The Bravery to Master the New Ari Segal Chief Executive Officer, Immortals Gaming Club

vision which he regards as key to strong leadership. That includes his time as a young investment banking analyst, coping with the economic crash. Faced with added pressure to up his game, he “kind of steeled myself to just try and fight out of it”. Segal says that Wall Street experience gave him a long-lasting “level of appreciation for ‘client- ready quality,’ correctness, and attention to detail”. He also benefited from taking up distance running: “There was something about setting and achieving small goals that created a flywheel of positivity.” After a time at McKinsey, he went to work for Schulman at the Ducks, a move which “changed my life and career”. He has benefited from an ability to be “flexible”, taking on diverse business challenges and being “willing to move geographically and willing to move industries”.

Ari Segal is one of the most influential figures in esports. As CEO of Immortals Gaming “I’m competitive and driven, and Club, a Los Angeles-based esports and gaming company, he oversees a portfolio of working towards being a CEO was high-profile teams including Immortals and MIBR (Made in Brazil). He made his name in the traditional sport of ice hockey and held key roles at the Anaheim Ducks, San Diego working towards the northern most Gulls and Arizona Coyotes. point in whatever industry I was going to be in” For all his success in ice hockey and esports, Ari Segal relationships and have positive impact.” values his early realization that he could never feel Segal took that advice and went on to excel as “truly endemic” among professional sports people. President of Business Operations at San Diego Gulls As industry demarcations are increasingly blurred, TRAILBLAZER “I could’ve been an executive for 20 years and I still and then Chief Operating Officer at Arizona Coyotes. the opportunities for trailblazer leaders are greater EXPERIENCE would not have been ‘one of the guys,’” he says of He then transitioned into esports and, as CEO of than simply crossing from one sector to another. his formative years at the Anaheim Ducks hockey Immortals Gaming Club, has taken charge of one of “It’s not either/or – rather, there’s convergence”, LATEST TRANSITION franchise. “It was just a practical reality: I didn’t the strongest companies in the sector, with investors Segal argues. “What you’re going to find over five Sport Gaming grow up playing hockey, or really around sport in an including AEG, Lionsgate and Meg Whitman. to ten years is that we think more about content - insider sense. While I played sports for fun, I was Since he was a child, Segal has wanted to lead. how is it distributed and how is it monetized - and OTHER SECTORS never good enough to play any professional sport, He was president of his High School class and we’re far less concerned with arbitrary lines called Management let alone hockey.” president of his fraternity in college. “I guess I have ‘gaming’ or ‘sport’ or ‘media’.” Consulting Luckily for Segal he had the Ducks’ CEO Michael a hunger and ambition,” he says. “I’m competitive Private Equity Schulman as his boss and mentor. Schulman taught and driven, and working towards being a CEO Interview with Amy Thomas Financial Services him to be comfortable being a “fish out of water” was working towards the northern most point in Chief Marketing Officer among those gifted enough to play sport for a living. whatever industry I was going to be in.” [email protected] BASED “There’s a fundamental shared experience among Learning that he could be a fish out of water and USA people who have that rare talent. It’s okay to be succeed was one of many lessons he has used to outside of that core, inner circle and to still develop build the combination of resilience, risk appetite and

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