In 2010, while VP of Integrated Media and Corporate Partnerships for the Miami Dolphins, Bob sensed an opportunity for stakeholders to partner more effectively in the complex universe of sponsorships. By capturing a comprehensive, real-time picture of the sponsorship ecosystem for teams and brands—information that was fragmented and largely inaccessible—he could create a solution that would be key to identifying trends and opportunities in the industry. As time went on, he realized this opportunity wasn’t limited to the NFL or even to just sports: Brands, properties, agencies, and media companies across industries would benefit enormously from a resource that demystified the sponsorship marketplace and provided greater accessibility to partnership deals. 

Inspired by this mission, and with the goal of providing unprecedented insight into every facet of the sponsorship universe, Bob devised the concept for the SponsorUnited platform in 2016. In 2018, SponsorUnited was launched. 

Bob’s previous roles include SVP of Global Partnerships at BSE Global, General Sales Manager of Westwood One, and management roles at iHeart Media and Audacy. He attended the University of Delaware, where he played football.

Having run technology teams at startups his entire career, Alain first joined SponsorUnited in October 2016 as an advisor and investor before partnering with Bob Lynch to build the SponsorUnited platform. He currently heads up both our developer and data operations teams. His former roles include SVP of Technology at Buddy Media and Salesforce, co-founder and CTO of food52, and SVP at Priceline. 

An 11-time Ironman finisher, Alain also competed in the 2022 World Series of Poker and is a marathoner and loyal Mets fan. He is a founding board member of NY Tech Meetup, is on the board of Doctors of the World USA, and holds a BA and MS in Physics from Columbia College and Yale University, respectively.

A veteran of the marketing industry, Michelle joined SponsorUnited in May 2022. Having previously worked on both the brand and media side, creating and executing sponsorships for American Idol, Procter & Gamble, Microsoft, and Rodale, she immediately recognized the platform’s power and potential across a range of industries. Her prior positions include CMO of AccuWeather, EVP Marketing at ShopperX Lab, and SVP Brand Partnerships at FreshDirect. 

Michelle co-chairs the Executive Achievement Committee of She Runs It, a global organization dedicated to supporting women at every level of their career in marketing, media, and tech and is a former director of the Penn State Alumni Council. She’s an avid boater, foodie, and traveler.

David joined SponsorUnited in December 2023. He has deep finance leadership expertise guiding software-as-a-service (SaaS) companies through significant revenue growth and operational scaling. Most recently, as CFO at Repsly, a Boston-based growth equity-backed company, he helped drive rapid revenue growth and capital raising efforts.  While at Constant Contact, a leading digital marketing and automation platform, Mann played a key role in managing the company through hyper-growth and supported its successful IPO.

David’s prior roles also include finance leadership positions at Tufts Health Plan (now Point32Health) and Raytheon. He also worked in investment banking at Citibank, research at the Federal Reserve Bank of Boston, and treasury at GTECH (now IGT). He received an MBA from Duke University’s Fuqua School of Business.

Having heard about the capabilities of the SponsorUnited platform from a client in pro sports, Rajiv knew he needed to reach out to Bob Lynch on LinkedIn. The rest, as they say, is history. Since joining the team in November 2019, Rajiv has grown the company’s client base from 150 to more than 1,000, built and leads a 20-person sales team, and broadened our market, both domestically and overseas, to include not just sports but also brands and media companies. 

His prior roles include VP of Teams at Nielsen Sports, Senior Director at Repucom, and Sales Strategy at Yahoo! Sports. A graduate of Syracuse University, Rajiv enjoys running and snowboarding, and he has never met a dog he didn’t like. 

A longtime talent acquisition pro, Margaux held senior roles with the NFL, Starbucks, and Under Armour before joining the SponsorUnited team in September 2020. It was during her time at the NFL—where she recruited for the league’s sales, business development, and sponsorship teams—she started hearing that the SponsorUnited platform was a powerful tool for prospecting. 

Margaux oversees all human resource functions at SponsorUnited, including the recruitment and onboarding of all employees and more than 500 interns annually. Besides learning to golf, she also enjoys cooking and staying fit. Margaux graduated from Newbury College.

In January of 2024, Debbie Colella joined SponsorUnited after a distinguished career in customer success within the software-as-a-service (SaaS) sector. Debbie brought her expertise to Yext, Inc. in 2011, where she was pivotal in establishing and leading the enterprise customer success department. Her tenure at Yext was marked by high retention rates and a significant increase in upsell/cross-sell revenue, testament to her strategic approach and innovation in SaaS.

Before her time at Yext, Debbie was integral in steering a SaaS startup through its IPO Unicorn phase, showcasing her ability to drive impactful results and develop pioneering solutions for growing organizations. Her rich professional background includes key roles at industry leaders like Yahoo, Donovan Data Systems, and Computer Sciences Corporation.

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