When billionaire investor and Dallas Mavericks owner Mark Cuban recruited and hired Mavericks CEO Cynt Marshall in 2018, there were risks on both sides. Having no experience in the basketball or sports industry, Marshall voiced her doubts about the Shark Tank star.
But Cuban’s positivity and words of encouragement made it hard to pass up the offer, she said. Marshall recalled her first conversation with Cuban in a video interview for LinkedIn’s The Path.
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At the time, Marshall was working at her own consulting firm, having previously come from AT&T where she has held a variety of leadership roles including Chief Diversity Officer and Senior VP of HR over a 30-year career.
“I thought twice about it because I loved what I was doing with counseling,” Marshall recalled. “But here was an opportunity to serve, to make a difference.”
Marshall said she “doesn’t know the business of basketball” and wasn’t sure what to do. But when she expressed her concern to Cuban, she was met with understanding and the necessary support, she said.
“You don’t worry about that. I’ll teach you the business side of basketball, and others will do the same,” he told her.
At the time of her hiring, there were women or people of color in leadership positions in the Mavericks organization. Marshall is the first female CEO in Mavericks history. Per LinkedInthe organization is now almost half women and half black.
“You don’t know what you don’t know,” Marshall explained. “I’ll never know what some of these people know about the basketball business, but I don’t need to know. I learn from it every day. What I have to do is lead these people, learn from these people and love these people.”
She added that Cuban kept his promise.
Cuban net worth is valued at $6.47 billion.
