zack perl
Other dorm rooms at Colby College were filled with raucous music, beer, and smoke, but if you happened into Dan Parise’s room during his senior year, there’s a good chance you’d have overheard him trying to sell some CEO or CMO a hospitality package to the Masters.
Parise doesn’t recall that any of those calls, the vestige of a summer internship, resulted in sales. Nonetheless, “That was some of my most important experience,” he said. “After making a few of those calls, I felt like I could talk to anybody.”
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After that sort of preparation, combined with an internship spent executing events, Parise left Colby in 2003, determined to work as a sports marketer. He worked for Strategic Sports, where he first met Michael Neuman, who started Scout Sports & Entertainment six years later. After a 3 1/2-year stint as marketing director of the Chicago Fire, and a brief flirtation with e-commerce, Parise reunited with Neuman at Scout. He was named managing director in 2013, and was recently promoted to vice president/managing director.
At Scout, there’s been steady double-digit growth, and the agency has expanded its business with Geico. It’s now managing 30 of the insurer’s sponsorships.
“Dan’s been integral in growing our position within sports and our business,” said Ryan Moreland, who coordinates Geico’s sports and media buys. “He’s brought a quantitative approach to our partnerships, and his many relationships and work ethic have been key for us.”
Scout’s 2015 Return of the King campaign for Burger King was widely praised. It included appearances of the quick-service restaurant’s King spokescharacter alongside Floyd Mayweather before his May 2015 bout with Manny Pacquiao, and in Bob Baffert’s box at The Belmont Stakes a few weeks later, when American Pharoah won the Triple Crown. Scout also won a review for FanDuel’s business against many of the top sports agencies.
“Dan’s focus on growing the consulting practice has allowed me to focus on things like growing our analytics and our own properties,” Neuman said. “His consulting group has led our growth and he has trusted relationships with clients and properties.”
— Terry Lefton
dan parise
scout sports & entertainment |
vice president / managing director
Age: 35
Where born: Framingham, Mass.
Education: Colby College (B.A., psychology)
Family: Wife, Leigh; children, Camryn (3 1/2), Harper (1)
What do you know now that you wish you’d known at age 20: It’s OK to make mistakes.
Profession other than your own you’d most like to attempt: Teacher/football coach.
Causes supported: Classroom Champions, a nonprofit my wife and my brother-in-law, a 2010 Olympic medalist in bobsledding, started that ties
Olympians to students at high-need classrooms across Canada and the U.S.
Guilty pleasure: Watches.
Person in the industry you’d most like to meet: Robert Kraft.
The sports industry needs to do a better job of … : Not replicating the same programs over and over.
Most thrilling/adventurous thing I’ve ever done is … : Being the father of two girls.
You’d be surprised to know that I … : Was a practice player for the Colby women’s basketball team.
