Jarvis Sam is the Director, Diversity Sourcing & Programs COE at Nike Inc. In that role, he oversees the recruiting, partnerships, and programmatic infrastructure for the companies various D&I initiatives for both business and technical capacities related to Talent Acquisition.

He collaborates closely with groups like Women Who Code, Girls in Tech, the Society of Black Engineers an MLT to build programs internally and externally to facilitate strong workplace diversity and inclusive hiring at Nike, Inc.

Prior to Nike, Jarvis worked as the Head of Diversity & Inclusion at Snap, Inc., and as a Diversity recruiter and Program Manager at Google primarily focused on hiring military veterans and strong female talent to the company. Before that, he spent a tenure as an oil & gas consultant with Deloitte Consulting in Houston.

Jarvis is a graduate of Rice University where he studied History, Public Policy, and Sport Management with emphasis in race and gender rhetoric. In his spare time, Jarvis plays volleyball and dances competitively. He resides in Portland, OR.

Shiz is known as a tenacious, results driven leader who has a consistent track record of leading teams and building the AT&T brand while pushing the envelope of innovation.

She currently leads the Sponsorship team at AT&T, which includes industry-leading partnerships across numerous sports and entertainment verticals. These include AT&T Stadium and the Dallas Cowboys, Jordan Spieth, the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am, the AT&T Byron Nelson, NCAA, College Football Playoffs, Major League Soccer, Red Bull Racing and Tribeca Film Festival to name a few.

Prior to her current role in Sponsorships, Shiz held a wide range of roles across the corporation—a true testament to her business acumen, adaptability and leadership skills. She’s been on the front lines managing call centers and out in the field leading construction crews—consistently outperforming peer groups in productivity and accuracy. She was instrumental on the delivery of the company’s first web-based cloud product as well as designing industry leading offers in the pricing and analytics organization for the largest corporate clients.

More recently, Shiz was the chief of staff to the SVP of Brand, Advertising, Media and Sponsorships which included executive support, overseeing overall operations and organizational budgets. Shiz also led large scale corporate workforce and workplace transformation efforts.

In a previous role, Shiz has also supported the Chairman and CEO of AT&T, which included production of multi-location and live broadcast of major events ranging from leadership conferences, all-employee town halls to merger announcements, press tours and the Annual AT&T Shareholders’ Meeting.

She has received numerous accolades including the Asian MBA Global Emerging Leaders Award, the Women of Color STEM Magazine’s Technology Rising Stars award, AT&T Best of the Best Awards, and the President’s Volunteer Service Award.

Shiz holds a bachelor’s degree in Cognitive Science from UCLA and an MBA from Pepperdine University. She currently lives in Los Angeles with her husband Peter, and rescue dog, Bella. She enjoys wine tasting, international cuisines and traveling.

Nick Kelly is the Head of US Marketing for Anheuser-Busch InBev. He oversees the continued evolution of AB's sports marketing strategy.

In his previous role of Director of Experiential Marketing - Sports, Nick was responsible for every sports property at Anheuser-Busch, equating to more than a-quarter billion dollars in sponsorships -inclusive of league, team and venue deals within the NFL, MLB, NHL, NBA, NASCAR, PGA, UFC, soccer and college sports. Nick continues to lead a refreshing perspective to A-B’s sports entities to rework, revitalize and position the brewer’s brand sports properties for growth.

Nick was the lead communications strategist and spokesperson for the world’s most popular beer, Bud Light, including its Bud Light Lime, Bud Light Lime Ritas, and Bud Light MixxTails beverage line; Mexican liquid innovation Montejo and the entire A-B Value Brand segment inclusive of Busch, Natural Light and Rolling Rock families of products. Nick was responsible for developing, launching and sustaining a positive narrative around national Bud Light programs including its NFL relationship as the official beer of the league, Super Bowl activations and the acclaimed Whatever USA campaign.

Nick is a graduate of Marshall University.

Sandra is VP and oversees strategic relationships and business development within Intel. She is responsible for establishing industry alliances and generating business for Intel in key strategic market segments, including fashion, sports and fitness.

Earlier in her Intel career, Sandra held various roles within corporate marketing, including director of new business marketing and director of consumer marketing. In the latter role, she led Intel’s brand repositioning work to earn an Intel Achievement Award in 2010. She has also earned industry honors. In 2013, she won a Marketers That Matter award, a program that recognizes top marketing executives in the San Francisco Bay Area. In 2015, she was named among the Top 10 Latina Executives by LATINA Style Inc.

Sandra holds a bachelor’s degree in textiles and clothing marketing and agricultural economics from the University of California at Davis.

