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Video Introduction
Major: Sport Management
Job Title: Account Executive, Group Sales
Company: Washington Commanders
Company Description: The Washington Commanders are an NFL team located in the Washington, D.C. metropolitan area. The team’s home stadium is Commanders Field in Landover, Maryland. The organization has played more than 1,000 games since 1932 and has won five NFL Championships (two pre-merger and three Super Bowls). The franchise has captured 15 NFL divisional titles and five NFL conference championships.
Did you have any initial career goals when you entered Isenberg? Were there any key moments or influences (a guest speaker, course, or extracurricular) during your time at Isenberg that changed or confirmed your career goals?
Coming into Isenberg, I knew I wanted to work in the front office of a professional sports team. That being said, I had no idea what that looked like or where to begin on tackling such an endeavor. I was lucky enough to find the McCormack Student Leaders Club through the McCormack Department of Sport Management, which quickly became my home away from home. I was surrounded by like-minded individuals who were pursuing careers in sports just like I hoped to do. The big “lightbulb” moment for me was when I was attending a McCormack Leaders Club event and was introduced to the idea of Sports Sales as a career path by a UMass Alum named Sam. This was back in 2019, and we stayed in touch for the next 2.5 years as I navigated my time at UMass. Flash forward to early 2022: I’m getting ready to graduate, and Sam is in a position to hire with the Washington Football Team. It was a no-brainer to join the team, and after a couple of promotions for both myself and Sam, I’m still working on Sam’s team and loving every minute of it.
Can you share a favorite work assignment that could help a student understand more about what you do?
My favorite work initiative is my work with youth football organizations. I got into my line of work because I believe in the power of sports to bring people together, inspire change, and create lifelong memories for everyone involved. Every diehard sports fan has their moment—a moment when their team became THEIR team. Surprisingly, when reflecting on that moment, most people don’t talk about a win or loss, but rather who they were with and how they felt. Sports is more than a team to root for or stats to track; sports is a tool to bring people together, create lasting memories, and an identity for people to share.
One of my main initiatives is working with youth football leagues to bring them out for large-scale group outings to our games. For example, my biggest client is a youth football league from Richmond, VA. They bring out nearly 1,000 people yearly to a game. As part of their outing with us, I get to pull a lot of strings and make some amazing things happen. This season, I got to invite all the kids to our practice facility to do a skills camp with Commanders alumni players. They’ll also get to be on the field pregame while holding the giant American flag for the national anthem. Seeing the reactions from the kids and knowing I created lifelong memories and fandom is by far the most rewarding part of my job, which makes it my favorite.
Now that you’re in this position, what aspects have surprised you that you didn’t anticipate before starting?
Coming into the working world with an NFL front office, I didn’t fully know what to expect. The biggest surprise to me was how much cross-departmental collaboration there is. I’m working daily with people from marketing, game day operations, and community relations to execute all our initiatives at a high level. It’s been an amazing opportunity to meet great people across many avenues of our front office.
What inspires you about the work you are doing in your industry?
One piece of my role with the Commanders that I love is our Management in Training program. I’ve been lucky enough to be part of it for the past few months and have been fortunate to recruit, train, and develop our incoming group of entry-level representatives. Seeing their growth and helping to coach them is something I don’t take lightly, but seeing their initial successes and recognizing the role I’ve been able to play is something that inspires me daily.
What are some daily challenges you experience in your role?
In Sport Sales, or any kind of sales for that matter, you need to have a short memory. I am told “no” dozens of times every single day, which can be tough. That said, having a short memory allows me to make my next call or go into my next meeting with all the confidence in the world.
Is there anything you wish you had done differently while a student at Isenberg?
Not at all; I genuinely have no regrets about my time in Isenberg. For anyone not involved in clubs yet, please, please, please get involved now. It’s not too late, no matter your year, and the clubs are the keys to forging the connections needed to land your first role.
Networking is extremely important but can be intimidating to undergraduates. What tips do you have for getting started engaging with alum or upperclassmen?
As a college student, you have the best networking perk possible: being a college student. I can only speak for myself, but I am only in my position now because upperclassmen, alumni, and mentors looked out for me and offered their insight and advice. At this point, if any student reaches out to me, I’m happy to connect and provide myself as a resource in any way possible.
When you reach out, be sure to come in with a plan. The worst possible scenario is to get on an introductory call with an alum in your industry and not have any idea what you want to talk about or not have any questions prepared. As long as you have some questions prepared and come into the call/meeting with genuine curiosity, the sky is the limit for what you can accomplish with networking.
