Running The Phoenix Raceway with Latasha Causey

Getting her start in Motorsports

#1. What was the first moment that you can remember discovering motorsports?

I actually discovered motorsports through the previous track president, Julie Giese. Julie is the one who introduced me to NASCAR. Now, it has been at least six years- maybe even a little longer than that. She introduced me to NASCAR and invited me to my first race.

That was my introduction! I got the best of the best in terms of an experience. I only got to experience it through Julie, through the VIP lens. There truly is nothing like a NASCAR event or experience.

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#2. When did you decide that you wanted to work within motorsports?

Again, through Julie! When she left to go to take on the Chicago Street Race, I had been helping her with building her community connections here in Arizona. I was really immersing her as much as possible in our Phoenix community. I saw what she was doing in terms of rebuilding a raceway - inviting others into the sport.

It wasn't until then that I actually had an interest in working in it. When she left to go to Chicago, she was the one who asked if I would consider taking on this opportunity. Honestly, it was not on my list of things that I thought I would be doing.

It definitely wasn't on my Bingo card to be the President of the Phoenix Raceway, but I can tell you it is one of the best career decisions I have ever made. I'm grateful. I'm super grateful every day for the opportunity.

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Latasha's Current Role

#3. What was your roles in your job history do you think prepared you for this dramatically different role?

I worked in a bank, the financial services industry. So, I was leading all of our community development efforts at Bell Bank. Prior to that, I spent almost 14 years at USAA.

I had the ability to work with multiple sports teams - all of the sports teams here in Arizona. We have every professional sport team now with the exception of hockey!

While my team was doing all the marketing efforts - everything with Salute to Service and appreciating the military - I was handling human resources activities and leading the USAA Foundation. All of those things. All of that leadership. All of the business. All of the strategy. Really, all of the things that I have done over the last 20 years in my career truly set me up for where I am today.

The thing I needed to do was learn the sport. So, that's what I have spent the last two and a half years doing - just truly learning the in's and out's of NASCAR. Outside of that, leadership and all of that experience got me ready for where I am today.

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#4. What does a standard day look like for you at the track?

Every day is different!

Today, I just finished running on the actual raceway with some kiddos that we have out here - to running in here to our media center at the track. So, like you said, each day is different. Today I'm focused on community efforts, right?

We really created a robust community engagement plan here in Phoenix - really wanting to introduce young kids and young individuals to the sport and to providing that connection to STEM and motorsports. Days like today, I am out here hosting kids at one of our Beyond the Finish Line field trip programs.

Latasha Causey speaking at a NASCAR event

Then, two weeks ago I was out full fledged during our NASCAR race, right? We just had our spring weekend wrap that up. It was a hugely successful race weekend. It takes a lot to get to that point, and we do everything that we can in preparing for that race.... for our races, I should say.

That week was race week and so every day was something different - whether it was media engagements, or being out with race fans at the campgrounds, you name it. I was truly out there doing as much as possible.

At the raceway, we have almost 200 events per year outside of NASCAR races, and I could be meeting with some of our partners. I could be attending an event. We just had the prom here, this past weekend. We had almost 800 kids at a prom here at Phoenix Raceway. So, our team is busy, and each day truly is something different. You just never know what we're gonna get when we're here at the raceway.

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‍#5. What are the most rewarding and the most challenging parts of working for the Phoenix Raceway?

Rewarding

Phoenix Raceway is special. I feel like it's such a reward and a huge privilege to be able to lead this team. We have a great team here at Phoenix Raceway. To be able to wake up every day and get to lead a team of amazing individuals who are out here really making a difference in the motorsports world and in our community - that's the most rewarding part for me.

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Difficult

I wouldn't say this is necessarily a challenge, but an opportunity... We have to continue to create and be creative to produce great things for our fans to want to continue to come back. It's not easy selling tickets, if you will to the raceway.

Then, we have to make sure that we're producing - producing activities and things that people want to continue to be here for and continue to spend their money to be here at the raceway. That would be probably the biggest opportunity or challenge that we have, is just making sure that we continue to stay relevant and continue to keep our fans engaged.

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#6. What are the top 3 qualities that have helped you succeed?

