Get to know Leap

After graduating from the University of Notre Dame, I was an officer in the U.S. Army, leading over 100 soldiers through a successful combat tour as part of Operation Enduring Freedom. I was later recognized as a “Top 40 Under 40 Military/Veteran” and received the George C. Marshall Foundation Leadership Award. Upon earning an MBA at Harvard Business School, I started my journey into the tech industry, working in various senior roles across the digital media, gaming, and sports industries.
 
Most notably, I served as SVP & GM at Care.com where I oversaw global operations, consumer payments, and all domestic and international B2B products and services. I later pivoted to become the COO at Managed by Q, where I was responsible for rapidly scaling revenue growth and delivering operational excellence to 1,500 of the world’s best companies. After a few years, I decided to use my experience for scaling technology companies’ profitably and managing highly technical and global operations teams for a new venture: Leap Event Technology.
 
Outside of work, I spend most of my time with family: playing sports, coaching sports, and chauffeuring our kids to and from sports. When we aren’t committed to our kids’ athletics schedules, we love to travel as a family. Ski trips out West, summers at Cape Cod, and weekend excursions to Notre Dame football games to name a few.
 
My favorite live event memory is when Notre Dame won “The Game of the Century” (#1 Florida State vs. #2 Notre Dame). Notre Dame batted down the last minute hail mary from Florida State’s Heisman Trophy winner, Charlie Ward, and we stormed the field!

Music and live events have been a lifelong passion of mine. I grew up as a classical pianist and the many weekends of recitals and competitions eventually culminated in a solo performance at Carnegie Hall. During my college years at Stanford University, I moonlit as a concert promoter with the Stanford Concert Network. We hosted everything from weekly shows at the on-campus coffee house to Phil Lesh at the Frost Amphitheater. Eventually, I started a career in consulting. After receiving my MBA from the Kellogg School of Management, I realized that I could apply my passion to the technology industry in product management and strategy roles.
 
I joined Microsoft, where I had the opportunity to work on Mobile in the early days before everyone had a smartphone. From there I was drawn to eCommerce and Marketplace businesses, which led me to StubHub and Care.com. At StubHub, I launched the company’s expansion to the UK, implemented a new payments system, and partnered on mobile ticket integrations. At Care.com, I drove double-digit growth of their mobile apps and launched a new product line for the B2B Care@Work business.
 
Over my career, I’ve worked on almost every product area – from front-end to back-end, desktop to mobile apps, buyer to seller, and event discovery to trust and safety. I took that expertise and built a consulting practice to share what I’ve learned as an interim product executive, advisor, and speaker. After advising Leap on several projects, I couldn’t say no when the opportunity came to officially join the team.
 
Outside of work, I am active throughout the Bay Area product and startup community, and I like to spend time with my family and friends. You can often find me cheering at my son’s basketball game, enjoying the sun at the pool with my daughter, or hanging out with friends at a Stanford Football game.
 
It’s tough to pick a single favorite live event, but one that stands out was the 2011 Orange Bowl. Not only did I get to see Stanford defeat Virginia Tech, but I was also lucky enough to see Bon Jovi perform from five feet away at a random tailgate party that my friends and I stumbled upon. It was a perfect afternoon full of friends, sports, and music!

Over the past 20 years, I’ve worked at the intersection of sports, media, and technology — developing commercial strategies, building high-performing teams, and driving growth for some of the most innovative companies and properties in the industry.

Before joining Leap, I founded Green Mountain Sports Ventures, a consultancy focused on helping companies drive commercial growth and build enterprise value. I also served as Head of Revenue, North America at Supponor, the global leader in virtual advertising solutions for live sports, in preparation for its acquisition by TGI Sport. Earlier in my career, I co-founded Rubicon Partnerships, led revenue and partnerships at LA Golf, and held senior commercial roles at PrimeSport (now part of NFL On Location), Wasserman, Van Wagner, IMG, and Turner Sports. I got my start at Madison Square Garden, where I first experienced the true impact of live events and fandom.
At Leap, I focus on our commercial efforts, including strategic growth and partner success — working with our clients to deliver measurable value and unforgettable fan experiences.

Outside of work, I stay closely involved in philanthropic efforts, particularly pediatric cancer research at Memorial Sloan Kettering, and serve on the Executive Board of UJA Sports for Youth, supporting youth programs across the New York area.
I split my time between New York City and Southern Vermont, where I trade commercial strategy for skis, golf clubs, hikes, and coaching youth sports whenever I can.

My favorite live event memory would have to be the first NASCAR race back after 9/11 — Dover International Speedway. NASCAR was a client at the time, and I was fortunate to be down in the pits. The emotion in the crowd, the roar of the engines, the overwhelming sense of unity — it was unforgettable. It will forever remind me of the power of live events.

After graduating from the University of Texas at Austin, I began my career at Arthur Andersen and then Ernst & Young, where I served clients in the media, restaurant, sports, and manufacturing industries for a combined six years. I then left the public accounting world to explore the financial and operational sides of a variety of different industries, holding accounting and finance leadership roles in commercial real estate, medical equipment, and restaurant businesses. After that, I served as SVP of Finance at Learfield Communications, a media and technology enterprise focused primarily on college sports. There, I was responsible for enterprise-level corporate finance functions, including financial planning and analysis, treasury/cash management, and investor/lender relations.
 
Eventually, my love for and interest in the live events industry led me to Leap. I gained some experience in the ticketing and digital fan engagement spaces by working with Paciolan and SIDEARM, both subsidiaries of Learfield that were acquired during my tenure there. That background gives me a unique insight into Leap’s operating environment, and helps me lead the finance function to support the company’s performance and growth.
 
Outside of work, I love spending time with my wife, Kate, of 20 years, and our two teenage children. We spend most of our time keeping up with our kids and their activities, which include marching band, concert band, indoor rock climbing, art classes, and golf. When not “in the grind,” we love to travel as a family. Most recently, we went to several western National Parks including Utah’s “Mighty Five,” Glacier, and Yellowstone. We also love to spend time in my childhood hometown of Santa Fe, New Mexico.
 
My favorite live event memory is taking my daughter to her first concert to see Taylor Swift’s “Reputation” Tour at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas.

I’ve been extremely fortunate to work with many excellent technology companies over my career, spanning diverse industries and multiple leadership roles. I led the software development and technical operations teams for business intelligence and financial reporting SaaS products focused on the CPG vertical. During this time, I held leadership roles in software development, implementation, product management, and operations.
 
When the opportunity to work in the live events space presented itself, I jumped at the chance and eventually became the CTO of FISH Technologies, which was later acquired by Leap Event Technology. Coming from a background of working with financial data, the opportunity to build and deploy unique technology solutions in such a different and interesting space was extremely exciting to me. Plus, having a true passion for live events and a real understanding of how important the user experience is is what separates the good leaders from the great in this industry, and I definitely have that passion.
 
Outside of work, I try to carve out as much family time as possible. To me, there’s no better time spent than with family and friends. I also try to get outdoors any chance I get, whether it be to walk, bike, or hike (even in the sweltering summer heat of Texas).
 
My favorite live event memory is watching how excited fans were at the Super Bowl 48 experience as they lined up for a picture with the Vince Lombardi Trophy.