User Friendly: Season 5 May 2021 Advancing women in sports Host: Hanish Patel, User Friendly host and Digital Transformation leader, Deloitte Consulting LLP Guests: Cathy Engelbert, commissioner for the WNBA, and Shiz Suzuki, assistant vice president for Sponsorships and Experiential Marketing at AT&T Hanish Patel: have you on, and welcome to the show. Over the last decade, women’s sports Women’s sports has immense potential has demonstrated time and time again value, not just in monetary terms but Cathy Engelbert: its ability to attract large audiences. also in terms of what it signals for gender Thanks, Hanish. Great to be here. The potential for growth and untapped parity. However, for women’s sports to interest continues to drive a rise in fulfill its potential, it requires action by all Shiz Suzuki: investment in women’s teams and interested parties. So, joining me today Thanks. sponsorship deals, and in turn can inspire to discuss how value-driven businesses more women to aspire to compete at can lead the way in the advancements Hanish Patel: the highest levels. But despite the ability of women in sports are Cathy Engelbert, This is such an exciting topic, and let’s get of women’s sports to deliver strong TV commissioner for the WNBA, and Shiz into it. We’ve got so much to cover here, ratings, event day attendance, and overall Suzuki, assistant vice president for so I’m actually going to use a sports term interest, it’s not often matched equally in Sponsorships and Experiential Marketing and say, let’s tip off with this, and we can media coverage, conditions, or pay. at AT&T. Cathy, Shiz, super excited to use it to ground our listeners. So, Shiz, Advancing women in sports | Season 5 women in sports is not a new thing. So the WNBA. But the reality is the stats transformation across being a very why is it an important aspect for us to are staggering. From a women in sports player-first league, marketing, branding, be talking about women in sports right perspective, less than 4% of media fan experience. And there’s no one better now, and more broadly, do you feel this coverage is women’s sports. And less than AT&T to help us in that space. And discussion is different now than it’s been than a percent of sponsorship dollars they certainly did, and they have showed in the past? goes to women’s sports. We obviously, as up amazingly and Nike and Deloitte. a holistic industry, we need to do better Shiz Suzuki: than that, but there has been this really So in light of recent conversations that So let me start by saying that I am very, exciting momentum happening. And Shiz just mentioned around disparities very fortunate to be able to work on we’re starting to see some changes. between men’s and women’s sports things that I’m really passionate about and the opinion piece I did on the and supporting women in sports is Hanish Patel: conversation needs to shift to companies certainly one of them. And I always say Shiz, thank you for that. Those stats no longer checking off a box in their that it is not only the right thing to do for just astounded me, and I remember internal diversity, equity, and inclusion, the next generation of young women, but Cathy in a recent op-ed you did I kind but putting weight behind something it is also really good for business. So let of read those stats and I really had to impactful, something they have an me just back up for a second. I usually take a double take frankly to think that emotional connection to because they’re like to explain why companies like AT&T the percentage is so low in comparison, building a brand or they’re looking for a invest in sponsorships overall. And one of especially, Shiz, when you talk about, consumer base that basically matches them is for brand building. Certainly, our we want to see a reflection of ourselves the values, ideals, and the fan base that brand, a 140-plus-year-old brand doesn’t out there. And like you said, it’s 50%, we have. And so I think by founding and need much of an introduction, but it but it’s far from the balance when you launching the WNBA Changemakers, becomes so important to make sure that think about media coverage and the this is a platform by which we want the persona of the brand, the reputation percentage of sponsorship dollars going companies and more companies to come of the brand, the perception of the brand up that way. in and take advantage of the momentum is managed and done in a way that is that we see in women’s sports and such a very intentional, and sponsorships is one So, Cathy, to that point, I’d like to move prime time to invest. of them. to you. And when I think about Deloitte, the WNBA, and AT&T, it seems like quite Because this was going to be exponential And if you think about even the definition an odd pairing for this podcast with growth, and I think again AT&T saw that of a brand, that is this emotional meeting the three of us on there, but there’s a well before everybody else and has ground between a company and its real good reason for why we’re all here. stepped up in a big way. Just to give you a people. And when I say people, that’s And the inaugural group of the WNBA little perspective, they ran a whole She’s customers, its prospects, its employees, Changemakers business sponsors Connected brand-building series for our and there’s so much research out there includes Deloitte and AT&T. So to that, players and taught them about personal that shows that when people love a Cathy, can you explain for our listeners brand and network for career growth. So brand, when customers love a brand, what this platform is and what spurred we’re looking forward to what our second they are willing to spend more money, its creation? year, it is our 25th season, our second pay higher prices, recommend that year of WNBA Changemakers brings, but company to their friends and family, Cathy Engelbert: we’re really excited about it. and forgive them when unfortunately Sure, Hanish. First, it’s great to be here. things go wrong. And I think all of us are Second, without Shiz and AT&T last Hanish Patel: very much so aware that the customers season in a wubble, by the way, in the So, Cathy, it’s clear from your example of today, and if we think about the middle of a pandemic and a racial justice there what the inaugural sponsors, in customers of tomorrow, they’re very, crisis, we don’t have a season. So back to particular AT&T, have brought to the very much so particular about how and your question, Hanish, as to what WNBA Changemakers program, and you talked where they spend their money. And I Changemakers is all about. When we about exponential growth going forward. think it rings true that people want to negotiated a very historic and progressive What does it look like a couple of years see themselves reflected in things like collective bargaining agreement, because from now? What will you be looking for the content that they watch or the things our players in the WNBA are unionized, from the sponsors into this program? that they buy and certainly the kinds of so we negotiated that last year, we businesses they do business with. launched the WNBA Changemakers Cathy Engelbert: platform and it was literally to directly Yeah, it’s actually a great question, And if you think about 50% of the support the WNBA and women’s sports. Hanish, as we’re thinking about the next U.S. population being women, 85% of Because I’m a big believer that we’re generation of Changemakers already. And household purchase decisions being hopefully also lifting women’s sports you know from my history with the firm made by women, for a company like across the spectrum. And I loved Shiz’s I’m always about innovation. I’m always AT&T it makes complete business sense emotional meeting ground because about thinking about our digital platform, to ensure that our brand is associated this was more than just a partnership. our transformation of our marketing, with strong female-centric brands like This is about activating it to help our our team operations. And so, the future Advancing women in sports | Season 5 is a multidimensional transformation for which is what AT&T does so beautifully, us, and whether that’s data and analytics it’s revamping our public footprint inside and getting more information on our out and outside in, it’s operational fans or optimization or human capital optimization, and player and team growth. recommendation and those kinds of So if our teams don’t grow along with things. So there’s so much to do here, I the league, if just the league grows and think. Internships for players is something not our teams, we’re not going to be we have on our list, incorporating WNBA successful. players into some of the issues that the companies that support us are trying to So, there’s a lot to unpack there, I know, solve in their own business with their own just in that, but we’re looking at fan talent platform.