YNS Live with NFL Thread Ashley Smith

Listen to a new episode of YNS Live with NFL Thread with hosts Juliet Hahn and Cynthia Zordich featuring special guest Ashley Smith.   The 2023 season marks Ashley Smith’s 6th season in the football industry and 3rd in the NFL. Currently she serves as Manager, Player Engagement for the National Football League. Smith works within the Football Operations department and heads up the league’s programming geared towards the personal and professional development of current and former NFL players. She oversees programs such as the Career Tours, Broadcasting & Media Workshop, Real Estate Workshop, Personal Branding & Social Workshop, and more. Additionally, Smith serves as a co-lead of the NFL Women’s Community that serves as a central platform for resources, events, programs, and initiatives that support and champion women involved in the game. Ashley and her Women’s Community co-lead, Cesley Tafoya, work to streamline communication and amplify resources that support the personal and professional development, health & wellness, and cross-collaborative engagement of women in the NFL family. Prior to joining the National Football League, Smith spent a summer interning with the Kansas City Chiefs in their inaugural Norma Hunt Player Personnel Fellowship Program. In this program, Smith assisted the General Manager and player personnel staff in evaluating players, trimming the team’s roster, and practice operations. Before transitioning out of intercollegiate athletics, Smith served as the Assistant Athletic Director of Player Development for the Tennessee Football Program in 2021. In this role, she spearheaded the football program’s programming in the areas of leadership development, personal enhancement, community outreach, and career and professional development. Smith worked at the University of Tennessee for a total of five years. During this time, she worked for both the football and student-athlete development departments. From June 2013 to July 2016, Smith worked in the Championships & Alliances department at the National Collegiate Athletic Association. Her time there began as a postgraduate intern and then developed into an assistant coordinator position. Smith had the opportunity to work a total of 19 national championships across Divisions I, II, and III. While assisting with the planning and execution of these events, Smith’s duties and responsibilities consisted of creating championship manuals, working with national sport committees, developing social media strategies, event operations, etc. Smith graduated from the University of Tennessee in 2013 with a bachelor’s degree in marketing and collateral in entrepreneurship. She worked as a student manager for the Lady Vols Basketball Program for four years. During that time, she had the opportunity to work with the late Pat Summit and assisted the coaches and staff in recruiting, administrative, and operational capacities. She earned her master’s degree in Sports Management from the University of Florida in 2017.   Remarkable Quotes   “Continue to show up, continue to share, because you never know how you're inspiring other women. You never know how you're helping the woman that's sitting beside you.”  Sponsor   The YNS Live With NFL Thread Super Bowl Experience is sponsored by Shutterstock Editorial.  Wherever you go - Shutterstock is there to capture it!   Contact Shutterstock at assigments@shutterstock.com and take the field with Shutterstock’s award-winning photography superstars.   Find Us Online! Fireside: Juliet Hahn | Cynthia Zordich Instagram: Juliet Hahn | Cynthia Zordich | NFL Thread LinkedIn: Juliet Hahn | Cynthia Zordich FB: Juliet Hahn | NFL Thread Clubhouse: Juliet Hahn YouTube: Juliet Hahn Twitter: Juliet Hahn | Cynthia Zordich | NFL Thread

Om Podcasten

YNS Live with NFL Thread is a Fireside Show with Co-Hosts Juliet Hahn CCO and founder of Your Next Stop and Cynthia Zordich founder of NFL Thread that offers a transparent look into the the stories of the NFL Spouses. We dive into the businesses, brands, efforts and extraordinary lives of NFL Women.    YNS Live with NFL Thread PIVOT, a new show brought to you by YNS Live with NFL Thread recorded live on Fireside with hosts Juliet Hahn and Cynthia Zordich. They dive into new chapters, inviting NFL players and spouses to join them on Fireside to share their story of transition. Football is more than just a sport; it is a way of life. From the grittiness of practice and strategy sessions to the thrill of game days and the power of cheering crowds, football is the glue that holds a professional player's life together. But what happens when you have to face life after football? What happens when the clock runs out? The adjustment to life without football can be traumatic. Some players are prepared and make a seamless transition. Others struggle to make sense of a life that no longer seems to have meaning. Some of them think themselves forever young, forever able to tackle and block and run, not only indestructible but immortal. What they all have in common is that one day they will be separated from the game, and when that happens - they may or may not be ready for it. Likely, the latter.