Xavier Gutierrez Selected to Pro Sports Assembly's Advisory Board

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
Thursday, September 10, 2020
NEW YORK, NEW YORK --- Today a group of esteemed sports business executives have united to launch a first-of-its-kind, industry-wide, and mission-driven community called PRO SPORTS ASSEMBLY ("The Assembly") - a 501(c)(3) organization for people who work in professional sports which aims by 2030 to achieve parity in opportunity, pay and leadership amongst its workforce.
Designed to keep leagues, teams and unions both knowledgeable and accountable for delivering an equitable and profitable future in professional sports organizations - The Assembly is a membership-led community that challenges its industry to advance diverse and inclusive leadership. It believes that by developing cultural and gender intelligence, as well as setting best practices of stewardship, mentorship and allyship, professional sports properties can drive innovation, bolster financial performance, capture new markets and increase brand loyalty. The Assembly is aggressive in its vision and stance to create the future of its industry through the #PowerofProSports.

"We are united in game plan, and diverse in council," says Shareef Abdur-Rahim, President of NBA G League and Founding Advisory Board Member of The Assembly. "We organized our Founding Boards to represent the diversity that our industry-at-large needs to see. In order to truly advance collectively - we must use an equity lens in leadership."
"I am incredibly honored to be selected to the Pro Sports Assembly's Advisory Board," said Arizona Coyotes President & CEO Xavier Gutierrez. "Equality, diversity, and inclusion are core values of our organization and it's our responsibility to foster understanding and acceptance in order to maximize our business potential. Sports provides us with a powerful voice and an incredible platform to be leaders, to be impactful, and to make our community and companies better."
"For every five athletes you see on the field of play, there are 95 people behind the scenes bringing that game to life," says Laura Dixon, Head of External Relations for Spurs Sports + Entertainment, and Founding Governing Board Member of The Assembly. "The people who work for professional sports teams, leagues and unions now have a place to connect and collaborate on the critical issues facing our industry. The larger our membership, the more impactful we can be in our purpose of advancing diverse, productive and inclusive leadership. The power of pro sports is truly in its people."

See below a complete list of The Assembly's Founding Board Members (in alphabetical order):
ADVISORY BOARD MEMBERS
GOVERNING BOARD MEMBERS
In its first year, The Assembly will formalize its member network and provide professional development, as well as hold virtual forums, workshops and discussions. In addition, it will commission research, share tools and develop analytics around key indicators in professional sports - to be distributed amongst the membership as a benchmark and playbook towards ensuring a more fairly functioning workplace.
For more information, please visit:
- Website: www.prosportsassembly.org - Instagram: @prosportsassembly - Twitter: @theproassembly - LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/company/prosportsassembly