Today we’d like to introduce you to Angelina Lawton. She and her team share their story with us below:
Angelina is a trailblazer in the sports business world–as the CEO & Founder of Sportsdigita and Forbes Top 30 Most Powerful Women in U.S. Sports, she has transformed the way 400+ of the biggest brands in the world sell globally.
Beyond the business, Angelina is a lifelong advocate for women–having shared her story and vision with dozens of schools & universities as well as industry-leading press publications like Inc Magazine. As the former SVP of Corporate Communications for the Tampa Bay Lightning, Angelina’s background and passion are, and always have been: hockey. Naturally, she can break down her story into 3 periods, just like a game of hockey.
1st Period: Wall Street
Directly out of college, Angelina Lawton started her professional career in the Financial Services industry, working for Investment Advisors, Inc. (now known as Hill Samuel), helping grow their venture capital activities to eclipse $16B. She eventually worked her way up to being the Director of Corporate Communications during her 8-year tenure with the organization, an impressive feat given the male-dominated nature of the Financial industry.
2nd Period: NHL
After her Wall Street years, Angelina’s first career move into the sports industry came when she was named SVP of Corporate Communications for the NHL’s Tampa Bay Lightning. She was in charge of “everything and anything with a Lightning logo on it.” During her time at the Lightning, she realized the inefficiencies of PowerPoint when Franchises pitch six and seven-figure deals. She knew there had to be a better way to bring Lightning’s story to life to impress prospects, partners, and fans alike, and subsequently, her vision for Sportsdigita was born.
3rd Period: Sportsdigita
Taking a leap of faith, Angelina founded Sportsdigita in 2011 after her time with the Lightning made it clear the need for a presentation platform was critical in the sports world. After early wins, DIGIDECK by Sportsdigita quickly grew in popularity, now serving nearly 50% of all pro teams in the 5 major U.S. sports leagues (NHL, MLS, NBA, MLB, NFL). The continuous growth of the DIGIDECK platform in not only the sports but also the business world, coupled with Angelina’s vision, has been a proven force in the sports business world with no limit in sight.
For more about Angelina, visit www.angelinalawton.com.
Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall, and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
The biggest lesson I have learned along the way is to hire + trust the right people from the beginning. If I had hired a Leadership team from the start and entrusted them with areas outside of my expertise, our company would have been able to scale faster. Even if it seems like a more expensive approach, it is worth it in the long run.
As you know, we’re big fans of Sportsdigita. For our readers who might not be as familiar, what can you tell them about the brand?
Sportsdigita has revolutionized the way the biggest brands in sports and the business sector sell with its cloud-based presentation platform, DIGIDECK. Named to the Inc. 5000 list of Fastest Growing U.S. Companies four years in a row, Sportsdigita understands the importance of aligning sales and marketing in any company by developing best-in-class software technologies to solve business problems. Sportsdigita’s roster of over 400 partners worldwide includes some of the biggest brands in sports, such as the New York Yankees and Los Angeles Lakers, and leading enterprise companies such as Visa and MetLife. Sportsdigita is a proud female-owned and operated business through WBENC.
Have you learned any interesting or important lessons due to the Covid-19 Crisis?
We developed a product DIGIDECK LIVE as a direct result of Covid-19. We wanted to give our customers a way to continue sales & marketing efforts from their homes, in-office, or wherever work took them.
Now with DIGIDECK LIVE, our clients can connect with audiences directly within their presentations using in-app chat, video conferencing, and co-browsing capabilities. This has helped our clients tremendously, especially during times of uncertainty. The lesson from all this is to be agile and nimble as a team to better suit your customer’s needs.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.thedigideck.com/
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/sportsdigita/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/sportsdigita/
- Twitter: https://twitter.com/sportsdigita
Image Credits
Headshot: John Wagner Photography
