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Scott finds coaching his kids' basketball teams is a
great way to spend time with the family |
Name: Donte Scott
Position: Turnkey Intelligence Exec VP & Chief Insights Officer
Age: 36
Where I’m from: Flint, Mich.
Where I call home: Detroit
Focusing on right now: NFL, NHL and NBA fan studies.
Best advice: “Stay Thirsty, My Friends.” Let curiosity drive you to reinvent yourself and to continue to develop new skills and experiences. It’s the only way to separate yourself in an extremely competitive industry. Everyone wants to work in sports.
A must for a new hire: I love hiring folks that are a lot smarter than me. But without great work ethic, being a good team player and, quite frankly, using common sense, you just won’t meet your potential.
Exec I admire most: My "Mount Rushmore" of researchers would include ESPN Senior VP/Global Research & Analytics ARTIE BULGRIN, General Motors Dir of Global Analytics & Marketing Effectiveness KAREN EBBEN, ESPN Sports Poll creator RICH LUKER and Time Inc. Exec Dir of Research & Insights ANDY BORINSTEIN. But someone who isn't necessarily in that research realm is NBA Exec VP/Team Marketing & Business Operations AMY BROOKS. She is one of our industry’s smartest and brightest leaders. I have to believe her name will come up in future commissioner discussions; she’s that good.
Best book I’ve read this year: "Good to Great," by JIM COLLINS is far and away my favorite book. I’ve bought into the notion that great organizations not only find a way to get the right people on the bus, as he says, but to get those people in the right seats and functioning efficiently as a team.
First thing in the morning: The best start to my day is when I can get a 5:00am workout or pickup basketball game in. But typically it’s me waking up my three boys around 7 and then our princess and youngest, who’s 5 going on 15. Once they’re up, I’m typically trying to help the youngest two get dressed and get their hair done.
Talking tech: The days of getting consumer insights through 20-minute questionnaires and surveys may be numbered. This has only increased my interest in exploring new and passive data collection methods that help capture and track consumption and behavioral insights in ways that are far less reliant on traditional research methods. I’ve deployed different technologies that have allowed me to observe engagement through WiFi tracking -- seeing how engaged they are with brand ambassadors, how engaged they are with sampling, and then being able to tie some of that to lead gens information and data around that to get a real feel for who’s interacting with a brand or sponsor, both online and on-site.
Must have music: My musical taste is all over the board. From JUSTIN TIMBERLAKE to MICHAEL JACKSON, YOLANDA ADAMS to PEARL JAM, from THE ROOTS to THIRD DAY. I’ve only caught live performances of half of that list, and sadly I missed my chance at seeing the King of Pop in concert.
Food for thought: Ethiopian cuisine is my favorite. I’ve actually been on a quest for over ten years looking for an equal to the Ethiopian feast from the Blue Nile in Ann Arbor. Absolutely love it.
How I unwind: Coaching my kids’ basketball teams has been a great way to unwind and really spend time with the family. Away from work and home, we live on the sidelines and in the bleachers. We have four very active kids who just love to play.
Day in the life: The thing that surprised me most was the level of complexity that several of Turnkey’s major research projects require. The biggest example would be the work we’re doing with the NFL and with every single team. Part of it is having all 32 teams participate in a leaguewide study and working on that. Managing the various pieces and the customization for each team and each fan base, you don’t realize how complex that can get, really quickly. That was one of the first projects I walked into Day 1 on the job.