As Executive Vice President, Digital Media for the National Basketball Association, Melissa Rosenthal Brenner leads the development, oversight and implementation of the NBA’s global digital strategy and social media portfolio across multiple media platforms. In that role, she has forged groundbreaking deals with leading social media companies such as Facebook, Twitter and Snapchat, found innovative ways to incorporate social media throughout the league’s wide array of assets, and helped NBA partners maximize social media opportunities with the league.

Additionally, Brenner manages the league’s relationship with Turner Sports relating to NBA Digital, where she is responsible for the development and oversight of NBA TV, NBA League Pass, NBA.com and various NBA mobile content offerings. In recent years, Brenner oversaw the rollout of a variety of new digital offerings including single game availability of NBA League Pass, phone- and tablet-optimized streams through NBA Mobile View, fully produced weekly games in virtual reality, and the league’s first real-time fantasy game, NBA InPlay.

Under her leadership, the NBA has built one of the largest social media communities in the world, with 1.4 billion likes and followers combined across all league, team and player pages on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Snapchat, YouTube, Sina and Tencent. Brenner has been instrumental in the NBA’s achievement of many milestones in the social media space, including the first professional sports league to partner with YouTube (2005) and Facebook (2007).

A member of the NBA family since 1997, Brenner has worked in the Consumer Products Marketing, Advertising and Marketing departments. She holds a bachelor’s degree from the University of Pennsylvania.

Dev Sethi is the global Head of Sports at Instagram. He oversees strategic partnerships across the sports ecosystem, which includes athletes, leagues, teams, and media. In this role, he is responsible for advocating on behalf of the sports vertical inside and outside his organization, working closely with product, engineering, communications, and marketing to continue building Instagram as a great home for sports and the 320 million sports fans who consume sports partner content regularly. In recent months, Instagram Sports supports its partners and their business objectives through a variety of initiatives, examples including Student Section in partnership with Turner and March Madness, activating shopping on Instagram at the NFL Draft, and a deep app integration with Bleacher Report and Instagram Stories.

Before joining Instagram in fall 2018, Dev was Complex Networks' first Chief of Staff reporting to CEO Rich Antoniello. Hired after Complex was acquired by Verizon and Hearst in a joint venture, he was responsible for developing strategic external partnerships as well as aligning internal operations across content, business development, finance and production with the goal of maximizing output and efficiencies across Complex's portfolio of millennial-focused brands.

Prior to Complex, Dev led the Partnerships & Operations department at NYC-based startup Whistle Sports, an emerging sports media brand, data/analytics consultancy, and network of 300+ sports partners. Initially brought in during fall 2013, Dev co-launched the first sports-only multi-channel network and oversaw platform, partner, and product partnerships.

Dev spent the first 6 years of his career at Google, the first 4 working in its sales practice before transitioning to YouTube to manage new partnerships focused on the sports vertical.

A graduate from the University of Notre Dame and native of the D.C. Metro Area, Dev maintains a healthy fandom outside of his work interests in sports, while also enjoying mentorship opportunities in the local sports media community as well as volunteering with Big Brothers Big Sisters of America. He also has the pleasure of serving as a member judge for the IADAS Webby Awards and is an inaugural member of the Engagement Academy of Sports & Entertainment.

Producer, writer and director Michael D. Ratner founded OBB Pictures in 2015 and under his leadership the company has grown into OBB Media, a leading media company with divisions in film, TV, digital, podcasts and branded content. Since its inception, OBB has carved out a stronghold in the new media space creating award winning content.

In addition to running OBB and expanding the business, Ratner continues to act as a multi-hyphenate leading creative on OBB’s marquee projects. Ratner is currently directing on and executive producing &Music for Quibi alongside Scooter Braun and Goodstory. Prior to that, Ratner served as executive producer and director on OBB’s Historical Roasts for Netflix. He is the creator, showrunner, director and executive producer of Cold as Balls, starring Kevin Hart, which has garnered over 200 million viewers to date and is currently in its third season. Ratner has also produced and directed a number of films that have premiered at Sundance, Tribeca, and SXSW, including Gonzo @ the Derby for ESPN’s acclaimed 30 for 30 series, which followed Hunter S. Thompson’s trip to the Kentucky Derby and is narrated by Sean Penn.

Ratner graduated summa cum laude from the University of Pennsylvania where he received a BA in Film & minor in English. He went on to receive a Master of Fine Arts in film directing, writing, and producing from New York University’s Tisch School of the Arts. He is a member of the Producers Guild of America and was honored on Variety Hollywood’s Creative New Leaders 2018 as well as Forbes 30 Under 30 Hollywood & Entertainment class of 2019. Ratner is represented by the United Talent Agency, 3 Arts Entertainment, and Hansen Jacobson & Teller.

