Life and Work with Marisol Villagomez

Today we’d like to introduce you to Marisol Villagomez.

Marisol, let’s start with your story. We’d love to hear how you got started and how the journey has been so far.
My family arrived in Colorado from Mexico in 1989. Initially, I struggled to learn the language and get acclimated to our new home. In 1993 the Colorado Rockies arrived in Denver and we followed them; a Rockies game was my first professional sporting event and that first game was also the first time I stepped into Mile High Stadium.

It was the following year, in 1994 when I found myself captivated by the environment that sports created. And it was that year when I voiced to my dad that I wanted to work in sports. At the time, I had no idea what I wanted to do, but I knew that a stadium was a place for me. It was where I felt at home. As I look back, I think this was due to my struggles with getting acclimated. The way I saw it, in baseball, a strike was a strike and a home run counted for four bases, regardless of the language.

I slowly started following other sports and the one that I was completely in awe of, was football… American Football, to my family (soccer was the futbol we were used to). Church on Sundays looked very different during football season. Traffic on Federal Blvd was chaotic before and after the games. I wanted to be part of it. I learned the sport from my dad, who had experienced this phenom at least 20-years before I first did.

Then came hockey. Oh boy! The Avalanche and the first professional championship for the state. What a time to live in Colorado, The 90s were good to us. The back-to-back Broncos championships were special. I remember everything about those Super Bowls, everything from what time I woke up to what we did to celebrate. It truly was a magical time for Colorado professional sports.

In college, I decided to major in marketing and advertising. At the time, sports degrees were there, but not as big as they are now. And also, I wanted to make sure that I had something more general to fall back on, in the event that I ever decided that I was over sports. When the time came to start looking into internships, I again opted for a more general approach – I applied to advertising and marketing agencies. I wanted to learn as much as I could from them and hope that I could develop a diverse set of skills that could work with any agency.

I was fortunate to have had an incredible mentor during my time in agency. This woman took me under her wing and challenged me with meaningful projects as an intern. Toward the end of my internship, she secured a job with another agency and brought me along with her. Then the unexpected occurred… the Colorado Rockies posted a position that I felt I had been getting prepared for.

In March 2007, I joined the Colorado Rockies marketing and advertising team and that was the start of this incredible journey in professional sports. And in 2014, I joined the Denver Broncos marketing department. I feel incredibly blessed and grateful for the opportunity to work for two of my hometown’s professional teams.

Overall, has it been relatively smooth? If not, what were some of the struggles along the way?
It has definitely not been a smooth road – is it ever? I have struggled with the normal issues and concerns that any young professional deals with – moments of insecurity and lack of confidence.

The sports industry is not easy, it is a very demanding industry. There is a perceived glamour about the industry and so there are many times when people are surprised that we too have issues that other industries deal with, such as gender and pay gaps.

My biggest challenge came from a personal place. When my son was born, I had an extremely challenging time “justifying” the time I was spending away from him. It was the mom guilt I had heard about. I loved what I was doing in my career, but when it was weighed next to being a mom, things did not add up. I had so many plans for what I wanted to accomplish on a professional level, but all of that ambition changed slightly. I love the Colorado Rockies and I wanted to give them my best and I found myself in a place where I felt that I was no longer able to give them my 100% and so it was time for a change.

I took a five-month break from sports and then the Broncos called with an offer that I had only imagined in my dreams. Looking back, I think that I was burned out. The break was what I needed to refocus and also to just reorganize my life, personally and professionally.

My advice to women is to go after what you want, but also to listen to your gut. Your body, heart and soul will tell you what you need. There are so many expectations to do it all that we forget to stop and think about what we really want and most importantly, what we need.

Please tell us more about your work.
I am the senior marketing manager for the Denver Broncos. In my role, I support the marketing department with all initiatives. I am responsible for all programs and initiatives aimed at reaching specific affinity groups; women, kids and Latinos.

Due to my passion, many would say that I specialize in multicultural marketing. This is also what sets me apart. I have always had an interest in multicultural marketing. When I was in college, it was thought of as a niche specialty and now more and more it is a specialty that is in high demand.

What advice would you give to someone at the start of her career?
The most important piece of advice I would give a young woman just starting her career is to know your value. In every sense of the word. Know what you are bringing to the table. Know what you are willing to deal with and what is a deal-breaker.

Image Credit:
Marisol Villagomez

Suggest a story: VoyageDenver is built on recommendations from the community; it’s how we uncover hidden gems, so if you or someone you know deserves recognition please let us know here.