DraftKings brings in ex-Uber and Salesforce head as chief people officer
Linda Aiello becomes the latest addition to the executive leadership team after the arrival of Lori Kalani as chief responsible gaming officer in April
DraftKings has added former Uber and Salesforce exec Linda Aiello as the group’s new chief people officer (CPO).
Aiello joins the Boston-based firm after a spell as CPO at Qurate Retail Group, having joined the Pennsylvania-based firm in November 2022.
Prior to that, she spent 12 months as chief people and culture officer with fashion brand Stitch Fix.
Aiello also counts a five-year spell with Salesforce on her CV, having joined as VP of employee success in September 2016.
In February 2018, she was named SVP of international employee success before being promoted to EVP for employee success in April 2020. She left Salesforce in November 2021.
The new exec, who will be joining the igaming industry for the first time, also has HR experience with Jimmy Choo, Louis Vuitton and Moët Hennessy.
In her role as DraftKings CPO, Aiello will be responsible for all of the operator’s people strategies, with a core focus on talent acquisition, employee experience, diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI), and growth and development.
She will replace Graham Walters who has stepped up to become a senior advisor to the operator.
Walters first joined DraftKings in July 2015 as a HR director after moving from TripAdvisor. He then proceeded to rise up the ranks at the company, becoming a senior HR director in March 2017.
March 2018 saw Walters named VP of people before being named CPO in March 2019.
Aiello’s addition to DraftKings’ senior leadership team comes weeks after the firm appointed its first chief responsible gaming officer in the shape of Lori Kalani.
Kalani was previously a partner at the Cozen O’Connor law firm as well as co-chair of the State Attorneys General practice.
Jason Robins, DraftKings CEO, took the opportunity to welcome both Aiello and Kalani as well as give thanks to the outgoing Walters.
He said: “We are thrilled to announce two new additions to our executive leadership team.
“Lori will further advance our responsible gaming initiatives and uphold our commitment to setting new industry standards. At the same time, Linda will focus on enhancing our talent acquisition, enabling employee development, and driving operational excellence.
“I’d also like to thank Graham Walters, who joined DraftKings in 2015. Over the years, he has been invaluable in cultivating our tremendous company culture as a fantastic CPO,” Robins added.
In other DraftKings news, the operator giant has snapped up odds and pricing specialists Sports IQ in an undisclosed deal.
A company spokesperson confirmed the move to EGR yesterday, May 9, after Sports IQ CEO Omer Dor announced the deal on LinkedIn.
Dor founded the Vancouver-based firm in 2018 alongside three his three colleagues, Matthew Belzberg, Jose Alfaro, and Andrew Schwartz.
Arnold Ash is EGR’s Executive Recruitment Partner. They support ambitious organisations to identify and attract industry leading executive talent. Find out more here.