golden state warriors
Armed with an economics degree from UCLA in 2001, Brandon Schneider figured he’d go straight to work on Wall Street. But graduating during a market crash shelved those plans, putting the Bay Area native on track for what has turned into a dream job with the Golden State Warriors.
“I figured I’d be an investment banker or a venture capitalist,” Schneider said. “I had great connections in the industry, but they’d say, ‘I’d love to hire you but we are firing people.’”
Instead, a chance meeting with a local sports TV executive in 2002 led to an interview with former Warriors President Robert Rowell, who was then one of the youngest team presidents in the league. The two connected, though there was no specific job in mind.
“I put on one of my dad’s suits, and I didn’t know what I was interviewing for,” Schneider said. “Robert asked me if I could sell and I said, sure, why not? I didn’t know what I was getting into.”
Fifteen years later, Schneider hasn’t stopped selling for the Warriors, where as senior vice president of business development he plays a key role in the financial fortunes of the NBA powerhouse franchise.
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During his career with the Warriors, Schneider has held a variety of different jobs and knows the market well. He has worked for the team during its darkest days when it couldn’t sell out Oracle Arena. Today, it has some 37,000 people on a season-ticket waiting list and looks to open the new $1 billion Chase Center in downtown San Francisco in 2019.
“It’s way busier now than it has ever been,” he said. “I spend more than half my time on the new arena, but the other stuff hasn’t gone away. Decisions that used to be $100,000 decisions are now $3 million decisions.”
Under Schneider, the Warriors’ season-ticket base is capped at 14,500 and demand far outweighs supply. While the Warriors’ success has changed how the team does business, Schneider has been around long enough not to take anything for granted.
“For my first 10-12 years, the holy grail was just making the playoffs,” he said. “We feel the obligation to maximize the opportunities we have.”
— John Lombardo
brandon schneider
golden state warriors | senior vice president, business development
Age: 37
Where born: San Mateo, Calif.
Education: UCLA (B.A., business economics, accounting minor)
Family: Wife, Amanda; child, Tommy, (7 weeks)
What do you know now that you wish you’d known at age 20? Sometimes it is more who you know than what you know.
Profession other than your own you’d most like to attempt: Manager of a baseball team.
Causes supported: Warriors Community Foundation, YMCA.
Person in the industry you’d most like to meet: Michael Jordan.
I am one of the best I know at … : Understanding the role of analytics in making data-informed decisions.
2017 will be a good year if … : The Warriors win the NBA championship, and my family is thriving!
The sports industry needs to do a better job of … : Always thinking about fan experience first.
You’d be surprised to know that I … : Was an all-star catcher until I got to high school, and figured out playing catcher at 5-1, 100 pounds was going to be a challenge.
