BBVA Compass Stadium general manager Doug Hall today announced the addition of several new staff members as part of the stadium’s operational, business development and marketing initiatives.
“We are thrilled to welcome all our new staff members, each of whom will play a vital role in the development and operation of BBVA Compass Stadium,” Hall stated. “This team brings a tremendous amount of operational knowledge and skills we think will enhance and grow our operations for years to come. We have hit the ground running as we are nearing our May 12 opening date and anticipate the grand opening of the new stadium to be a proud and highly memorable moment for Houston.”
Hall, who joined the staff in August 2011, is responsible for the management of all event services and operations including development, booking, guest relations, financial management, contract negotiations, logistics, community relations, parking, marketing and public relations. He also serves as the stadium’s primary contact with the Houston Dynamo, Texas Southern University and the surrounding communities, as well as city and state officials.
BBVA Compass Stadium Team
Paul Byrne, Director of Operations. Paul Byrne will serve as the Director of Operations for BBVA Compass Stadium. In his role, Byrne will be responsible for overall operations of the facility and the management of the stadium’s staff which includes the operations, event production, security and guest services team. Prior to joining the stadium staff, he served as the Senior Director of Operations for the Houston Dynamo where he was responsible for the club’s relationship between University of Houston and the team, monitored day-of game stadium operations, training facility and worked closely with soccer supporter groups in order to ensure a positive relationship between fans, the team and Robertson Stadium. Byrne has spent more than a decade working in the Major League Soccer (MLS) system having held a variety of positions with other teams including the New York Red Bulls and the New Jersey MetroStars. He was named the 2008 MLS Operations Executive of the Year. Byrne is a graduate of Seton Hall University where he earned a bachelor of arts in communications.
Dennis Moynihan, Director of Ticketing. As Director of Ticketing, Dennis Moynihan will oversee all ticketing aspects for BBVA Compass Stadium which includes Houston Dynamo, Texas Southern University football and all ticketed third party concerts and events. After six seasons with the Dynamo, Moynihan will transition to the stadium staff, while continuing to oversee the Dynamo’s ticket operations department. Moynihan brings a decade of ticketing experience and has worked with the Houston Rockets and Toyota Center, the New Orleans Saints and Extremetix in addition to working with the Houston Dynamo. Moynihan graduated from Southwest Texas State University where he still holds the school record in the 3000m Steeplechase, and went on to serve in the US Army for four years.
Brock Jessel, Director of Facility Presentation. As Director of Facility Presentation, Brock Jessel will oversee all of the advanced technologies throughout BBVA Compass Stadium. He will produce game day presentations and work closely with the national and local broadcasters for all Dynamo home games. Jessel joins the stadium team after a decade of service in Major League Baseball with the Houston Astros where he served as the Director of Ballpark Entertainment. While with the Astros, he won 14 Golden Matrix Awards (GMA) and received the honor of Best Show in Baseball for game day presentation from 2006-2010. Jessel was also one of the chief architects in the design and commissioning of the High Definition upgrades and 2011 video board renovations at Minute Maid Park. Jessel has always been advocate for improving the creative and technical standards in game day production in the professional sports industry. He has been an active member of the Information Display and Entertainment Association (IDEA) since 2003 and currently resides on the board as the GMA chairman.
Gina Rotolo, Marketing, PR & Booking Manager. Gina Rotolo will be responsible for creating and executing the building’s marketing, PR and branding efforts along with generating revenue through programming a variety of sports, concerts, live entertainment, corporate and private events. She brings more than 12 years of experience in the sports and entertainment arena to the stadium. Prior to joining the festival, Rotolo served as marketing and media relations director for the Texas Renaissance Festival and Sam Houston Race Park where she developed a variety of programming and partnerships for each property. Rotolo has worked with numerous music and entertainment festivals managing marketing and media relations for SXSW, Austin City Limits, Voo Doo Festival, the Texas Crawfish & Music Festival and the New Orleans Jazz Festival. In addition, she has managed marketing, public relations and sponsorship fulfillment for Super Bowl XXXVIII, the 2006 NBA All-Star Weekend, Big 12 College Football Championship Fan Fest, the 2005 Major League Baseball All-Star Game and the 2005 Astros National League Playoffs & World Series. Rotolo’s work includes coverage with major news outlets including the Today Show, Late Night with David Letterman, The Jay Leno Show, The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, USA Today, LA Times, Rolling Stone, SPIN, ABC’s Nightline, CNN and many other national business, entertainment and trade publications. She holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in art history/French with a minor in advertising/public relations from Texas Christian University.
Rodney Griffin, Turf and Grounds Manager. Rodney Griffin will be the Turf and Grounds Manager for BBVA Compass Stadium. In his role, he and his team will oversee the day-to-day management of the stadium grounds and field turf for the stadium and the Houston Amateur Sports Park training and practice facility. Griffin previously worked as the field manager for Reliant Park and the Houston Texans for 10 years in addition to participating for four years as part of the grounds crew for the Super Bowl. Prior to the Texans, he worked as a groundskeeper for the Houston Astros and the University of Houston, where he was a three year letterman on the UH football team.
