Journeys with Jocelyn - Yulander Wells

By Jocelyn Gates, Vice President at TurnkeyZRG

I’m so excited to highlight one of my best friends in this business. If you don’t know Yulander Wells, it’s time to get to know him! He serves this industry with heart, integrity, care and concern for our student-athletes and administrators, while making sure to have fun in the process!  

Yulander currently serves as the Deputy AD for Business Strategy at Notre Dame. Prior to Notre Dame, he served in several senior leadership positions in athletics at Harvard, University of South Florida, and the University of Florida.  

Yulander is from Chicago, IL, and went to North Central College in Naperville, IL where he was a two-sport student-athlete (Men’s Basketball & Track) where he received both his Bachelors and MBA. 

He understands this business and aspires to make it better each and every day. We need more people like Yulander serving our business in the way he does!  

Why did you get into college athletics? 

As a former collegiate student-athlete and I have fond memories of road trips, wins and losses, injuries, jokes on teammates, the parties, the comradery, but most importantly the friends for life I gained during my 4-year experience. I firmly believe in the co-curricular experience of academics and athletics being critical to the development of young people, whether it is through varsity competition, or recreational sports because so many essential skills are learned throughout the experience.

I’ve worked with young people since I was in high school beginning at the Chicago Park Districts, and although I did not know the impact it would have on me back then, I now know that it was because of that work that I am so passionate about this profession now. I am in collegiate athletics to help our higher education system holistically develop young people into well-rounded adults that want to do good for not just their families, but for all of humanity. I cannot think of another profession that would fulfill me like this does. 

You are new to Notre Dame Athletics, tell us about your role, and why it was the right fit for you. 

Serving as the Deputy AD for Business Strategy, I provide leadership for all elements of our business portfolio, ranging from having oversight of our Athletics business, finance, and IT office, facilities and events, along with of our revenue generating operations such as development, corporate partnerships, fan experience, marketing, ticketing and revenue innovation initiatives.  

Notre Dame was the right fit for me, because I believe in the values of the institution, my views on academic and athletic integration are completely aligned, the opportunity to learn from our Athletic Director, Jack Swarbrick as well as other leaders within the department and around campus, and by the way, it’s close to my hometown, Chicago. I attended St. Rita High School so I have always been fond and informed about Notre Dame. Monday morning announcements in homeroom included a run down of all the Notre Dame team scores from the weekend. I grew up with this place. 

As an administrator, did you face any barriers as you were growing the business? If so – how did you work through those? 

I absolutely have faced barriers growing in the business. We all do, and that is to be expected because we all have our own views and opinions, so it’s critical to make sure you work with people where candor is accepted, different views are appreciated, and mistakes are embraced. I have worked through the barriers by having a community of friends and colleagues inside and outside the business that are candid with me and always encouraging, and I also practice self-reflection.  

Talk about the importance of having a village of people within college athletics and what it means to you? 

I would not be where I am today, without the village. I am fortunate to have so many wonderful people across the industry that I can call and text anytime from anywhere in the country. Our industry is a family and there are moments we all get frustrated with family, but that’s also the reality of deep relationships. My relationships mean everything to me, and although life keeps us all busy, in my strongest relationships we know about each other’s families, special occasions, life challenges and success.

Beyond serving student-athletes, these relationships make the work, long hours, and some of the times away from my immediate family so worth it as we all navigate life.  

What thoughts or advice do you have for Black administrators on navigating predominantly white spaces?  

Be comfortable with yourself, embrace it, and do not feel like you have to speak for everyone who is Black. Your thoughts and your comments matter, and our colleagues deserve to hear and learn from our various perspectives. The student-athlete population is aspirational, diverse, and intelligent; therefore, we owe it to them and our industry to listen, lead, share, and always be authentic.      

What advice do you have for young administrators trying to break into college athletics?  

The advice I tell all young administrators trying to break into college athletics, is to invest in their own programming opportunities and do not hesitate to reach out to people in the industry. Let them know what you are trying to do. The time is perfect for young administrators to pursue college athletics as a profession.

It is evolving and many veteran administrators are beginning to pass the torch, therefore, stay focus on their goals and block out the noise. Our pillar of higher education is doing great things for young people everyday and will continue to do so as long as we have great people entering our industry with the right intentions. 

Favorite food? 

Chicken Wings, fried crispy!  

Favorite song? 

“What They Do” by The Roots (they are my favorite group) 

Favorite thing to do outside of work? 

Watch my children compete in their sports, travel, and discover new music 

Best professional opportunity you have taken part of? 

Dr. Charles Whitcomb Leadership Institute – Class of 2011 – this was such an amazing experience and I met so many great people and talented administrators throughout.  

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ABOUT TURNKEYZRG

Founded in 1996, TurnkeyZRG is a highly specialized talent recruitment/executive search firm filling C-level, senior-level and mid-management level positions throughout sports, entertainment, music and media. Over the past 25 years, TurnkeyZRG has filled more than 1,400 positions throughout sports, entertainment and media. TurnkeyZRG helps teams, leagues, stadiums, arenas, theaters, college athletic departments, events, sponsors, agencies, media companies, private equity companies and other clients identify, recruit and hire the very best management talent. Turnkey now benefits from ZRG’s global footprint, full array of industry practice groups, data-driven, analytical search tools, and technology investment in changing the way executive search/talent recruiting is done. TurnkeyZRG becomes a tech-enabled disrupter of the prior executive search model.