#11: "You're The Host Of The Party" | Kelley Tessier (Canadian Olympic Committee)

🏅Ahead of the 2024 Olympic Summer Games - we had the pleasure of chatting with Kelley Tessier who is the Director of Marketing Partnerships at the Canadian Olympic Committee (COC).
The COC has been on a mission to transform Canada through the power of sport. They’ve brought this mission to life by supporting athletes to compete on the biggest stage, uniting Canadians across the country behind a shared passion & inspiring the next generation to fall in love with sport.
Kelley’s team is sprinting towards the finish line in order to help over 30 partners activate throughout the Games. These partners span across almost every industry - including Lululemon, Canadian Tire, RBC & Sobeys to name a few.
Prior to joining the COC, Kelley’s career path has been fascinating with jumps between industries (tech/telco to sports) but also countries (hint: down under).
We chatted with her about why she likens her role to being a host at a party, the inspiration behind Lululemon’s Team Canada kit, how a snowstorm sparked a major personal move, her gold medal advice & what game she hopes becomes an Olympic sport (we may have pushed for pickleball 😅).
More specifically, Kelley shared her thoughts on the following questions:

• How would you describe what you do to a stranger? 8:13
• What was your "Marketing Moment"? 10:28
• How did you get your start in Marketing? 12:15
• How important is it to you to work at Canadian brands? 15:45
• How have you managed inflection points in your career? 17:27
• What does your role look like and how do you work with COC partners? 20:45
• How do you maintain the COC brand consistency while supporting your partners? 26:17
• What are some other elements of your "partnership pitch" when looking at prospective partners? 30:26
• Tell us about the Canadian Olympic Committee's new "Brave Is Unbeatable" creative platform. 33:11
• How do the Olympic athletes play a role in telling the story of the COC brand? 37:09
• How is your team approaching a post-pandemic Games? What has your team learned from the last two Games? 40:53
• How do you build flexibility into your Marketing operations during the Games? 43:13
• We put Kelley in the Hot Seat! 48:48