UTA Acquires Executive Search Firm James & Co.
UTA said today it has acquired James & Co., a New York-based executive search and consulting firm working in the sports, media, entertainment, digital and consumer sectors.
Financial terms weren’t disclosed.
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Founders Michele James and Roysi Erbes, will continue to co-lead the company as a new division within UTA, building out the agency’s capabilities across entertainment, sports and business.
UTA’s expansion has included partnering with sports representation firm Klutch and acquisitions of corporate advisory firm MediaLink, the UK’s Curtis Brown Group, and publishing agency Fletcher & Co.
With the transaction, the executive search team at MediaLink will become part of the new division at UTA.
“Over the past two decades, James & Co. has gained enormous trust and respect from high-level clients across the worlds of sports, entertainment and more. Michele and Roysi are a great fit with UTA’s collaborative and entrepreneurial culture, and their expertise is unrivaled. It’s exciting to welcome them and their team to UTA as we help even more clients find and empower their most important assets – their people,” said Andrew Thau, UTA’s COO and co-head of UTA Sports.
James and Erbes said UTA’s shared expertise and “our aligned cultures, presents a unique opportunity to create a force multiplier effect. We have partnered with UTA many times over the years and are looking forward to joining the UTA family to continue to be a positive catalyst for building businesses and careers.”
The duo founded James & Co. in 2002. It offers executive search, performance management, organizational design, and transactional assistance globally. Clients include sports teams and professional leagues, entertainment companies and other Fortune 500 organizations.
Michael Kassan, CEO of MediaLink, commented: “Executive search is an important strategic offering for MediaLink partners, and this acquisition will catapult us to even greater heights.”
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