SAN JOSE, Calif.
– The San Jose Earthquakes announced today promotions and additions to the club’s executive staff, establishing the largest senior leadership group in club history. Working under the guidance of Earthquakes President Dave Kaval and Chief Operating Officer Jared Shawlee, the bolstered executive staff includes four members promoted from within the Earthquakes organization.
Jed Mettee
Executive Vice President
Jed Mettee is the longest tenured employee at the Earthquakes, joining the organization in 2001 as the manager of media relations. Mettee stayed with the club until the team relocated to Houston following the conclusion of the 2005 season. With the return of the franchise, he rejoined the team in March 2008 as the senior director of broadcasting and communications and was promoted to vice president of marketing and communications in February 2011.
During his tenure with the Quakes, Mettee has played an integral role in growing the Quakes in the Bay Area and was instrumental in opening Avaya Stadium in 2015. He initiated and implemented the 2014 rebrand, which saw the Quakes unveil a new crest and colors, brand constitution and three brand pillars – unity, devotion, heritage – at an unveil party in front of more than 4,000 fans. Under Mettee’s leadership, the Quakes won the 2012 MLS Public Relations Team of Year award.
With his new role, Mettee continues to oversee the club’s community relations, digital, marketing, media relations and merchandising efforts while assuming an oversight role in developing the new Quakes Academy complex.
Robert Davis
Vice President, Ticket Sales
Robert Davis originally joined the Earthquakes in April 2014 as the director of ticket sales. In his new role, Davis is responsible for new ticket sales and retention as he oversees the ticket sales and the fan relations departments.
With Davis on board, the Quakes sold out of season tickets for the 2015 and 2016 seasons and continued the momentum of the California Clasico at Stanford Stadium, reaching a record attendance of 50,816 in 2016. During the three years that Davis has been with the club, the Quakes have sent more than 10,000 members of the military to the California Clasico with the Operation Care and Comfort ticketing initiative. Davis also successfully instrumented the first annual Earthquakes High School Soccer Series in 2016, which featured men's and women's teams from 17 local high schools in the Bay Area competing in 12 fully-produced games at Avaya Stadium.
Amanda Farina-Morris
Vice President, Marketing
After joining the Quakes in September 2013 as the director of marketing, Amanda Farina-Morris joins the senior leadership group as the vice president of marketing. Farina-Morris played an integral role in the Quakes rebrand in 2014, working in conjunction with Mettee to execute the club’s marketing strategy.
In 2017, Farina-Morris oversees the one-to-one marketing strategy, in which the Quakes activate in the community to interact in-person with Quakes fans, highlighted by the jersey unveil party, the #MarchToSoccer week and Hall of Fame week. Farina-Morris also led the creation and implementation of the 2017 Earthquakes billboard campaign, which features Earthquakes Season Ticket Holders and players celebrating together, embodying the club's Forward As One slogan and showing that the organization, team and fans are unified.
Jess Olivares
Vice President, Finance and Administration
As the vice president of finance and administration, Jess Olivares oversees the finance, human resources, information technologies and legal departments. Olivares joined the Quakes in March 2013 as a senior financial manager and was promoted to director of finance and administration in January 2015.
During his tenure with the Quakes, Olivares implemented the club’s ERP system and created the financial reporting process. He also worked with Avaya to develop and implement the IT infrastructure at Avaya Stadium and helped to build the corporate network for the Earthquakes front office.
Jessica Smith
Vice President, Sponsorship
Jessica Smith joins the Earthquakes from the Columbus Blue Jackets of the National Hockey League where she served as the director of corporate development. Smith spent seven seasons at the Oakland Athletics prior to joining the Blue Jackets.
Smith brings diverse sponsorship experience and a history of record-breaking revenue generation to the Quakes. Within her experience with MLB and the NHL, she led initiatives to creative unique, impactful partnerships that were genuine to the team and community.
Richard Fedesco
Vice President, Business Operations and Analytics
Rounding out the executive staff is Richard Fedesco, vice president of business operations and analytics, who continues in his role with the club. Fedesco has streamlined stadium operations at Avaya Stadium to create a fan oriented experience and works to bring more world-class events, such as the 2018 FIFA World Cup Qualifier between the USA and Honduras, to the home of the Earthquakes.
