One of the Most Powerful Figures in American Sports
Jamie McCourt joined the Los Angeles Dodgers as Vice Chairman on February 13, 2004, was named President of the club on August 12, 2005, and was named CEO March 17, 2009. An attorney of 30 years who also earned an MBA from MIT, Jamie is a visiting professor at UCLA’s Anderson School of Management, an inspirational voice for women, a philanthropist, and a mother of four boys. She is the highest-ranking woman in Major League Baseball and serves on the MLB Enterprises Board of Directors.
A conscience-driven business leader, Jamie has applied to her work the passion she has for the game she loved as a child and the game that holds so much promise to unify families, connect generations, and bring people together from all walks of life. Above all, she values relationships.
“I am convinced that baseball is tied to family values,” she says, “It is classic Americana, and it is the National Pastime for a reason. We are focused on strengthening our ties to families.”
Blending business development, financial acumen, and marketing savvy with a family atmosphere, a compassionate operation, and a fan-friendly attitude, the Dodgers under her leadership have drawn their top three season attendance totals and have twice advanced to postseason play. The Dodgers in 2008 advanced to the National League Championship Series for the first time in 20 years.
Over the past three seasons, Jamie has rebuilt the front office, appointed new leaders, and instilled a fresh, positive, values-driven culture in the organization, based on vision, integrity, social responsibility, family, accountability, a can-do attitude, and excellence.
In 2008, Jamie led the club’s season-long celebration of the 50th Anniversary of the Dodgers’ move to Los Angeles. The historic year started with a New Year’s float in the Tournament of Roses Parade, followed by MLB’s first games ever played in China, and a charity exhibition game at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum in March to benefit ThinkCure! The event drew a Guinness World Record of 115,300, the largest crowd to ever attend a professional baseball game. During the season, the club honored its illustrious alumni, received a Star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, enjoyed a musical tribute three nights at the Hollywood Bowl, and received an Emmy Award.
Among Jamie’s innovations is DodgersWIN, a Women’s Initiatives Network that brings women closer to the game, brings the game closer to women’s lifestyles, and helps inspire women to use their voices. To that end, she is an Executive Producer of the documentary, “Carissa,” the story of a young woman’s rise to success from a life on the streets. In 2009, WISE (Women in Sports and Events) named Jamie one of three “Women of the Year” for her leadership and service as a voice for women.
Also in 2009, Jamie is leading the effort to establish a unique Zip Code for Dodger Stadium and its environs that will make it Dodgertown, California. The new number is expected to be announced by the Postmaster General in the spring.
Vowing “to make a difference in people’s lives,” Jamie focuses the Dodgers’ community efforts on four primary areas: recreation, education, health, and the environment. Each has its own marquee program:
- Dodgers Dreamfields: The Dodgers Dream Foundation has committed to build 50 Dodgers Dreamfields for children, with 8 complete and 42 to go.
- Dodgers Scholars: The Dodgers Dream Foundation provides the Jackie Robinson Foundation with more than $100,000 annually to send 42 Dodgers Scholars to college each year.
- ThinkCure!: The Dodgers created and help fund this innovative effort that accelerates collaborative research to cure cancer.
- Think Blue, Act Green: The Dodgers and their partners have created initiatives to improve the environment, such as the Dodgers Trolley that provides rides between Union Station and Dodger Stadium to fans who take the train and leave their cars at home.
At the heart of her community spirit is a passion for education. “I believe in education’s ability to empower,” she says. “Whether it is to gain employment, achieve advancement, or to address the fundamental need to use your voice, education is the great equalizer.”
Falling in love with Los Angeles immediately upon her arrival in 2004, Jamie immersed herself in civic culture, and serves on the Executive Committee of the Los Angeles Chamber of Commerce, the Boards of the Coalition for Economy and Jobs in Los Angeles (The Los Angeles Coalition), the Los Angeles Business Council, the Los Angeles Sports Council, LA INC, the Convention & Visitors Bureau, ThinkCure!, and the Honorary Advisory Council of Stand Up to Cancer.
In 2004, Governor Schwarzenegger appointed her to serve on the California Governor’s Council on Physical Fitness.
Jamie also has the distinction of being an Honorary Member of the Los Angeles Rotary Club—only the second woman to have been bestowed the honor in the club’s 100-year history.
Admitted to the bars of Massachusetts and New York, as well as the District Courts for the Eastern and Southern districts of New York, Jamie first practiced law in New York, where she specialized in international and securities law. She then moved to Boston and practiced corporate, real estate, and family law. She spent the next ten years in commercial real estate development with the family business.
At the MIT Sloan School of Management, Jamie serves as a member of the Visiting Committee and the North America Executive Board. At the UCLA Anderson School of Management, she serves on the Executive Committee and teaches “The Pursuit of Leadership: A Female Perspective.” At the Pardee RAND Graduate School, she serves on the Board of Governors.
As a philanthropist, she serves on the Board of Trustees of the Los Angeles County Museum of Art and has been honored numerous times, including receipt of the SCOPUS Award from the American Friends of Hebrew University in Jerusalem.
Jamie earned her B.S. degree in French from Georgetown University. She holds a diploma from La Sorbonne at the University of Paris. She received her J.D. from the University of Maryland School of Law and spent a semester of law school abroad at Hebrew University. She then earned her M.S. (MBA) degree in management from the MIT Sloan School of Management, with a concentration in both organizational learning and corporate finance.
An avid swimmer who grew up in Baltimore, Maryland, Jamie resides in Los Angeles with her husband Frank. They were named the Los Angeles Business Journal’s “Power Couple of the Year” in 2008 and received the “Heart of the City” Award from the Central City Association of Los Angeles. They have four sons, Drew, Travis, Casey, and Gavin.
