Rosie Selle, '12 MSAL

How has your background in sport/entertainment shaped your leadership and management practices?

Sport and entertainment is a lot of managed chaos, and processes to manage that chaos. That being the norm leads me to feel more leadership in service—I want to support my team and help them succeed. How I set them up for success in this type of environment, hopefully resonates with them.

There is no one wrong or right way to do things. Helping a team create a process for themselves and allowing people to make mistakes is essential to them creating their own process. Give people space and opportunity to carve that path themselves.

Are there any lessons from your time at Albers/Seattle University that you continue to apply in your life and career?

Looking back on my time, learning how to network and connecting with people of different levels and backgrounds was invaluable. My cohort was close—whether hanging out at a sporting event or gathering together when one of our group passed away. We had great success stories, either in sports or sport-adjacent. I don’t think you get a lot of that in other graduate programs.

I had to take two business law courses. You have to be able to read through a contract and be confident when doing so. Sports business law has helped tremendously with that.

What is one piece of advice you would offer to a student who is passionate about sport and entertainment and interested in following a similar path?

I always tell people that when you’re getting into this industry know what you do and don’t want to do. Informal job interviews and shadowing are important. Written and verbal skills are underrated in today’s society and workplace—being able to get your point across in a clear and concise manner is essential.

And, know how to put a proposal together, it will be easier to get the results you want. People outside of sports and entertainment roles: there are so many amazing companies that touch sports and entertainment—PR, food and beverage, marketing, and more. The pool of opportunity widens when you think outside the box.