The CATZ Advisory Board serves as trusted advisors to CATZ as we grow our business. These individuals provide us with the benefit of their expertise in the fields of business, sports and franchising.

Jane Blalock
With 27 LPGA Tour victories and recognition by the LPGA as one of the Top 50 women’s players in Tour history, Jane Blalock is among the most successful golfers in the history of the game.  She is the author of two books on golf and is a commentator for ESPN and NBC Sports.  Blalock continues to play professionally as a founding member of the Women’s Senior Golf Tour.

Blalock is also the Founder and President of the Jane Blalock Company (JBC), a sports event marketing and management company.  Founded in 1987, JBC manages the Women’s Senior Golf Tour, LPGA Golf Clinics for Women, and The Jane Blalock Golf Academy.  As the only national, woman-owned golf event management and marketing firm, JBC has established a national reputation for producing top quality, innovative golf events for a variety of Fortune 500 clients.

Susan Byrne
Susan Byrne is the Director of Marketing and Community Relations for the Boston Bruins.  As member of the Bruins management team for 18 seasons, Byrne oversees all marketing initiatives, game operations, special events and community relations for the hockey club.  She founded and developed the Bruins Wives Charity Carnival, which has raised more than $2 million for local charities.  Previously, she worked at The New England Sports Network (NESN) and has taught Sports Marketing courses at Salem State College and Northeastern University.  Byrne serves on the Board of Directors for the Boston Bruins Foundation, the Bay State Games, and MetroLacrosse.  She is also a member of the Marketing Advisory Committee for US Lacrosse.

Byrne graduated with honors from Colgate University, where she was a member of the lacrosse team.

Richard Diehl Jr., M.D.
Richard Diehl Jr. is private practicing orthopedic surgeon in Pasadena, CA with a special interest in sports medicine and reconstructive joint surgery.  Dr. Diehl founded the University of Southern California (USC) Department of Sports Medicine.  He served as Team Physician for the USC Athletic Department for 20 years.  Dr. Diehl is a member of the American Academy of Orthopedic Surgery and a founding member of the Pasadena Professional Sports Care Medical Clinic.

Diehl is a graduate of Harvard University, where he played varsity football, and the Univeristy of Pittsburgh Medical School.

David F. Hurwitt
David Hurwitt has more than thirty years of multi-industry, multi-national (US, UK & France) marketing and management experience; he has run businesses and built brands in both the packaged goods and service industries. Hurwitt began his business career at General Foods, where he spent 26 years in both marketing and general management roles. His most senior assignment was as Corporate VP, Marketing & Communications and he also ran the company’s $600 million Post Cereal Division.

After General Foods, Hurwitt served as Senior Vice President, Marketing for Flagstar, a $3.7 billion food service company which owned Denny’s, Quincy’s, el Pollo Locco and was also the largest franchisee of Hardee’s Food Systems. In this role, he was the marketing leader for more than 2,500 quick service and mid-scale restaurants, overseeing a $100 million marketing budget.

Hurwitt has spent the last nine years consulting with both large and small companies, improving their understanding of their customers and their competitive effectiveness in identifying and resolving management and strategic issues. His clients have ranged from American Express and the United States Postal Service to small manufacturers and service companies. He is presently President and Owner of Renaissance Executive Forums of Southwestern Connecticut.

Hurwitt earned both a BA and an MBA from Harvard University.

William Savel
Savel has been CEO of four companies: Baskin-Robbins Worldwide, General Cinema Beverage Company, Peter Paul Cadbury and Alta Dena Dairy. He also ran several divisions for the Nestle Company. As CEO of Baskin Robbins, Savel grew the company to 3,400 franchise locations in 43 countries around the world. He has taught strategic management at both Babson College and Claremont College.

Savel recieved his MBA from the Wharton School and his undergraduate degree from the University of Massachusetts Amherst.

Robert Scalise
Scalise is currently the Director of Athletics at Harvard University, where he manages the nation’s largest Division I athletics program with 41 varsity sports, two dozen junior varsity teams, more than 1,500 intercollegiate athletes, and a broad array of wellness and recreation programs and facilities. In just three years as Director of Athletics, Scalise has seen Harvard win six national team championships and 18 Ivy League titles. Prior to being named Director of Athletics, Scalise was Associate Dean and Senior Executive Officer of the Harvard Business School, where he oversaw an annual budget of $200 million and managed 15 direct reports, and was Director of Recruiting for Bain & Company. Along with his business background, Scalise has extensive ties to Ivy League athletics as an All-American lacrosse player at Brown and later as head coach of the Harvard men’s lacrosse and women’s soccer programs. As head coach of men’s lacrosse, he led Harvard to the 1980 Ivy League Championship and coached 17 All-Americans. As the first coach of women’s soccer at Harvard, he won three Ivy League Championships and gained two NCAA tournament berths.

Scalise is a graduate of Brown University and Harvard Business School.

JoJo White
White, a standout player on two Boston Celtic World Championship teams, is currently the Celtics Director of Special Projects and Community Relations. In this role with the Celtics, White has a wide range of responsibilities within the Marketing, Community Relations and Basketball Operations departments. White spent ten seasons with the Celtics, averaging 18.3 points per game. He played key roles in Boston’s run to both the 1974 and 1976 World Championships, finishing with a 21.5 career playoff scoring average. He played 60 minutes in the Celtics historic triple-overtime win over the Phoenix Suns on the Boston Garden’s parquet floor in the 1976 NBA Finals, and was later named the The Finals Most Valuable Player. White is still remembered as one of the most durable Celtics, as his streak of 488 consecutive games played remains a franchise record. A seven-time All-Star, White’s number 10 jersey was retired by the Celtics in a ceremony at the Boston Garden on April 9, 1982.