Authenticity

My top qualities are authenticity. I am who I am all the time. I instill that in my team, as well, in making sure that we are able to show up as the best versions of ourself.

Building Relationships and a Network

I'm a relationship person, so I have a massive network. I'm prideful of that network. I'm protective of that network. That's what helps us, with building in new opportunities, new partnerships, all of those types of things. That network allows me the ability to do that.

'Servant Leadership'

There's nothing that I'm going to ask my team to do that I wouldn't do. I'm here with my team all the time, and they call me boss lady and things like that. My response is that, "no, we're teammates". I just have a very different and unique leadership style.

I think that's really what helps me in being successful as a leader AND that people around me want to be able to work with me and alongside me to do amazing work.

Author's note: After this response, I complimented her leadership style and told Latasha that this style had come across to me immediately in the way that she had conversed with me up until this point.

Thank you. I have a no a**hole rule on my team, right? You have to kill people with kindness. I don't care who you are. I don't care what your title is. For us, it takes nothing for you to be nice to another person.

We have fun! When we're not having fun, our fans aren't going to be having a good time.

Latasha Causey New Pathways for Youth Donation

Latasha's Advice

#7. If you could go back and change anything about your path to where you are today, what would that be?

I get that question a lot and every time I think about it... I don't really know that I would change anything along the way.

I feel like everything that has happened, good or bad, even when those bad things happen or the opportunities that you feel like you should have gotten and you didn't, prepare you for where you are today. They've gotten me ready for where I am today.

I always say when one door closes, another one is open, right? There's another one right behind it that I'm just waiting to open up. I don't really feel like I would change anything.

I think if we could go back and slow time down sometimes to enjoy a moment a little bit more than what we did, that would be nice. We're always in a rush to get to the next thing instead of being present in the 'right now'. I'm sure that there are some times in my life that I feel like I should have slowed down enough to really appreciate those moments.

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#8. If you could give one piece of advice to someone looking to follow in your footsteps what would that be?

Build your network. Get out there, understand what it's about. There's nothing like being in sports, whether you're in motorsports or any sport. It certainly isn't for the weak, right?

We work a lot, and I don't know that people really understand that it's not our schedule... It's the game schedule, if you will.

I tell people to really get out there, get involved, and understand what it's about. Again, as I said earlier, it's one of the best career decisions that I have made, so I always encourage people to learn more about it.

There's more to NASCAR than the product that's on the track. There's so much more that goes into the sport, the teams, the collaboration, and all of those things within motorsports.

You don't even think of all the things and how we all come together until you're in it.

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Latasha's Favorites

#9. What is your favorite race/ event/ moment that you’ve had in your career thus-far?

I've had so many really great moments. I always love being in the campground with our campers. I created - or my team really created - Causey's Cookout when I first started. It's a cookout that we do in the campground with Coca-Cola.

During my first one, I was out there and... I'm clearly a people person, so I was out there the whole time. My team is telling me, "oh, you're just supposed to make an appearance".

I'm responded, "no, I'm cooking the hot dogs and hamburgers and I'm handing them out. It's MY cookout!"

The team learned very quickly that I'm not just here to show face and sign a couple of autographs. I'm really actually out there to have a good time. We created something special - we have a DJ out there, we have a little of everything and it is so fun.

Even when people are out there giving me feedback about what could be better - I love that because if we don't get the feedback, how do we know what we need to improve on? So, it's just really building those personal relationships with our campers. I absolutely love doing that

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#10. You have discussed innovation and creativity around the Phoenix Raceway a lot over the course of this conversation - NASCAR is a series that truly values tradition, though. How do you balance innovation while honoring that tradition?

The thing that I always say is that there is always a place and a space for tradition... And 'the plus'. It's like when you order a steak medium 'plus'.... let's just add the extra 'plus' right on top of that which is the innovation, right?

I didn't come in here to change everything up because things have clearly been working really well for a very long time. I always say, I just came in to add my sparkle on it.

Naturally, people are curious. They're curious because I'm here curious, and because we're doing fun and different things.

Truly, it has been a great experience, being able to match up tradition with adding a little a little innovation on the side. So I've been mixing those two things together!

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