Shahin Rasti has been in the sports marketing sector for 7 years starting his career at Slingshot and he is now at Fuse as an Account Director. He shares insights into the highlights of his career so far, his mentors and what surprised him most about the lack of BAME talent in the sports marketing sector. Sha is one of our new Ambassadors to BAME2020.
I am currently an Account Director at Fuse, a partnerships marketing agency specialising in sport and entertainment, working on Santander’s sponsorship of the UEFA Champions League and agency new business.
After graduating from University, I was motivated to combine my personal passion of sport with my professional interests in business and marketing. What I enjoy the most is the variety of my work: content – one day I could be creating a strategy for Santander’s global brand ambassador- Ronaldo, and the next I could be pitching for a piece of new business with our Data and Insights team.
The two highlights that spring to mind are moving to Germany and working for the International Paralympic Committee in the lead up to Rio 2016, and more recently- managing and delivering Santander’s activation at the Champions League Final, within their home city of Madrid.
I have been very fortunate to work under a number of industry trailblazers throughout my career- Jackie Fast (Slingshot), Jane Ratcliffe (MediaCom) and Louise Johnson (Fuse), but the people I look up to the most are my parents- who gave me every opportunity to succeed both professionally and personally.
I still have a lot that I want to achieve within the industry but I think what has served me well to date is a constant strive to learn more and adopting a growth mindset.
In terms of the lack of BAME talent inside sports marketing, I think what has been most apparent is the lack of a collective effort to address such a critical issue. Change will only happen if we prioritise consistent, industry-wide action. The limited number of senior role models can be very disheartening for BAME professionals, causing a negative cycle and perception around career trajectory, which ultimately limits the progression funnel.
I feel I can play an important role in mentoring young members of the BAME community on how they can build a successful career path within this sector, as well as increasing awareness of ongoing initiatives.