Taylor Rooks recently joined Bleacher Report & Turner Sports, where she will soon host her own weekly, interview driven show on B/R, capturing the news and conversations from the world of sports culture. The new program, which is Bleacher Report’s first ever show built around an individual talent, will harness Taylor’s ability to connect with athletes, musicians, and other celebrity influencers. Taylor will also appear regularly on other Turner Sports properties, including TNT and NBA TV.

Taylor also hosts her own podcast, TimeOut with Taylor Rooks, where she has interviewed guests like Kevin Durant, Meek Mill, and Snoop Dogg. Prior to Bleacher Report, Taylor Rooks served as the reporter and anchor for SportsNet New York (SNY).

Before that, she worked as a host, reporter, and correspondent for the Big Ten Network and has previously worked as a sideline reporter for CBS Sports Network. A native of Georgia, Taylor attended the University of Illinois at Urbana Champaign, where she majored in broadcast journalism and reported on football and basketball recruiting for scout.com. She made national news with her stories and knowledge of basketball—specifically in recruiting. Rooks broke multiple stories regarding Cliff Alexander, Jalen Brunson, Quentin Snider, Aaron Jordan, Charles Matthews, and Jayson Tatum.

In a recent article from the New York Post , Taylor speaks about her drive to differentiate herself from her peers in college, often skipping class to report on basketball games. Throughout school, she interned with the PGA Tour, Comcast SportsNet Chicago, and Fox Sports, and at just 19 years old, Taylor appeared on CBS Sports Network, reporting on the WBB Pre-NIT Championship.

Taylor comes from a family of athletes. Her father is former football player Thomas Rooks, while her uncle is legendary MLB Hall of Famer, Lou Brock. Taylor is also the niece of former Pittsburgh Steelers and New Orleans Saints NFL player, Marv Woodson.

In her role as one of the Philadelphia 76ers most senior leaders, Katie O’Reilly is responsible for the branding and business development for one of the sports industries most iconic properties. As Chief Marketing Officer, O’Reilly oversees the direction of the team’s brand, creative and marketing solutions, game presentation, social media, digital and video content, VIP events and hospitality, customer relationship management, business development and merchandise departments. Now entering her fifth season with the 76ers, O’Reilly and her team are the brains behind the widely acclaimed “Welcome to the Moment” advertising and “Spirit of the Champion” tribute campaigns as well as new branding initiatives including the recently unveiled 2017-18 season Nike uniforms.

During this tenure with the Philadelphia 76ers, O’Reilly oversaw corporate business development for the team’s new 150,000-square-foot Training Complex; including the creation, development and launch of the Sixers Innovation Lab Crafted by Kimball, on which she currently holds a position on the Board of Governors. Additionally, O’Reilly spearheaded the creation of the 76ers Legends Walk – commissioned sculptures of past 76ers greats that lives permanently at the 76ers Training Complex.

A 2016 Philadelphia Business Journal “40 Under 40” honoree, O’Reilly joined the 76ers in 2013 to lead the new Business Development department where she played a crucial role in securing some of the largest partnerships in franchise history.

Prior to the Philadelphia 76ers, O’Reilly served as the Director of Partnership Marketing for Insignia Sports & Entertainment. She served as National Program Director for IMG College in New York City, where she oversaw the sales development team responsible for creating national programs and media plans for corporate partnerships across 70 plus Division I University Athletic Departments, Conferences and related properties. She previously held positions with the NBA’s renowned Team Marketing & Business Operations group and at Madison Square Garden.

O’Reilly, a Lower Merion native and Shipley School alumni, received a B.A. in History from the University of Michigan and currently resides in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, with her husband, Edward.

Max is a Creative Director who's been at Wieden+Kennedy Portland for over 9 years. He's currently CD on Powerade and Converse. Over the years, his creative influence has touched some of advertising’s most iconic brands, including Nike, Doge Chrysler, Old Space, Gatorade, Tostitos and more.

Melissa McGhie Proctor joined the Atlanta Hawks in June of 2014 and is the Chief Marketing Officer for the Atlanta Hawks Basketball Club and State Farm Arena. In this role, she oversees the day-to-day operations of marketing teams, including marketing integration and direct response, digital content and advertising and promotions. Additionally, Proctor plays an instrumental role within the organization spearheading internal corporate employee initiatives and executive communication.

Proctor began her career with the Turner Broadcasting System, Inc., serving in senior brand development and strategy leadership positions for Turner Entertainment Networks (including TNT, TBS, Turner Classic Movies (TCM), truTV and Peachtree TV), Cartoon Network and Turner Media Group. Additionally, Proctor helped to create the first Corporate Social Responsibility Division in Turner’s UK office. Among her accomplishments, Proctor was responsible for managing the naming and identity for the rebranding of Court TV as truTV, and leading corporate culture initiatives to foster employee engagement, collaboration and innovation.

