WISE SF Bay Area has selected long-time mentor, Stacy McGranor as our spotlight for the month of July. With more than 15 seasons in professional sports, Stacy has a wealth of knowledge to share with those in the sport and entertainment industry.
The WISE Within Mentorship Program seeks to connect seasoned professionals in the sports and entertainment industry with current executives to foster career development and advancement. For McGranor, it was imperative for her to become a mentor because, “mentorship for women [early in her career] in sports really didn’t exist” but looking back she now realizes how, “impactful it could have been to have a more experienced and advanced female leader to look up to, to work with, to learn from, and to be inspired by,” while also acknowledging extraordinary male leaders that have served as allies and a support system as she navigated her career. Being a mentor not only offers benefits to the mentee but to the mentor as well. McGranor notes that the mentee is the best part of the WISE Within program, whom she describes as “impossibly candid and courageous”, two qualities she learned as she grew in her career rather than early on.
According to a study performed at the University of Tennessee Knoxville, women attempting to climb the corporate ladder is still a very daunting task for women even with strides that have been made in the last decade but note that “mentorship is critical to upward mobility.” Women hold less than 27% of executive positions according to the Sport Integrity Global Alliance and account for even less as you dive further into minority groups. McGranor can recall one mentor that stood out amongst the rest, Arica Kress, while working with the Columbus Crew. “I [Stacy] was gifted with the opportunity to take on a number of projects that were outside the scope of my role, but that proved to be invaluable experience. One of those was the email communication to our Season Ticket Holders, which was brand new to me. As I was learning, Arica was right there to offer both her support and her wisdom. Her feedback was always on point and always constructive. She also validated one of my core values along the way in telling me that one of her favorite things about me was how willing I was to accept her feedback and to implement it with a smile. That one comment has lived with me for over 15 years, which is certainly a testament to the power of mentorship."
Upon reflecting on her career thus far, McGranor has two moments that she touts as her proudest; the first being the re-opening of SAP Center for San Jose Sharks home games post- pandemic. While the re-opening came with a host of challenges, welcoming fans back into the Shark Tank during a time where the world needed it the most will always be near and dear to her heart. Second is the launch of her new business, Blueprints & Playbooks, a Customer Experience (CX) consulting agency. Owning her own business has always been a dream but now has become her reality -- stay tuned for her official launch coming in early August!
Of course, no profile would be complete without getting a piece of advice/wisdom or a quote to share and for McGranor it’s simple, Find the Yes! “In every situation, there is a yes to be found that will make all involved feel valued, appreciated, and sometimes even inspired by the outcome. This is true in personal relationships, in professional relationships, and in singular interactions we may have with fans, vendors, and/or event attendees."
Connect with Stacy on LinkedIn or visit Blueprints & Playbooks to learn about her new consulting agency https://www.linkedin.com/in/stacy-mcgranor/
For more information about WISE Within visit mentoring.wiseworks.org and stay tuned to our next mentor spotlight.