James is Partnerships Director at Aurora and was the first member of the company’s new development team when he joined 4.5 years ago. He was instrumental in setting up and establishing this important new function, tasked with driving new business opportunities for Aurora, in addition to managing and supporting existing clients. An ambitious yet humble team player, James brings dynamism and creativity to his work.
Since joining he has proven to be an invaluable asset, to Aurora and the sports rights’ owners and brands they work with. When James joined, he was the company’s sixth permanent employee. Navigating the pandemic, he was pivotal in the continued growth of the business. Despite challenging circumstances, he has contributed significantly to revenue and headcount growth, as well as widening the breadth of clients, all evidenced by unprecedented business results in 2021 & 2022.
James’s primary role is partnership development, winning new business opportunities for Aurora and developing relationships with current clients and partners. This has seen him work on sports’ productions in remote corners of the world including Senegal, Greenland and Saudi Arabia.
James’s success is in a large part down to his dynamic personality, attention to detail and indefatigable attitude. A real people person, with an infectious work ethic – no task is too big or complex for him to undertake. Whether it is putting in the long hours needed to produce winning pitch proposals, floor managing talent or jumping on a sound boom to help the team out on site, he doesn’t shy away.
A career highlight to date has been his involvement in helping to launch Extreme E, the off-road electric racing series raising awareness of environmental issues in fragile locations around the world. Standing on the Russell Glacier in Greenland, for the first ever live sports broadcast from the Arctic, witnessing first-hand the raw power of the climate crisis unfold with the glacier melting was a career defining moment.
Passionate about improving diversity and equality for the industry, James is involved as a mentor on the Diversity in the Business of Sport (DiBS) scheme. Equally important, he is also driving Auroras sustainability credentials through production initiatives, the Albert Sport Consortium and UN Sport for Climate Action framework.
Away from work James loves spending time with his family, playing with his overly active 9month little girl, watching cricket at Lord’s or private cheffing for some interesting clients.