Executive Director, Center for Media, Entertainment & Sports, UCLA Anderson

Jay Tucker is a marketer, educator, and technology leader with over 20 years of experience in the technology, academic and entertainment sectors. At UCLA's Center for Management of Enterprise in Media, Entertainment and Sports (MEMES), Jay is responsible for the Center's vision, thought leadership, educational offerings and major events - including the annual PULSE conference.

Previously, Jay handled marketing and programs at the Institute for Communication Technology Management (CTM) at USC's Marshall School of Business. In that role, Jay founded Silicon Beach @ USC, a two-day event featuring a venture competition and a conference focused on innovation, investment, and new ventures related to technology and digital content. He also partnered with executives at OgilvyRED to re-launch their Verge Summit, and with Variety magazine to launch the first-ever Big Data Conference in partnership with PwC.

As a seasoned technology leader, Jay is passionate about helping executives and entrepreneurs embrace disruption, drive innovation, and build powerful solutions. He has taught courses on technology management, technology convergence, digital media, and media literacy to professionals at corporations and non-profit organizations. Jay also speaks at academic and industry events, covering digital technologies and media, technology start-ups and other topics.

Professor of Marketing and Behavioral Decision Making, UCLA Anderson

EVP, Revenue & Strategy, LAFC

Ryan Bishara is a front office executive with comprehensive expertise of working with teams to innovate, drive profit growth, build corporate strategies, and collaboratively implement change.

Currently, he leads the Revenue and Strategy function for LAFC (Los Angeles Football Club) that includes the Corporate Partnerships, Ticket Sales and Service, and Business and Data Strategy departments by driving strategic planning, vision, process development, and growth initiatives for these verticals.

His team was most recently recognized as the 2024 Top Ticket Sales (90%+ paid of capacity) and 2024 Top Corporate Partnerships Revenue, New Business Revenue and YoY Increase and 2023 MLS Corporate Partnerships Team of the Year. A recent Forbes 30-Under-30 award winner, Bishara spearheaded the creation of the Club’s Business and Data Strategy department, which has been recognized by Major League Soccer as the back-to-back (2018 and 2019) Business Analytics Team of the Year using data driven decision making to help optimize business processes across the organization.

As a part of day-to-day responsibilities the department sets season, variable, and dynamic ticket pricing; creates all partnership proposals; measures and recaps the reach and exposure for all corporate partners; manages CRM for all revenue functions; distributes and analyzes all customer surveys; administers the organizational data warehouse; and associated reporting dashboards.

Prior to that, in four years with the Detroit Pistons, Bishara had the fortune of innovating and improving a variety of sales, strategy, marketing, and finance disciplines through a vibrant ownership transition. Most recently as Manager of Business Strategy & Development, he added client management and sales skillsets to his responsibilities including fulfillment, activation and renewal negotiations of top sponsorship accounts.

Previous to that, he held an organizational-first role as Manager, Revenue Operations & Strategy for the Corporate Sponsorship and Premium Sales teams with a focus on streamlining and improving product development, rate cards, pricing margins, sales management tools, and processes.

Ryan began his career as the Special Assistant to the President & CEO with a focus on project management, serving as the internal steward for collaboration and providing counsel on finance, strategy, capital improvement ventures for the ownership operating committee and internal departments.

Before joining Pistons, he received his B.A. in Communications at UCLA in 3 years while holding 12 internships across 5 professional and collegiate sports.

Sr. Director, Media Business Operations, NFL

Nam Nguyen is currently the Sr. Director of NFL Media’s Business Operations (Biz Ops) team and is based in the NFL LA office (in Inglewood next to SoFi Stadium). The Media Biz Ops team supports the NFL Media’s Owned & Operated (O&O) business, which includes the following media platforms: NFL Network (cable television channel on linear TV), NFL App, Fantasy App, NFL Network App, NFL+ App (Direct-to-Consumer Streaming Product), NFL.com Website, NFL FAST Channel (Free Ad-Supported Television), NFL YouTube Channel, and NFL Podcast Network. The Media Biz Ops function supports the NFL Media O&O business with the following capabilities: portfolio management, strategic program management, vendor management, on-air talent management, digital business management, and audit and compliance.

Nam grew up in Hawthorne, CA after his parents were displaced as refugees following the Vietnam War. He graduated from UCLA in 2003 (Mathematics of Computation, BS) and from Loyola Law School (JD) in 2008. He is barred in CA and OR and practiced law for six years as a business and employment lawyer. He was able to escape law to various business roles in sportswear brand (Nike) and sports media (NFL). Outside of his day job, he is passionate about mentoring (re: alternative career paths and navigating corporate spaces as an “other”) and being a present and engaged partner to his wife, Cathy, a working artist, and kids, Zoey (7 yo) and Myles (3.5 yo), in San Gabriel, CA.

Sponsorship Strategy, Octagon

Owen Pallenberg is a 2024 Economics and Entrepreneurship graduate from UCLA, passionate about business and marketing in the sports and entertainment industries. He is seeking a position at an agency, brand or property in the Los Angeles / New York area and is eager to experience and work in the partnership sales & marketing or business strategy & analytics sectors, where his team-first mentality and work ethic can add value and be rewarded. He hopes to involve himself in an organization at the forefront of the sports world and make a tangible impact no matter his job description.

Owen believes that his prior experience with revenue analytics, business development, brand strategy & development, lead prospecting, Salesforce, Microsoft Office and data analysis make him a strong candidate for the job. And, since working at LAFC, where he learned to build marketing & sales strategies anchored in research, insights, storytelling, and business strategy, Owen is eager to lend his strategic and pragmatic lens to a range of new business challenges & opportunities within the brand, property and talent components of the sports industry.

CEO, Athlete to Athlete

Anthony is a Co-Founder and CEO of Athlete To Athlete, a sports startup that he founded as an undergraduate student at UCLA. While at UCLA, he was also a Division 1 Football Athlete, President of the Bruin Sports Business Association, and President of The Alpha Epsilon Pi Fraternity. He graduated with a Bachelors in Economics.

Account Executive, Google

Helping businesses & end users by optimizing GTM strategies with appropriate audiences. Supporting underserved communities as well by creating more equitable opportunities for youth sports & activity programs.

Some skills include being a self-driven team player with a growth mindset, integrity, and follow through. Some interests include outdoor activities, comedy, volunteering, mindfulness, and whatever sport is in season.

CEO/Founder, The Sports Psyched Group

Executive working with the world's greatest athletes, teams, and leagues. Business leader driving strategy for billion-dollar companies. Established entrepreneur shaping the future of sport and performance. Board member, author, lecturer, and mentor.