The Suns announced today the promotion of Jay Parry to Senior Vice President of Brand and Business Development for the club and added additional responsibilities to two veteran executives. Ralph Marchetta adds the title of Senior Vice President of Suns Ticket Operations, continuing as General Manager of Sports and Entertainment Services which manages US Airways Center. Senior Vice President of Marketing Partnerships Lynn Agnello will add Suite Sales and Service to her current role with the team.
“The new assignments announced today create one of the most experienced and talented senior business teams to be found anywhere in sports and entertainment,” said Rick Welts, President and CEO of the Phoenix Suns. “The characteristics that made Jay so successful with the Mercury will now be expanded across the entire organization. Ralph and Lynn have shown their ability to excel as their management responsibilities have grown, and the three of them together are a formidable team.”
As Senior Vice President of Brand and Business Development, Parry will oversee the day to day operations of Ticket Sales, Premium Seats, Suns Digital Media, CRM and Database Marketing, Public Relations, Marketing and Community Relations departments.
For the past seven years, Parry served as President and Chief Operating Officer for the Phoenix Mercury and has been responsible for overseeing all business operations. Under Parry’s leadership, the organization won two WNBA championships (2007, 2009) and has posted significant business growth in the areas of corporate partnerships and acquiring new fans. Parry was also a driving force behind the Mercury’s development of an innovative alliance with Lifelock that resulted in the first-ever corporate-branded jersey in WNBA or NBA history.
Marchetta has been with the organization since March 1992, before the opening of America West Arena, as an event manager and entered the world of booking in 1996. He was named Vice President of Entertainment in 2002 before assuming the General Manager role for US Airways Center in 2007. Marchetta is responsible for bringing some of the most prestigious concerts to the Valley including The Police, Eric Clapton, U2, George Strait. He also secured long-term relationships with Feld Entertainment (Ringling Bros and Barnum Bailey Circus, Disney on Ice shows) and concert promoter Live Nation.
Agnello is entering her 10th season with the Suns as Senior Vice President of Marketing Partnerships for the Phoenix Suns and Phoenix Mercury. She has built an unprecedented discipline of full-service sales and activation, generating revenue through partnership packages which include broadcasts in HD, digital media, radio, cable, print, website, signage, and promotional elements. As the only local professional sports team controlling and marketing all its own media and promotional assets, she leads the franchise’s relationships with over 100 marketing partners. She joined the organization in 2001.