Proctor has also been a part of the NBA since high school, being the first ball girl (team attendant) for the Miami Heat organization and in later years returning to work for the Heat in basketball operations and the Atlanta Hawks as a ball girl.

Proctor holds a bachelor’s degree in communication from Wake Forest University and a master’s degree in design studies/branding from Central Saint Martins College of Art and Design at The London Institute.

Regarded as the world’s premier point guard, Sue Bird is the WNBA’s All-Time Leader in Assists and known for being selfless, driven, encouraging and smart. Bird is a seasoned veteran and a born leader who has dominated at every level.

She is one of only seven women to win an Olympic Gold Medal (she’s won four), a World Championship Gold Medal (she’s won four) an NCAA Championship (she’s won two), and a WNBA Championship (she’s won three). Sue is also a five-time Euroleague Champion, an eleven-time WNBA All-Star, was voted by the fans as one of the WNBA’s Top 15 Players of All Time and chosen by the league as a member of the WNBA's Top 20 players.

Off the court, you can currently find Sue behind the microphone as a basketball analyst for ESPN or advocating for equality, health and wellness and expanding opportunities for girls.

Carola Jain is the Chief Marketing Officer at Spartan, the global sporting events company that challenges over a million people annually to push their mental and physical limits by joining the Spartan Lifestyle (training, nutrition, mind, merchandise and 250 events across 40 countries annually). Carola is also leading the global launch of Spartan Women, a female focused platform connecting women all over the world by promoting camaraderie and empowerment through the community's shared inspirations and experiences of overcoming the challenges of everyday life.

Don Lane is Chief Marketing Officer for Saucony. In this role, he is responsible for providing strategic development and execution of Saucony’s global marketing initiatives, including brand positioning, direct-to-consumer, advertising and digital strategies.

Previously, Don was DraftKings’ Senior Vice President of Brand & Creative. He created DraftKings’ brand platform, “The Game Inside The Game,” installed several new capabilities (brand strategy, consumer insights, integrated marketing, creative operations) and also led the social and creative teams.

Prior to DraftKings, Don spent 21 years at Arnold Worldwide, most recently as Managing Partner, Executive Director, where he helped build some of the world's most iconic brands, including Volkswagen, ESPN, Volvo, Carnival & Titleist. He was the global director for Volvo, leading teams in North America, Europe and Asia. And he was a leader on the team behind Volkswagen’s iconic “Drivers wanted®” campaign, winning 13 EFFIEs in 10 years.

Don’s leadership style was profiled in Adam Grant’s New York Times’ best-seller, “Give and Take.”

Don graduated from the University of Richmond with a degree in journalism and concentration in sports marketing. He resides in Boston with his wife, Karen, and three children.

Bonnie Bernstein is recognized by the American Sportscasters Association as one of the most accomplished female journalists in her field. Bernstein is the founder of Walk Swiftly Productions, her latest endeavor in a career that has spanned 17 years on-air with ESPN and CBS covering the NFL, NBA, MLB and college football and basketball. Country on Campus, a series Bernstein hosts and executive produces for CMT, is a finalist in three categories for the 2018 Cynopsis Short Form Video Awards. Bernstein is a seasoned corporate speaker, a coveted panel moderator at industry events, and has served as a guest commentator for several news networks, including NBC, MSNBC and Fox News Channel. Additionally, she is the only female to solo-host the award-winning radio program, The Dan Patrick Show.

MICK is a Brooklyn-based multi-talented creative with influential footprints internationally – from New York to LA, Davos to Cannes, and London to Tokyo. He is a DJ, style influencer, tech investor, inspirational speaker, music curator and brand consultant.

MICK has spun private events for some of the world’s most prominent celebrities, brands, tech companies and philanthropic organizations including Bravo, Entertainment Weekly, Fast Company, Hillary Clinton, HBO, Instagram, Jay Z, Jimmy Kimmel, LeBron James, Michelle Obama, Miguel, Misty Copeland, NBC, Pencils Of Promise, Prince, Rihanna, Samsung, Sotheby’s, Spike Lee, Spotify, Steph Curry, Twitter, and Vanity Fair.

Known for his social media influence, MICK has collaborated with brands such as Airbnb, Beats By Dre, Cadillac, Coveteur, Diesel, GQ, Omega, and Volvo.

His fashion clients include: Adidas, Audemars Piguet, Bally, Bergdorf Goodman, Coach, Dyne, Esquire Magazine, IWC, Kanye West, Nike, Public School, Ralph Lauren and W Magazine.

