The Drone Racing League has made two new senior hires in ANNE MARIE GIANUTSOS, who becomes the property’s first-ever CMO, and ARI MARK, who takes over as Senior VP & Head of Partnership Development. Both Gianutsos and Mark had previous relationships with DRL President RACHEL JACOBSON, who led the hiring process remotely after joining the league in April. Additionally, DRL exec BEN JOHNSON has taken on an elevated role as Senior VP & Head of Int’l. Mark was most recently Senior Dir of Corporate Partnerships for the Dolphins but worked with Jacobson for over seven years during their respective tenures at the NBA. Gianutsos has past roles at NBC, NewsCorp, and Conde Nast and left her role as CMO of Berkshire Hathaway’s luxury real estate company Houlihan Lawrence to join the DRL and Jacobson, who she has known for a decade. “When she was telling me about her opportunity to become president, I was like the hype person in her ear saying, ‘take the job,’” Gianutsos told THE DAILY. So, when Jacobson began talking to her about the DRL CMO position, she “didn't hesitate for a minute,” she said. “It's building and technology and media -- all the things that I love to do.” Gianutsos and Mark officially began their roles last month and have been working remotely from Westchester County, N.Y., and Miami, respectively.
ROOM FOR GROWTH: For Mark, the obvious challenge at the outset is finding partners during the uncertain times of the pandemic, but he is confident his experience can help him grow DRL’s relationships moving forward. “My hope is that I can take what I've learned in the past roles,” he said, “and bring that to a younger organization that is trying to grow and accomplish those things that those other leagues have done over that time.” Mark: “DRL is five years old and so we're not looking at where we are on our sixth birthday, we're looking at where we are in 10 or 15 or 20 (years). … That's the vision, we're growing something here.”
YOUNG FOREVER: Gianutsos is excited to market DRL to Gen Z, which she said has already shown strong interest in the sport. “One of the trends or key insights about that generation is that they are very attracted to very fast-moving sports, which … might explain why we’re resonating so organically with that generation,” she said. DRL will roll out a new marketing campaign later this month, with the main objectives being to “make sure that everyone that's interested in sports and entertainment and technology is aware of what the Drone Racing League is,” Gianutsos said. Activation will include investing in free STEM educational programs to help train the next generation of scientists, technologists and drone racing athletes.
