From Wall Street to Turf Moor: lessons in winning from Burnley FC Director Stuart Hunt

The backstory – a drive to win

From an early age, Stuart was a keen sportsman. Influenced by his Peruvian mother, he started playing soccer, but his desire to get bigger, faster and stronger soon led him to American football and later Lacrosse. At university, where he met his wife, he won two national Lacrosse championships – a clear sign that Stuart liked to win.

His competitive nature wasn’t limited to sports. He wanted to be on Wall Street, making deals and achieving success. He studied business finance and took investment courses, but  as he emphasised to the students, the key to his business success was the communication classes he took. Stuart highlighted how critical it is to know how to communicate with others and get your point across with clarity. He also shared that although he studied finance, his friends took philosophy and literature classes and their analytical and thinking skills were equally sought after by the same firms. This underlined his message that there are many ways to get to where you want to be; you just have to strive to be the best in the room.

From his first job at Chase Manhattan in New York (later JP Morgan) he moved to Dallas, Texas, where he was modelling bond funds. Self-reflection helped him realise that he needed to move to another company – one where he could actively invest and wasn’t limited by the remuneration policy.

The values – integrity and endeavour

Further self-reflection in the interview allowed Stuart to share the two values that he holds close. As a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints these are rooted in his Christian beliefs. He gave a compelling example of demonstrating integrity when a brand approached the football club about sponsorship. He turned down what would have been a record-breaking deal because the company’s reputation was not aligned with his values. He also emphasised the need to work hard. On the pitch as a lacrosse player, nobody outworked him, and this relentless work ethic has stayed with him in his business career.

The football club – building a winning culture

In January 2021, Stuart became Director of Burnley Football Club and moved to the UK in summer 2023. Alongside driving up revenue and profit, his role involves helping change the club’s culture. A student asked what makes a high performing culture and the subsequent discussion highlighted that, as in a sports team, you need people who will help to elevate each other, a safe space to develop, individuals willing to take risks and share new ideas, and positive goals that unite everyone.

The students were also keenly interested in the way Stuart has navigated necessary changes to ticket price, the creation of a fan advisory board, and the club’s wider impact on the local town.

The real-life challenge

Following the talk, Stuart set the students a real-life challenge: to examine two current business challenges that face the club, including how to engage younger fans. He eagerly awaits their innovative ideas!

Key takeaways

Stuart shared two key pieces of advice he would have given to himself at age 16. 1. Be humble and remember where you came from. This enables you to connect with people and will help you do a lot of good. 2. Be the person you want others to be.

We caught up with two students to hear about their personal gains from the talk:

“It has been a great insight into how someone can continuously strive for more and achieve success in many different areas.”

“I was inspired by Mr. Hunt’s story of how he has achieved success, the sources of his motivation, and the importance of his core values in everything that he does”.