As a digital and social entrepreneur, MICK invests and consults with a wide array of start ups and early stage companies. Investments include Anchor (recently acquired by Spotify), Backdrop, Barber Surgeon’s Guild, Dot Dot Dash, Localeur, and Winc.

Ann Wool is the President of Translation, an independent agency built to help ambitious brands harness the power of culture to solve their biggest challenges.

Prior to joining Translation in March 2020, Wool spent 19 years at Ketchum building the agency's world-class expertise in sports, entertainment and influencer. While at Ketchum, she was named Partner in 2009 and President of Ketchum Sports & Entertainment in 2014. She also helped to launch Ketchum’s influencer offering.

Before joining Ketchum, Wool was a 10-year veteran of Edelman, where she focused on sports and sponsorship marketing.

Ryan Spoon is Senior Vice President, Social & Digital Content. He sets ESPN’s extensive digital content strategy, overseeing the creation of original content for ESPN’s digital and social channels and the execution of ESPN’s social accounts, all of which are key drivers of the division’s performance both on- and off-platform.

Most recently Spoon served as Senior Vice President, Digital Product, Design & Audience Development, responsible for ESPN’s digital products across all screens, including the ESPN App, ESPN.com, ESPN Mobile, WatchESPN, ESPN3, Fantasy, and Social Media. He also lead the Audience Development unit, charged with creating new and enhanced ways to curate and present content across ESPN.com, the ESPN App, and third-party platforms.

Prior to ESPN, Spoon was a venture capitalist at Polaris Venture Partners and specialized in early-stage consumer internet, social media and e-commerce investments. At Polaris, Spoon was a director or observer at companies including WordPress, ShoeDazzle, LOLapps, ReadyForZero, Wantful, Formspring, Offline Labs, and Movity (acquired by Trulia). Additionally, Spoon was responsible for leading Dogpatch Labs, an early-stage incubator that was home to Instagram, TaskRabbit, TurnTable.fm, LOLapps, Recurly, Shareaholic and others.

Previously, Spoon served as Vice President, Marketing and Business Development for Widgetbox (now Flite) — a platform for brands and publishers to create dynamic, shareable ad units. Prior to that, Spoon spent 2003 to 2007 at eBay, focusing on internet marketing, user acquisition and social products, while launching and managing eBay’s U.S. Classifieds business.

While he was a collegiate swimmer for Duke University, Spoon founded beRecruited, an online recruiting platform for high school student-athletes and college coaches. beRecruited was acquired in 2007 by RVS Ventures.

Since joining Deutsch in 2008, Andrew has proven himself as a trusted advisor that gets the job done. His experience is a unique mix of complex global accounts, such as Microsoft, Johnson & Johnson, and Novartis, and attractive domestic brands such as DraftKings, DIRECTV NFL Sunday Ticket, Starwood Hotels & Resorts, and Anheuser-Busch. Most recently, he spearheaded the successful re-launch of two of Anheuser-Busch’s premier brands, Busch and Shock Top, delivering fully integrated campaigns along with packaging refreshes. His work over the years has helped develop smart creative that breaks category conventions. Passionate about his clients’ businesses, Andrew's calm demeanor and likable personality—paired with his ruthless focus, strategic thinking, and collaborative nature helps to deliver original and shareable creative that wins.

Andrew lives with his wife Emily, his baby daughter Leni, and their puppy, Mookie, in Manhattan. A rabid Badger fan, with a BA in Sociology, Legal Studies and Business from the University of Wisconsin, during college he was a student manager for the Wisconsin football team and served on their Athletic Board. Any leftover free time, Andrew spends running, doing sprint triathlons and rooting for a mix of New York and Wisconsin sports teams. And, drawing on his passion for sports, he is proud to have co-founded the Magic in the Trees Foundation that sends kids in need to summer camp.

Jimmy Spencer is the Vice President of Athlete Relations and Content at UNINTERRUPTED. He has more than 15 years experience in media, covering the NBA as a national reporter in addition to national radio appearances and TV spots.

UNINTERRUPTED is a distributed media platform totally dedicated to athletes, fans and lovers of sport. UNINTERRUPTED is not journalism. Producing a wide range of unique, creative and captivating content, UNINTERRUPTED empowers athletes to let the world see what they see, develop their most creative ideas and tell the stories most important to them. As sports media and cultural influence continue to expand, UNINTERRUPTED is committed to the voice of athletes and the audience that wants to go deeper.

As the VP of brand and commercial strategy, Will McDonough oversees COPA90’s brand positioning as they expand to new platforms and form new partnerships. Will works with COPA90's creative team to develop bespoke solutions that place their brand partners at the heart of COPA90’s programming. Brand partnerships include: Adidas, Heineken, LAFC, Relevant Sports ICC, MLS.

