Women in Sports - Robyn Miller, Tennis Channel

The Cornell ILR Sports Business Society is pleased to present our "Women in Sports" series. In recent years, powerful women (led by many Cornell Alumnae) have advanced the role of women in the sports world. We will be featuring the stories of individuals from across the industry, in various stages of their careers, who have made an impact in sports.

Robyn Miller is the focus of this week's edition of Women in Sports. Miller is a 1973 graduate of Cornell University, where she earned her Bachelor's degree in French Literature and Linguistics. She currently serves (no pun intended) as the Senior Vice President of Marketing for Tennis Channel. Robyn was kind enough to speak to the Cornell ILR SBS Blog about her career and much more.


Why did you go to Cornell? What did you study at Cornell?

I had studied French from 4th grade up through high school and found I had a real affinity and growing love for the language. The Romance Languages department was very strong at Cornell, and I was so thrilled to be the first in my family to be admitted to an Ivy League School! My Major was French Language and Linguistics, and I loved every minute of it.

Did you know you wanted to work in sports while at Cornell?

Hell no! I was always one of the last to be picked for sports teams and I didn’t make the Cheerleader squad because I couldn’t do a cartwheel to save my life. Need I say more?

Could you describe your current role?

I’ve been Senior Vice President of Marketing here at Tennis Channel for about 7 ½ years. Tennis Channel is a digital television network that’s in about 35 million homes across the U.S. (In fact, I hope the cable system in Ithaca carries us!). I’m in charge of all advertising, promotion, branding, creative and publicity for the network, basically any initiative that involves generating awareness and tune-in to our programming. 

I oversee all marketing. Not just to our viewers and website users, but also to our advertisers and distributors. I supervise an amazing, talented staff of 20, and as a live sports network with tournaments on our air 51 weeks per year, we have to be very nimble day-in-and-day-out. There’s never a dull moment!

How did you get to where you are today?

One of my first jobs was as a Coordinator in the International department of Max Factor Cosmetics, and it was there that I caught the marketing bug. I thought how cool it would be to travel internationally (and show off my French at the same time LOL). At that point I also realized a higher education was in order so that I could further hone my marketing skills. I got my MBA from UCLA Anderson School, specializing in International Marketing. I ended up working in International Marketing for the next 20 years, first with Max Factor and then at the Walt Disney Company. 

It was at Disney where I truly earned my marketing chops, moving up the ranks in the International Home Entertainment division for close to 17 years. I traveled extensively to almost every Disney office on the planet and to this day am so grateful for that experience! At a certain point however, I wanted to experience a bit more entrepreneurial, less corporate environment, and that’s where my first cable job, Fine Living (3 ½ years) and now Tennis Channel, came in.

What are your thoughts on the role of gender in the sports industry?

Obviously there are gender issues at play in every industry, not just sports. In fact, after all these years, it’s appalling that women still earn less than their male counterparts in almost every arena of business. Speaking only of tennis however, I’m proud that it’s an even playing field. The Women’s purse for our Grand Slam winners is equal to the Men’s, as it should be!

How has the industry changed since when you started?

I started at Tennis Channel in 2007, where we had our linear network and a website, www.tennischannel.com. Today we have a robust mobile application, our “Tennis Channel Everywhere” App and our enhanced “Tennis Channel Plus” for our biggest fans. The ubiquitousness of various sports platforms has been a true technology game changer for the entire industry. Now our viewers have the freedom to access our live coverage from wherever they are, whether it be via mobile, on their ipad, on their laptop. And that’s great for Tennis Channel.

Do you have any advice for students, particularly young women, who would like to work in sports?

I hope it doesn’t sound pithy, but I encourage women to follow their passion. What I mean is, what is it that turns you on most in your life, and how can you parlay that interest into a career that will give you satisfaction? Understand that there will be many diverse curves along the way, but that shouldn’t deter you. My passion was French, and that interest led to my passion for Marketing. Importantly, you do not have to play sports to be in sports, and I’ m the poster child for that!

What's your favorite part about working in sports?

Watching Rafa or Roger from my seat at the French Open while exercising my now rusty French doesn’t suck!

What do you most miss about your time at Cornell?

I live in Southern California, so it’s NOT the weather!!! Of course I miss the amazing friendships I made with so many people during my time there. And just the experience of being in this quite magical place for four years and feeling very blessed to be a part of it.

We sincerely appreciate alumnae like Robyn who take the time to share their experiences with us. "Women in Sports" is only possible through the efforts of industry leaders and students alike. We wish to thank all of the alumni who make the Sports Business Society such a valuable organization for so many Cornellians and others interested sports.

Is Andy Murray Making The Leap?

Andy Murray

Tennis is an intensely psychological sport. In a singles match, a player is completely on his own without any guidance or instruction from a coach. One of the most important characteristics required of any great tennis champion is an unwavering belief in one’s ability to succeed. Winning a point or game can help a player believe that he has a good chance of winning the match. Similarly, winning a major tournament gives a player the confidence that he is capable of winning more tournaments in the future and the resulting snowball effect can lead to many years of success. On the other hand, confidence can be very fragile in tennis. Losing a point can be difficult to overcome and losing a championship can be devastating. Andy Murray attained that ever so important confidence this summer and that explains why he was able to win an Olympic gold medal in London and his first Grand Slam title at the US Open.

17 players have made five Grand Slam finals in the Open Era, which began in 1968. A player who has made a Grand Slam final five times in their career has clearly demonstrated that he possesses the talent and the consistency to be a great champion. Of the aforementioned 17 players, 14 of them have won at least four major championships. The other three are Ilie Nastase, recently retired Andy Roddick (who could not win more because of the steady dominance of Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal era) and Andy Murray who may be on the verge of a career breakthrough. The 25-year-old Murray has exhibited the mental fortitude to overcome tough losses, as he is currently playing his best tennis despite losing four finals early in his career. Now it seems that he truly believes he can beat Nadal, Federer, and Novak Djokovic (the three players with the most titles currently on tour), an attitude that allowed him to achieve a great deal of success this summer. The door is wide open for Murray, as Nadal is currently having major knee issues and Federer is not the dominant force he once was.

As I mentioned earlier, the inner belief in one’s ability to succeed is vital to consistently performing at a championship level. If Murray can win four grand slams by the time his career is over after struggling to win one for so long, he would have completed a remarkable turnaround. He has the perfect mentor to help him undergo this reversal in Ivan Lendl. Lendl can relate to Murray because he struggled similarly in grand slam finals at the start of his career, as he also lost his first four finals. He ultimately became one of the best to ever play the game, winning eight grand slam championships, tied for sixth most of all time.

The 2012 U.S. Open Champion

Other than Lendl and Andre Agassi (who lost his first three finals and also went on to win eight), most players who lost their first two Grand Slam finals struggled to recover. Seven of the other nine guys who lost in their first two Grand Slam championships either never made it back to the finals or are still playing and haven’t made it back yet. Andy Murray proved at the U.S. Open last week and at the Olympics this summer that he has recovered from his early defeats. Based on the performances of other players who made five grand slam finals in their careers, Murray could be primed for a few years of major success and he has the perfect coach in Lendl to guide him on the way. Murray avoided becoming the first player to lose his first 5 major championships; instead, he seems ready to ascend to a new level of greatness.