PHILADELPHIA (AP) — Jessica Gellman honed her basketball skills playing pickup games at the YMCA growing up in suburban Chicago, rocking black sneakers like Michael Jordan and other members of the Bulls. Indeed, the future co-founder of the MIT Sloan Sports Analytics Conference wanted to play like Jordan — and Gellman, a 1,000-point scorer and co-captain at Harvard, was an Ivy. -She has grown into a masterpiece like the one in the league–but her reputation is high. His greatness extended beyond the courtroom.
Like Jordan, Gelman wanted to separate himself from the field.
“So I dribbled from behind,” she said with a laugh, “That wasn’t something girls in the ’80s and ’90s would do.”
Since then, she has strived to break through barriers, and Gelman’s love of numbers and sports has not only put her on par with some of the industry’s biggest thinkers, entrepreneurs, innovators, and front-office dealmakers. , he himself rose to become a prominent manager in the industry. analysis movement. She worked with Philadelphia 76ers president Daryl Morey to not only discover Sloan, but steer him into a preeminent forum for number crunchers. Yes, the term “statistics nerd” is often used, but I have continued to cultivate it throughout that time. diversity and inclusion At every level, including sports and entertainment.
In a way, Sloan is German’s professional behind-the-back dribbler.
“Once I got into the business world, it was analytics,” she said. “It wasn’t necessarily something that people were into. But there were other ways to increase the appeal and differentiate.”
The Sloan Conference, held Friday and Saturday in Boston, has exploded from its one-day on-campus event in 2007, drawing only 200 people to the Super Bowl of Stats, but drawing a sold-out crowd. A crowd of 2,500 people (some waiting) gathered. list) at the downtown convention center.
“The conference was exciting in many ways, Analytics adoption increases” Gelman said. “People are investing in analytics and want to do it, but there’s still a lot of work to do. We’re still in the early stages.”
Celebrity heavyweights such as actors Rob McElhenney, Sue Bird, and Megan Rapinoe will speak at the main panel forum, which will be livestreamed, with the primary purpose of promoting education and replacing ticket prices that can exceed $1,100. The idea is to provide free tickets.
Fanatics CEO Michael Rubin will speak on multiple Sloan panels this weekend, including one on sports disruptors, but it will be a departure from Gellman, where she will lead discussions on sports and analytics. Just like he believed his role was.
“I have always been extremely impressed with her, both in terms of her strategic thinking and her ability to influence many parts of the business,” Rubin said. “It’s hard to start things like this. I’m going there out of respect for her because she’s put together a very special group.”
MIT Sloan students will help plan and run the conference. Rubin was one of several business leaders who used Sloan as a networking and recruiting event.
“I never imagined something like this would happen,” Gelman said.
A sample of topics at Sloan include “The Future of AI in Sports,” “David vs. Goliath: Underdog Mindset,” “Investing in the Future of Women’s Sports Media,” and “The Evolution of Basketball Analytics: Geeks, Data, and Efficiency.” 20 years.
“AI is obviously huge,” Gellman said. “Right now, I don’t think most organizations have the foundational datasets to use their data correctly. We need better safeguards and guardrails, so right now I don’t think organizations are using it for mission-critical purposes. I don’t think you are using it.”
Gelman and Morley, who met while teaching a sports analytics course at MIT Sloan, have built Sloan into a sports powerhouse that hosted former President Barack Obama as a keynote speaker in 2018. Roots as a leader in sports analytics roles.
“The analysis has been embraced,” Gelman says. “But there’s still a fear of it. I think people who want to understand that are coming to a place where a lot of analysts have built their careers.”
Yes, analytics. It’s a term that still draws derision from critics who don’t fully understand the statistical details that have led numerous teams to championships, and in ways not necessarily seen on “Moneyball.” , is about moving sports from the field to the front office. You will be able to watch it on the big screen by purchasing tickets and interacting with fans.
“Getting hooked on analysis is like getting hooked on gravity,” Morley says. “Essentially, it’s what pushes you towards victory. Even if the things that push you towards victory because of the rules end up making it even more boring, it’s not really anyone’s fault. Nor is it.”
Gellman, a minority partner of the Utah Royals of the National Women’s Soccer League, earned an MBA from Harvard Business School and spent her basketball career overseas before working with the Kraft family and the New England Patriots. Since then, I have been working on hardball, which involves playing with numbers. She is her CEO of KAGR (Kraft Analytics Group), which uses data management and analytics approaches to engage customers and drive business operations for companies such as Harris Blitzer, her Sports & Entertainment and her NCAA.
“My worldview is that most data analytics are powerful and provide more information than none,” Gelman said. “I may say this selfishly, but women in this industry have allowed me to have a different opinion, a different perspective. So I think so.”
Her rise as a leading broker in strategic consulting and data management is recognized throughout the sports world.
“If she didn’t work at Kraft, I would have her work at Fanatics,” Rubin said. “She’s very smart, very strategic, asks all the right questions, and has great interpersonal skills.”
Gelman said understanding analytics can increase access for people who are often underrepresented in the industry. About 50% of Sloan’s speakers last year were women or minorities, she said, giving the conference a higher priority after taking some hits in the past with exorbitant ticket prices and male-dominated guest lists. said.
“I think this is a passion of everyone involved in the conference,” Morley said. “Traditionally it’s been very masculine. In fact, our underrepresentation is more based on gender than race. There’s been a big focus on increasing opportunities for young women to get into sports analysis. We also have a big focus on racial diversity. Previously, we had a very, very, very, very, very, very large percentage of men. Now we have We’ve made great progress there.”
Gelman, who lives in the Boston area with his wife and two sons, hopes that all kinds of young professionals visiting Sloan this weekend will one day have a level playing field on every platform in the sport, from the business side to the front office. I hope you can help me fix it. From educational services to customer service.
Just as her playground dribbling led her to the pros, Gelman aims to use Sloan to disrupt the sports industry.
“How do you get the benefits? If everyone is doing something in one direction, you may have to go in the other direction,” she said.
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