Josh Grunberg leads content, partnerships and talent at Whistle. He oversees the development and strategy of the company’s channels, its Dude Perfect partnership and relationships with its creator community. Prior to joining Whistle, Grunberg led video content and production for the NHL’s Vancouver Canucks and produced celebrity driven talk show segments at TSN in Canada. Born and raised in Toronto, Grunberg studied and graduated from Humber College's journalism program.

Zachary Leonsis is senior vice president of strategic initiatives for Monumental Sports & Entertainment (MSE), a multi-platform sports, media, entertainment, and technology company located in the heart of the “DMV” in downtown Washington, DC. MSE is best known for its fan- facing brands which include the NHL’s Washington Capitals, the NBA’s Washington Wizards, and Capital One Arena, as well as seven additional team brands, three more venues, and equity in two media networks: NBC Sports Washington and Monumental Sports Network. As senior vice president of strategic initiatives, Leonsis manages MSE’s media rights relationship with NBC Sports Washington, all venture capital investment opportunities, the company’s sports betting strategy, and its growing esports division. Leonsis represents MSE on NBC Sports Washington’s board of directors as well as on Team Liquid’s board of directors.

Leonsis is also general manager of Monumental Sports Network, a first-of-its-kind regional sports network for digital, mobile, and over-the-top platforms. In 2016, Leonsis launched Monumental Sports Network, co-owned by MSE and NBC Sports Group, as a direct-to-fan content service provider seeking to reach cord-cutting sports fans. Monumental Sports Network offers paid-membership bundles that feature hundreds of live games across over 20 different sports leagues, hundreds of hours of original programming, exclusive merchandise discounts, and member-only events & experiences.

After earning his undergraduate degree from the University of Pennsylvania in 2011, Leonsis received his MBA from Georgetown University’s McDonough School of Business and is a founding member of the Georgetown Entrepreneurship Advisory Board. He also recently joined the Advisory Board of the Georgetown McDonough School of Business in 2019. He received an appointment to serve on Virginia’s Governor’s Advisory Board on Service and Volunteerism, and is involved in a variety of nonprofit and charitable activities in the Washington, D.C., Maryland, and Virginia communities.

The Washington Business Journal and Sports Business Journal both recognized Leonsis for his work in revolutionizing the direct-to-fan regional digital experience by both honoring him in their prestigious ’Forty under 40’ lists. Sports Business Journal has also featured Leonsis as an ‘RSN Power Player’ and SportTechie has featured him as one of their top 20 innovators.

Edward Gold is a Marketing Director for the State Farm Insurance Companies headquartered in Bloomington, IL, and has been with the company since 2003. He has over 25+ years of marketing, media and sponsorship experience.

Ed’s primary responsibility is to oversee the development of State Farm’s marketing strategy, creative, media and sponsorship efforts, for all of State Farm’s Property & Casualty product lines and customer segments. Over the years, Edward was named an “Online Media All-Star” by Mediapost, one of the “21 Most Intriguing People in Media” by min online, was named one of CableFAX’s “Sweet 16”, and most recently was inducted in the Marketing, Advertising, and Media “Leaders & Legends” by Media Village. In addition, in 2016, State Farm was honored as the “Sports Sponsor of the Year” by Sport Business Journal. In 2019, State Farm won the “Esports Brand of the Year” by the Tempest Awards.

While at State Farm, Edward has overseen partnerships with the NBA, Disney/Pixar, ESPN, Riot Games, Major League Baseball, Telemundo, and Apple. He has expanded State Farm’s media efforts in traditional, online, and new media, through innovative thinking while achieving business goals.

Before coming to State Farm, Edward was Partner/Media Director for the Gold Consulting Group in Los Angeles, CA. Additionally, his previous experience includes Senior Vice President/Media Director at Kalis & Savage Worldwide Partners in Los Angeles, Vice President/Sales & Business Development for Executive Sports International, and Vice President/Associate Media Director at DDB Needham Chicago.

Edward is a graduate of the University of Illinois at Champaign/Urbana, and lives in Bloomington, IL, with his wife Lynne and two boys, Montgomery (15) and Henry (13).

Will Bortz serves as the Director, Brand Partnerships which handles all Sponsorships, Promotions and Licensing for Taco Bell Corp., a subsidiary of YUM! Brands, Inc., (NYSE: YUM). Taco Bell is the nation’s leading Mexican-style quick service restaurant chain with more than $9 billion in annual system-wide sales and more than 7,000 restaurants.

In his position, Mr. Bortz is responsible for Taco Bell’s sports marketing relationships with the College Football Playoff, National Basketball Association and Major League Baseball, leading its entertainment sponsorships with MTV, iHeartRadio and Pandora, gaming with Sony Playstation and Blizzard as well as its music strategy.

