ESPN promotes Kelly to SVP of research

ESPN has promoted Flora Kelly to senior vice president of the network’s research team.

“Under Flora’s leadership, ESPN Research is a go-to resource for sports insights and measurement for the company and across the industry,” said Chara-Lynn Aguiar, ESPN executive vice president and chief financial officer, in a statement. “The consistent high-quality work performed by Flora and her team ensures that we fulfill our mission to serve sports fans anytime, anywhere, as well as continue our evolution as the preeminent digital sports platform.”

Added Aguiar, “On a personal level, Flora truly exemplifies the ESPN growth story, beginning her career as a research analyst and progressing over the years while succeeding in every role. We are extremely lucky to have Flora on, and leading, our team.”

Kelly had been serving as vice president of ESPN Research since 2023. During her time, she led a variety of efforts to provide various network teams with reliable data and insights while also embracing forward-looking measurement strategies designed to grow and diversify ESPN’s audiences.

As the media landscape continues to shift, Kelly’s team is likely to continue to play a vital role in helping ESPN reimagine how success is measured and understood across platforms, according to the announcement. 

“As media and fandom continues to evolve at a rapid pace, the role of research has never been more critical- or more exciting,” said Kelly in the statement. “I’m thrilled to lead this incredible team as we continue to innovate how we understand our audiences, anticipate behavior and define success in this rapidly evolving media landscape.”

Since joining the company in 2006, Kelly been part of a variety of initiatives and projects tied to research, measurement, insights and analytics. 

Kelly is a graduate of Hofstra University and earned her master’s degree in social research from Hunter College.

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