Pam El has been appointed the new Chief Marketing Officer of the National Basketball Association according to a statement released by the NBA yesterday. El is the first African American and the first woman to hold the position.
Her responsibilities will include ‘directing brand development, overall marketing and advertising for the NBA, WNBA and NBA Development League,” the statement notes. She reports to NBA Deputy Commissioner Mark Tatum.
In a statement, Tatum recalled working with El during her days at State Farm as part of their NBA sponsorship. “She will be a huge addition as we work to build our brand on a global scale,” he stated.
Prior to the NBA, El worked at State Farm for about 11 years before leaving as its marketing VP in mid 2013. Over her 30 year marketing career she’s also worked at he Martin Agency, US WEST, and Terabeam. El graduated with a bachelor’s degree in mass communications from Virginia Commonwealth.
Rick Welts was the NBA’s last CMO and since he left in 1999, the position has been empty. Jamie Gallo held the organization’s most high ranking marketing position as Vice President, Marketing from 2012-2014.
By Colby Carrington