At Taco Bell, Mr. Bortz has created integrated marketing programs including the “Live Mas Student Section” at the College Football Playoff, “Steal A Game, Steal A Taco” during the NBA Finals, “Steal A Base, Steal A Taco” held at MLB’s World Series, “Feed the Beat,” a music program that helps new music get heard, connecting up-and-coming artists with fans and “Feed the Beta” which connects indie video game developers with valuable resources to get their game ideas developed. He also crafted the “Live Mas Scholarship” for the Taco Bell Foundation, which awards young adults who are innovators, creators and dreamers with scholarships to pursue their dreams.

Mr. Bortz has been with Taco Bell since 2005 and served various roles within the marketing department including media, brand experience and public relations. Prior to joining Taco Bell he worked at Hill & Knowlton, Inc where he was a Vice President in charge of sports, automotive and lifestyle marketing as well as branding initiatives. At Hill & Knowlton, his clients included Mazda, Ford Motor Company, BFGoodrich Tires, Motorola, Allstate, adidas, Goodyear, TaylorMade-adidas Golf, DirecTV, Proctor & Gamble, USA Swimming, Krispy Kreme and the Rose Bowl.

Prior to Hill & Knowlton, Bortz worked for the Miller Brewing Company’s sponsorship of the AVP Pro Beach Volleyball Tour. He also managed sports marketing and public relations programs for Target, Coppertone, FILA, Diners Club and Speedo. His programs included professional basketball, PGA TOUR and LPGA Tour golf and the 1996 Olympics. He began his sports marketing profession at World Cup USA 1994.

Mr. Bortz graduated from the University of Colorado at Boulder. He lives in Orange County with his wife Monina and their two children.

Jen Kavanagh was named the team's Senior Vice President of Marketing and Media shortly after the Eagles' Super Bowl LII victory during the 2018 offseason. Kavanagh is responsible for the team's content, marketing and media strategy.

An award-winning industry leader for the past 15 years, Kavanagh was most recently the founder of JK Media, an advisory firm providing insight-driven strategies for Fortune 500 companies and high-growth startups. Previously, as Principal at BRaVe Media Ventures, Kavanagh led advisory work for major clients, placing an emphasis on brand strategy, sales strategy, marketing strategy, organizational development and OTT strategy. Additionally, she was responsible for the content acquisition and development arm of the business, driving innovation around packaging for co-production partners.

Prior to joining BRaVe, Kavanagh served as the Executive Vice President and U.S. General Manager of Beamly, a socialmarketing platform for television. Beamly recruited Kavanagh from NBCU, where she was the Senior Vice President of Digital at the company's Oxygen network. During her tenure with Oxygen, Kavanagh drove high-profile innovation and original streamed content that resulted in the network being recognized as a digital leader within the entertainment landscape.

Alex Flanagan is the Sr. Vice President, Partner and Head of Women's Growth at the Familie Sports Marketing and Talent Agency. She represents and manages athletes, analysts, and broadcasters. Flanagan also trains executives and athletes in media and communications and consults brands and companies on marketing, media and strategy. Flanagan spent 20 years working as a sports broadcaster for Fox Sports, ESPN, NFL Network and NBC sports. She was a sideline reporter for the NFL Network’s Thursday Night football and Notre dame football on NBC. She covered 5 Olympic games and 12 Super bowls. She sits on the National leadership counsel at the University of Arizona, is a member of the National Charity League and a mother of three children.

Candy Harris has spent her career developing the visual marketing language of leading lifestyle brands. Her professional journey began as she developed a youth marketing division at The Familie, a renowned action sports athlete management firm. Having worked with clients such as Nike and ESPN, she honed her craft developing marketing strategies and brand partnerships around the world’s top surf, skate, moto, and BMX athletes.

Her love of crafting strategies and narratives around athletes, led her to the role of Brand Director for iconic lifestyle company Billabong. There she spent a decade developing iconic global events, campaigns, and collaborations, helping to expand Billabong from its passionate endemic audience to become a recognizable global lifestyle brand.

Following her time at Billabong, Candy pursued her passion for building brands from the ground up and joined Stance Socks, as one of the first dozen employees on board. Candy was a part of the executive team who grew the brand from start-up disrupter to category phenomenon. Prior to founding Unlisted, Candy most recently played both Chief Marketing and Creative Officer roles at Stance, overseeing the Marketing, Creative and Experiential teams. Having over 20 years of marketing and creative experience, Candy has developed her skills across various brand touch points from product category development, to events and campaign execution. While at Stance she led a marketing team through several high-profile collaboration launches ranging from the likes of Rihanna and Jean-Michel Basquiat to crafting global Brand Campaigns and influencer strategies.

