Brad Wolff
Interviewed by Alan Sanchez
Written by Benjamin Camacho
Topics of Interest: E15, Sports Entertainment, Data Analytics, Business Strategy, Consulting, Internships
When he was ten years old, Brad Wolff bought a University of Texas cap at a sporting goods store. “I’m not exactly sure what drew me to it since I was born and raised in New York,” Wolff said. Nonetheless, this is where he says his connection to UT first started, and what eventually led him to be a distinguished alumnus from the Canfield Business Honors Program.
Wolff graduated from Canfield BHP in 2018, and since then has been working with E15, a business strategy and analytics consultancy focused on food & beverage and retail. Immediately after graduating from McCombs and Canfield BHP, Wolff began working with the Brooklyn Nets basketball team through E15, tasked with enhancing overall offerings at Barclays Center. Then this past August, Wolff moved down to St. Petersburg, Florida where he shifted clients and began working with the Tampa Bay Rays baseball team. “I have definitely enjoyed the warmer winter temperatures”, Wolff said about moving to Florida.
Wolff’s main focus in his career thus far has been on sports & entertainment. From an early age, Wolff has been cultivating his passion for the sports world, going as far as starting his own sports blog as a teen. As his blog took off, Wolff began to build up a network of athletes and sports business leaders to interview.
Reflecting on his time in Canfield BHP, Wolff remembers the importance of the collaborative experiences he shared in his classes and the importance of being both a leader and a team player. “In high school, I was far more used to being the alpha dog in a group. Once you get to CBHP, you realize that everyone primarily was a leader of some sort in high school. So figuring out how to fit in and adapt to those different roles is key.”
Wolff also recalls the special relationships he had with his professors from the program like Dr. Prentice, Professor Konana, and Professor Thurman. “I always find myself tapping into some things that I learned from those classes.”
E15 Company Logo
Regarding his current position with the Tampa Bay Rays at E15, Wolff is grateful that “not too many days are similar to one another.” In his position, Wolff focuses on using data to grow top-line revenue and be more efficient with expenses. “Considering this is an older ballpark reaching its end-of-life date, we are constantly trying to figure out how we can enhance the guest experience and maximize our facilities the best that we can.” As Wolff has advanced throughout E15, he has had the opportunity to take on some greater management opportunities, guiding other analysts along their career paths. Even though E15 is an organization that is primarily remote, Wolff praises his company’s commitment to sharing effective best practices during a time when the pandemic has kept many workers at home.
Wolff’s and E15’s aims for the upcoming MLB season include “completely overhauling the technology stack in the ballpark and looking at how we can use technology to improve the guest experience.” This objective is focused on simplifying the ordering process by rolling out self-service kiosks and prioritizing mobile ordering, which enables guests to have self-service experiences before they even get to the stand. “The biggest thing that we learn in sports & entertainment is that guests come to watch the event as opposed to waiting in line.” Wolff and his team will also be building a brand-new e-commerce business to extend the Rays’ brand beyond the Tampa Bay area. These ventures are all focused on data analytics which gathers primary data from transaction logs along with secondary data from market research to better predict and understand customer behavior so that Wolff can implement his solutions for the Rays.
While at E15, Wolff noted how important the flatness of his organization has been for his career development. For instance, when he was working with the Brooklyn Nets, Wolff was already presenting to some of their C-level executives “within a week or two of graduation”, he said. At his company, Wolff has managed to have a prominent seat at the table because of the decreased significance of seniority or position titles. “I found that just working hard, listening, and being curious allows people to forget your age and injects you into key situations.” Working in the sports & entertainment industry, Wolff is able to “immediately jump in, make an impact, and grow”, he explained.
Wolff shared some words of advice for CBHP students who may want to follow in his footsteps in the sports & entertainment industry or business analytics in general. He recommends students network with other graduates who may be working in the same industry. “I cold emailed so many people for just a 30-minute informational interview, regardless of where they went to school, and more often than not I got an answer.” Moreover, Wolff also suggests that students should not always expect something like a job opportunity from their networking efforts, and instead, be prepared to learn from the professionals that they are talking to. “Just be willing to listen and not always expect some kind of quid-pro-quo.”
E15 is currently accepting applications for summer internship opportunities where interns will have the opportunity to focus on both the company’s sports and non-sports accounts including positions for their Consumer Insights, Data Engineering, Data Services, and Business and Industry accounts. Wolff looks forward to connecting with current Canfield BHP students to help guide them on their career journeys. “My inbox is always open, so I’m happy to help.”