Portland, Oregon, United States
Liz Lashbrook is the Executive Director of Sports Management Worldwide and a 30-year veteran of the sports industry in sales, marketing, advertising, project management, and taking care of what needs taking care of.
Liz has been an integral part of the growth of SMWW since her beginning with the company in 2004 when there was just one course, one conference, and one faculty member (her husband and business partner, Dr. Lashbrook). Now, SMWW offers over 35 courses, has 50 faculty members, and hosts industry leading sports career conferences 10 times per year at major sports events including the NFL Combine, Baseball Winter Meetings, NHL Draft, MLS Draft, NFL London, Paris Sports, NBA Summer League, and Portsmouth Invitational Tournament.
It all started with a one-month sabbatical, where Liz imagined she would take some time to help Dr. Lashbrook grow SMWW. That one-month sabbatical turned into more than a decade of growing the business through her efforts in marketing and advertising, developing the sales force, and growing the business’s online presence. A small, ambitious company with 100 or so students has since developed into the most respected online sports skills training company with over 20,000 alumni hailing from over 162 countries.
An expert in advertising and marketing, Liz has worked with SLAM, Hockey News, Hockey Now, Cricketer, Sports Business Journal, Sports Pro Magazine, Baseball America, WorldSoccer, FourFourTwo, Rugby World, Fox Sports News, ESPN Radio, ESPN, Fight Magazine, USA Today, Sports Illustrated, Sherdog, National Speedsport News, and National Dragster to help grow the SMWW brand.
Prior to joining SMWW, Liz was the Sales & Marketing Manager for Cascade Athletic Clubs, a small family-owned chain of clubs in Oregon and Washington. Tasked with managing over 20 sales people at five different athletic facilities in the region, Liz handled the marketing efforts for the corporation and was an active speaker in the health club industry at regional and national conferences.
At SMWW, Liz focuses on just about everything, with a mission to improve the student experience while increasing the probability of students attaining a sports job.
Check out The Pearl's article on Liz here!