Game-Changing Analytics

12 Sep 2018

Game-Changing Analytics

Re: Jessica Gelman (MBA 2002)

Topics: Management-Management Analysis, Tools, and Techniques Information-Data and Data Sets Sports

As CEO of the Kraft Analytics Group (KAGR), Jessica Gelman (AB 1997, MBA 2002) is working “to change the conversation around how data analytics are used in the sports and entertainment business.” Spun off from its Kraft Sports Group parent in 2016, KAGR today helps clients such as Ticketmaster and the NBA’s Philadelphia ’76ers benefit from the analytic approach and technology platform Gelman helped develop to build the Kraft organization’s enviable connection with New England Patriots’ fans.

“We help organizations develop a holistic view of customers and operations by tracking data gathered at multiple contact points, including ticket sales, retail transactions, digital communications, and social media,” notes Gelman, a former Crimson basketball star who also played professionally in Europe. She cites the Patriots’ launch a few years ago, of merchandising and social media initiatives that address the priorities of women fans, as an example of “using analytics to change how companies identify opportunities, build content and products that relate to people, and find new ways to benefit both customers and the bottom line.”

Gelman stays on top of the latest innovations at the intersection of business and sports as co-chair of the annual MIT Sloan Sports Analytics Conference, which she co-founded in 2006. “People are coming up with great ideas and launching new companies in this field all the time,” she says. “It’s exciting to be involved in driving that progress.”

(Published September 2018)

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Featured Alumni

Jessica Gelman

MBA 2002

Featured Alumni

Jessica Gelman

MBA 2002

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