Nathan Zucker
There’s no denying Nashville is a town filled with success stories, and we’re celebrating the business- women who are writing their own. Whether they’re running the numbers, creating and capturing content, or building something from the ground up, here is one of the women that is running this town.
Lindsey Paola
Chief Operating Officer, Nashville Soccer Club
THE DAILY HUSTLE
I work with my team to make sure we are evolving to meet the Club’s needs, especially as we have grown so rapidly in the past year. My role is also about making sure there is cross-departmental communication because I look at everything from a 10,000-foot view. We work hard to make sure there is collaboration and communication between the departments and all four venues. I always say you can never over-communicate. A new part of the business was added to my portfolio last year: non-gameday revenue. We host private events at the stadium year-round in our premium spaces and we have three concerts (Shania Twain, Guns N’ Roses, and Pink) at GEODIS Park this year. It’s been exciting to see all the non-Major League Soccer programming we are doing at the stadium.
EARLY ASPIRATIONS
I worked on a presidential campaign right after I graduated, which then gave me the opportunity to work on the Presidential Inaugural. Once the Inaugural ended, I was fortunate enough to get a job at the White House right out of college, which was a dream come true for me! Eventually, I realized I needed a change, and since I love sports, I met with numerous individuals in the sports world to learn what opportunities existed. Through a lot of networking, relationship-building and persistence, an opportunity came up with the new minor league soccer team in Nashville. I interviewed for the role of Senior Director of Administration and began my career in sports.
ADVICE FOR OTHERS
Surround yourself with good people and great mentors. Find people who embody who you want to be and how you want to behave and learn from them. It took me a long time to learn that you don’t have to be perfect to be successful, but you do need to be curious and take risks. If you bet on yourself and put yourself outside your comfort zone, success will follow.