Raul Gutierrez, Senior Manager of Guest Services & Security. Raul Gutierrez, Senior Manager of Guest Services and Security, comes to the BBVA Compass Stadium team after working with for other AEG facilities including the Nokia Theater and the Staples Center in Los Angeles as well as the Home Depot Center in Carson, Ca. In his role, Gutierrez will oversee the event security and guest services operations and staff with the primary goal of ensuring an outstanding customer experience across all stadium events. A native of Los Angeles, he began his career with the L.A. Dodgers and spent more than 20 years working in a variety of roles, including Assistant Manager of Security and Guest Services. In addition, Gutierrez opened the Nokia Theater in Los Angeles and worked at the Staples Center and through his tenure, worked on a variety of major sports and entertainment events including the World Series, MLS Cup, X-Games, NBA, NHL, USTA, USSF, Boxing, CONCACAF, Crossfit Games, Motorcross, Monster Trucks, a variety of concert events and the Republican Presidential Rally.
Amber Goodspeed, Senior Event Manager. Amber Goodspeed will serve as the Senior Event Manager for BBVA Compass Stadium where she and her team will be responsible for executing event operations for sporting, live entertainment, corporate and private events. Prior to joining the stadium team she was worked as an event manager with the Berry Center in Cypress, Texas, where she coordinated and assisted in booking events for Berry Center’s football stadium, arena, conference center and theatre. Previously Goodspeed spent five seasons with the Toyota Center serving as a liaison for Houston Rockets games and events, Houston Aeros games and a variety of private events and concerts. A native Houstonian, she received her bachelor’s degree in Sport Management and minor in business from Texas A&M University in 2006.
Jareel Combest, Manager of Operations. Jareel Combest will serve as Operations Manager for BBVA Compass Stadium where he and his team will be responsible for executing general operations for the stadium. Prior to joining the stadium team Combest worked as Assistant Athletics Director of Facilities and Operations at Rice University in the athletics department, where he coordinated day-to-day supervision of Athletic Facilities and Event Operations, managed athletics facility projects, facility scheduling and the department master schedule. Previously Combest spent four years at The University of Southern Mississippi Athletics in the athletics department as Assistant Director of Facilities and Event management. He has worked numerous Conference USA championships and NCAA championships, including serving as Tournament Manager for the 2011 Men’s Final Four. He holds a Bachelor of Science in Sports Administration with a minor in Business Administration from the University of Southern Mississippi.
David R. McKenzie, Manager of Facilities & Engineering. David McKenzie joins the BBVA Compass Stadium staff as the Manager of Facilities and Engineering where he and his team will be responsible for all mechanical, electrical and plumbing systems in the stadium. Previously, McKenzie worked with the Houston Astros for 13 years where he began work in the Astros Dome managing the HVAC department as the chief engineer and eventually moved over to Minute Maid Park with the team in 2000, where he worked his way up to Director of Engineering and Maintenance.
Jarrod Veal, Human Resources Manager. As Human Resources Manager, Jarrod Veal will be responsible for managing all human resource functions for both BBVA Compass Stadium and the Houston Dynamo. Veal has more than five years experience in human resources and has worked in various industries including healthcare, manufacturing and municipal government. He holds a bachelor’s degree in Organizational Leadership from the University of Houston.
BBVA Compass Stadium will be a state-of-the-art, open-air stadium designed to host Houston Dynamo matches and Texas Southern University football games as well as additional professional, collegiate and community sporting events, concerts, exhibitions, conventions and special events. Opening in May 2012, the 340,000-square foot, 22,000-seat stadium will be the first soccer-specific stadium in Major League Soccer located in a city’s downtown district. With its downtown location, the new stadium will be a part of a true ‘Stadium District,’ which includes Minute Maid Park and the Toyota Center, as well as the George R. Brown Convention Center, Discovery Green, Warehouse Live and House of Blues.
About AEG Facilities
AEG, a wholly owned subsidiary of the Anschutz Company, is the leading sports, entertainment and venue operator in the world. AEG Facilities, a stand-alone affiliate of AEG, owns, operates or consults with 100 of the industry’s preeminent venues worldwide, across five continents, and works in concert with affiliated AEG entities, including live event producer, AEG Live, AEG Global Partnerships and AEG Development to support the success of AEG venues across the globe. AEG owns, operates or provides services to venues including STAPLES Center (Los Angeles, Calif.), The Home Depot Center (Carson, Calif.), Nokia Theatre L.A. LIVE (Los Angeles, Calif.), Citizens Business Bank Arena (Ontario, Calif.), Valley View Casino Center (San Diego, Calif.) Sprint Center (Kansas City, Mo.), XL Center and Rentschler Field (Hartford, Conn.), The Rose Garden (Portland, Ore.), KeyArena (Seattle, Wash.), KFC YUM! Center (Louisville, Ky.), AmericanAirlines Arena (Miami, Fla.), AT&T Center (San Antonio, Tx.), Time Warner Cable Arena (Charlotte, N.C.), Prudential Center (Newark, N.J.), Target Center (Minneapolis, Minn.), Mercedes-Benz Arena (Shanghai, China), MasterCard Center (Beijing, China), The O2 Arena (London, England), O2 World (Berlin, Germany), O2 World Hamburg (Hamburg, Germany), Ahoy Arena (Rotterdam, Netherlands), Pernambuco Stadium (Recife, Brazil), Acer Arena (Sydney, Australia), Globe Arenas (Stockholm, Sweden), Turk Telekom Arena (Istanbul, Turkey) and the Qatar National Convention Centre (Doha, Qatar). For more information, please visit http://www.aegworldwide.com/.
