Well, I’ll divide that question into pieces so that we don’t spend the entire time just talking about that. That’s a mouthful. But you know, the NHL and the sports and entertainment industry are my third and, I often say, final career pivot. I’ve been in the industry for over 40 years. I started my career in financial services. I spent time in both the insurance industry and the investment banking industry and then pivoted into consulting, and then ultimately as a consultant, the NHL was a client of mine in 2017 and I had an opportunity to meet the commissioner.
The league had just gone through its 100th anniversary, and as many I know about the commissioner, Gary Bettman, who is the longest-standing commissioner in major sports, he wasn’t resting on the laurels of 100 years. He was thinking about what the next 100 years were going to look like, and what do I need to do to prepare, you know, for it and look around the corner. And ultimately, he hired me to help the league think about the future, particularly through the lens of what we now refer to, as our fans in waiting, those that sort of young, multicultural, female, tech-savvy, purpose-driven clientele that we want to attract and deepen our relationships with.
I’ve always been a lover of sports. Althea Gibson was my shero. I played tennis in Chicago growing up and had the opportunity to work with Billie Jean King on the creation of the first-ever initiative that she founded in her name. And so it’s not surprising that I ended up in sports and entertainment, not because I played hockey, but because I believe that sports is a platform that brings people together. So it’s exciting. It’s exciting to be here.
