Episode 1 Matt Synakowski: How data strategy & analytics supports sales teams to drive revenues and growth

"The ultimate purpose of collecting the data is to provide a basis for action or a recommendation." W. Edwards Deming In my first episode, I speak with Matt Synakowski about how sales teams can be more laser focused with better data strategies to support their efforts.    A little bit about Matt below. Matt has been a strategist within the sports, entertainment and media industry in various capacities for the past decade. Starting in 2009, he became the Boston Bruins first ever hire to manage the organization’s revenue strategy. In this capacity, Matt was responsible for pricing of all assets from tickets to premium seating and worked with the e-Marketing/Technology division on building the foundation for a comprehensive data strategy. Matt also aided the club’s Assistant GM in analyzing player salaries during the off-season free agency period. From 2011-2016, he joined Madison Square Garden in which he held various leadership roles supporting the B2B sales efforts during its 3-year, $1 billion transformation/renovation project. He became the co-founder of the first ever dedicated department dedicated to revenue strategy, data/analytics and business operations. In 2016, Matt crossed over into the sports media sector at FOX Sports as VP of Strategic Planning. Here he worked with the national ad sales organization on maximizing assets across the sports portfolio: from high profile events such as the Super Bowl and World Cup Soccer, to its growing cable network in FS1. He and his team led competitive market research and positioning, deal evaluation, revenue modeling on new content acquisitions, and report automation. Matt is currently consulting in the sports/media sector where he has worked with clubs at Major League Soccer and is collaborating with consulting firms to perform market research and landscape studies of best practices in the sports landscape. About Samir: Samir is a data strategy and analytics leader, CEO and Founder of datazuum. He has a history of helping data executives and leaders craft and execute their data strategies. His passion for data strategy led him to launch, the Data Accelerator Workshop, and host the popular Data Strategy Show. After a career in both private and public sectors Samir launched the datazuum brand in 2012, with a view to working with executives to deliver data strategy at a time when data was not seen as a business asset. Today datazuum delivers projects across both private and public sectors including: Charities, Financial Services (Banking & Insurance), Government, Housing & Construction, Law Enforcement, Logistics, Media & Publishing, Outsourcing, Postal, Retail, Telecoms, Transport and Utilities. Samir has 20 years of international experience across Europe, North America, and Africa. Is a regular speaker at international conferences, coach / mentor, a charity fundraiser, and youth champion for Working Knowledge - supporting young people to achieve their personal and career goals in life. Samir lives in London with his wife and daughter. Contact details for Samir LinkedIn: Samir Sharma Email: [email protected] website: www.datazuum.com