Unlisted Brand Lab has been a long time coming; a brand incubator and creative marketing agency that draws together her 20 years of experience and connections throughout the industry.

In addition to overseeing Kovert Creative’s New York office, Joseph Assad leads content development for the agency, which has been recognized with several prestigious awards for its digital videos for top brands. Most recently, in conjunction with launching Cadillac’s first-ever XT4 in 2018, Assad executive produced “Now That’s A Cardiac,” a comedic digital short starring award-winning John Mulaney, Nick Kroll and Awkwafina, as well as Sports Illustrated cover model Danielle Herrington. Released in November 2018, this short generated 1.83M+ views and was named one of Fast Company’s Top Five Ads of the Week. In the past year, the video won Cadillac the “Company of the Year” Award as part of the SABRE Awards; was a finalist in the Shorty Awards and Webby Awards; won several Telly Awards; was voted the “Top Viral Film” by USA Today’s audience as part of the Brand Film Festival; and won “Most Creative Campaign” and “Creativity and Innovation” at The Drum Agency Business Awards US.

In 2017, Assad executive produced “Fight Dirty,” a digital ad for Method featuring client Tiffany Haddish. The comedic PSA received a Webby Award, two Digiday Awards and a Sabre Award, amongst other honors. Also in 2017, Assad executive produced “Howler Soccer Ball Phone” for Howler Media, which featured Kovert Creative clients Will Arnett, Jack Black, Paul Downs, Adam Pally and Sarah Silverman and received both a Shorty Award and a Digiday Award.

Prior to launching Kovert, Assad was at PMK•BNC for 11 years. In his last role as Chief Operating Officer, Assad oversaw the agency’s marketing and digital practices, and led the Audi of America business that includes communications, marketing and digital content programs. As the driving force behind PMK•BNC’s entry into video content, Assad also oversaw the launch and development of Vowel, a digital agency launched by PMK•BNC. Working closely with brands, celebrities and influencers, Assad led content development for clients including Audi, the Emmys, Samsung and Ted Baker. His content work for brands such as Audi received a Silver Cannes Lion, multiple Digiday Awards, an Adweek Watch Award, an A-List Hollywood Silver Award, a Social Media Icon Award, a Shorty Awards Honorable Mention, and an In2 Sabre Award as well as being a finalist in the Webby Awards, PR Week Awards and Sabre Awards Americas, amongst other honors.

Prior to PMK•BNC, Assad worked at The Golf Digest Companies, Sports Illustrated and The Buffalo Bills of the NFL. He holds a Masters Degree in Journalism from Columbia University.

Ms. Cuddy is the Vice President – Global Sports for Engine Shop, with expertise in global marketing & partnerships, strategic planning, consulting and business development.

Most recently, Hye-Young worked on Olympic strategic consulting projects for Allianz SE after three and a half years with the International Olympic Committee based in Lausanne, Switzerland, where she oversaw the marketing relationships for IOC TOP Partners including Omega, Samsung, and Visa on all facets of their sponsorship, product supply rights, assets, and activations. In addition, she managed the Nike Official Supplier relationship on behalf of IOC. Combined, these programs ranged in the hundreds of millions of dollars and incorporated implementation in over one hundred countries around the world.

She joined the IOC after four years at GMR Marketing, overseeing Visa’s Olympic rights activation for the London 2012 and Vancouver 2010 Games. While at GMR and before that with Visa Inc., Cuddy coordinated a myriad of various global partner activations with FIFA, NFL, golf, music, and entertainment.

She is a graduate of the University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill and resides in Atlanta, Georgia.

Jenna has spent her career forging successful partnerships between brands and Entertainment properties. Currently, she leads Client Services & Production at Havas Sports and Entertainment (HSE), working with client teams to help them more strategically invest their dollars and align their brands in the Entertainment & Sports Partnerships space. She manages a team delivering unique marketing solutions across TV, Film, Music, Sponsorships, Content, Talent and Experiences. Recent client work includes Invesco, PUMA, TracFone, Trip Advisor and The American Red Cross. Jenna strives to deliver business results through innovative marketing practices, while exceeding ROI expectations. She has received SABRE, OMMA, EFFIE, Webby, Shorty, Facebook Studio, Digiday, MediaPost, Clio and David Ogilvy Awards among others for her work.

BriAnne Newman is responsible for developing successful marketing programs that enable FSM’s elite property roster and clients to connect with target audiences in unique and meaningful ways. Newman works closely with the FSM executive leadership to shape sports marketing strategies, design winning activation programs, and develop signature events for blue chip brands— all tailored to their specific business objectives. Newman is also responsible for overseeing FSM’s innovative consumer sports ventures, including FSM’s Destinations programs, Red Sox Fantasy Camps, and Youth Baseball Summer Camp programs.