baton Rouge.

'I was taken by his willingness to make personal sacrifice in order to develop a career,' Grigsby says. 'Within two hours' time, I could tell I wanted to be in business with him.'

When the awards ceremony was over, they continued their discussion down the street at the Patio Bar and Grill on Jefferson Highway. By mid-afternoon, they'd agreed to form their own commercial construction company. Grigsby offered to put up the money for the venture if Polito would do the work. The opportunity seemed too good to pass up. That day, MAPP Construction was born, named for the acronym created by the initials of Polito's long Italian name: Michael Anthony Paul Polito.

The company grew steadily, though slowly, at first. Despite Grigsby's name and connections, MAPP had difficulty competing against the old-line commercial contractors in Baton Rouge, or what Polito still refers to as the 'establishment' companies.

'We were beating our head up against a wall,' he says. 'There are certain segments of the industry you just can't break into. This was obviously a closed establishment.'

It's curious to hear Polito talk about the establishment as such, especially since he is chairing one of the more conservative, establishment-oriented organizations in town. But he sees a distinction, as no doubt exists, between the larger business community and the smaller circle of old Baton Rouge money. It is the latter group that comprises the establishment as he defines it, and of that he wants no part.

'I would hope nobody would ever perceive that I was part of the establishment,' he says. 'I think the establishment has the connotation that it's silver spoon and supports the status quo.'

Just what is the status quo? Polito refers to it as a mentality that strives to keep newcomers and innovation at arm's length, a feudal system of sorts that protects the affluent and their fiefdoms. He puts it like this:

'I've got mine, and it's better if things don't ever change, so I can keep mine.'

It's a mentality Polito believes has held Baton Rouge back and prevented it from competing effectively with other cities, just as it kept him out the big-time projects during MAPP's early years. It made a deep impression and, characteristically, made him all the more determined to break through.

In 1995, his tenacity paid off, when MAPP won the contract to build Argosy Casino's Catfish Town Atrium. The $40 million project was far larger than anything the then-$15 million company had ever done before. It made others sit up and take notice.

'The Atrium is what really put MAPP in the minds of people,' says Polito, who believes he never would've won the bid had the client been local.

'The owner was from out of state, so he came in and didn't have any preconceived notions about who the 'establishment companies' were,' he says. 'When you put our resumes on the table and our approach--we're just more aggressive when it comes to how we manage projects.'

MAPP's approach is one that focuses heavily on efficiency and meeting deadlines. That may sound like a no-brainer in most industries, but construction projects run notoriously behind schedule, and cost overruns are less the exception than the norm. MAPP has tried to eliminate delays and overruns by utilizing a team-approach method of procurement and project management that starts at the design phase and continues through completion.

'Quality has to be a given,' Polito says. 'But it's the folks that put in the proactive management and the efficiencies that can build projects faster, and that's what separates us.'

If growth is any indication, the approach is working. In its first 10 years, MAPP grew revenues to $88 million. Last year, they topped $107 million. Notable local projects include the Shaw Group's corporate headquarters and the east wing expansion of Tiger Stadium. MAPP now has a significant regional presence as well, doing nearly 50% of its business out of state, a trend Polito would like to see increase.

'We would like to become a major, regional construction company,' he says.

With MAPP's rapid growth, came inevitable change. Four years ago, Polito bought out Grigsby in a separation both describe as amicable. Grigsby says it was time for him to go; the company no longer needed Cajun's resources.

'It's like giving birth to a kid,' says Grigsby. 'One day, you turn around and say, 'Ride your own bike, now.''

For his part, Polito credits Grigsby with launching his career.

'There wouldn't be a MAPP Construction without Lane Grigsby,' he says.

As MAPP became more successful, Polito became more active in the business community, particularly the Chamber. Those who know him well say the methodical way he moved from building his company to tackling larger civic issues is typical of his personality; or, as Grigsby puts it: 'rock solid Mike Polito.

'First, you kill the alligator, then you drain the swamp,' he says. 'At first, his business took 24