Our

Team

JIM TANNER
President

For the past 18 years, Jim has represented professional athletes in a range of matters—from player contract negotiations to advertising and marketing contracts. He is certified as an agent by both the National Basketball Players Association and the Women's National Basketball Players Association. Recognized several times in Washingtonian's list of "Top Lawyers" for media and sports law, Jim has also been selected twice by Sports Illustrated as one of the "101 Most Influential Minorities in Sports."

In addition to professional athletes, Jim also represents a number of broadcasters and professional and college coaches in employment contract negotiations. He was a Morehead-Cain Scholar at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and received his BA in 1990, going on to earn his JD from the University of Chicago. Before founding Tandem, Jim worked as an attorney at Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom, before becoming a partner at Williams & Connolly LLP. Jim is admitted to the bars of Illinois and the District of Columbia.

Derrick Powell
Vice President, Athlete Representation

Derrick represents players in the National Basketball Association and internationally. He is certified as an agent by the National Basketball Players Association and has handled contract negotiations, marketing and other off-the-court matters for more than fourteen years.

Derrick began his career in 1999 as the President and Founder of the Sports Team LLC, where he represented Devin Brown of the San Antonio Spurs and Billy Thomas of the New Jersey Nets and Washington Wizards. Before joining Tandem, Derrick worked for The Higgins Group and Excel Sports Management. He is a graduate and four-year letterman in basketball at Hampton University where he majored in Mass Communications.

Meredith Geisler
Senior Vice President, Communications

Meredith coordinates the extensive public relations efforts for each of our sports clients. She has over twenty-five years of experience in sports public relations, having previously worked as a Director of Media Relations at Advantage International and at Fila USA. Meredith graduated from Washington University in St. Louis and received her Master’s Degree in Sports Management from the University of Massachusetts. Meredith is also an adjunct professor in Sports Media & Communications at American University, Georgetown University and George Washington University.

Helen Dooley
Senior Vice President, Talent Representation/General Counsel

Helen drafts and negotiates the off-the-court agreements for Tandem's clients, including appearances, licensing, and endorsement deals. She also assists athletes with non-sports business deals and negotiates publishing and broadcasting contracts. Helen received both her undergraduate (magna cum laude, Phi Beta Kappa) and law degrees from Duke University. Helen is admitted to the bars of the District of Columbia and North Carolina.

Shana Martin
Senior Vice President, Client and Business Operations

Shana serves as a resource for our clients, monitoring professional and personal obligations, tracking payment obligations of companies endorsed by our clients, and overseeing other client obligations. She oversees all administrative matters for our clients as well as our practice, and is also certified as an agent by the Women's National Basketball Association. She graduated from the University of Pennsylvania with a degree in Political Science.

Matt Laczkowski
Director, Athlete + Talent Representation

Matt assists with the on- and off-court representation of Tandem's basketball clients. He analyzes NBA team rosters and salary cap situations, and applies Collective Bargaining Agreement rules to player salaries, free agency, trades and other contract provisions. Additionally, Matt helps to align clients with like-minded companies and pursues opportunities to strengthen client brands, business, and philanthropic endeavors. Matt also assists with negotiating and drafting off-the-court agreements.

Matt received his BA in Sports Marketing from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, where he was a walk-on member of the basketball team. He earned his JD from the University of Maryland, where he served as the President of the Arts, Entertainment and Sports Law Society. Matt is admitted to the bars of Maryland and the District of Columbia.

Leslie Groves
Vice President, Marketing + Brand Development

A sports industry veteran, Leslie procures marketing and endorsement opportunities for Tandem clients. She works to generate revenue and develop and implement fully-integrated action plans and programs. Prior to joining Tandem, Leslie’s experience included the USTA/Mid-Atlantic Section, Score Results Marketing and Communications, Nordstrom, Greenberg Quinlan Rosner Research, Snowsports Industries America, Women’s Sports Foundation, Galyans Sports & Outdoor, Boys & Girls Club of America, and Nike, Inc. Leslie earned a Bachelor of Science in Business at Oregon State University.

Alison Tanner
Vice President, Operations

Alison oversees company operations and procedures such as payroll, benefits, supply acquisition and assigning and monitoring clerical functions. She also plans and implements office systems, layouts and equipment procurement. Alison graduated from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign with an undergraduate degree in Electrical Engineering. She received her MBA and JD from the University of Chicago and previously worked in corporate finance at Friedman Billings Ramsey and Capital One. Alison is admitted to the bars of Illinois and the District of Columbia.

Katherine O'Toole
Manager, Public Relations

Katherine provides public relations, social media and general communications support for Tandem and Tandem’s clients. Prior to joining Tandem, Katherine spent two seasons working for the Washington Wizards communications department as a PR intern (2012-13) and public relations game night assistant (2013-14). Katherine received her BA in Communication with a focus in Public Relations from the University of Maryland, where she assisted the Media Relations Department with all sports and served as the school’s Sports Information Director for the women’s gymnastics team.

Erika Loomer
Coordinator, Marketing + Brand Development

Erika delivers client relations, business development, and marketing and branding support for Tandem and Tandem’s clients. Prior to Tandem, Erika served as the marketing and communications coordinator at the non-profit, Team IMPACT. She also has experience from internships, including with the Indianapolis Indians, University of Central Florida Athletic Department, and the New York Knicks. Erika earned her BS in Sports Management from Adelphi University. She continued her studies at the University of Central Florida where she earned both a Master of Sports Business Management and a Master of Business Administration as a part of the DeVos Sports Business Management Graduate Program.

Graham Boone
Director, Basketball Operations

Graham is certified as an agent by the National Basketball Players Association. Graham understands how teams value statistical performance as well as game performance, and uses that knowledge to analyze NBA team rosters and salary cap situations. He also conducts market research and statistical analysis for contract negotiations, and works on NBA Draft matters and free agent contract negotiations. Graham was a Morehead-Cain Scholar at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, where he earned his BA in Sports Administration.

Alexandra Bovino
Coordinator | Marketing + Brand Development

Alex provides endorsement and marketing support for Tandem’s clients. She works to develop marketing plans for each client that are specifically tailored to their personal and professional aspirations. Alex is also continuously seeking out and executing off-court opportunities. Alex earned a Bachelor of Science in Business Administration with a Marketing specialization from American University in May of 2018. During her time at American, she gained marketing experience with Smithsonian Associates and also worked for the congressman in her hometown in Bucks County, PA. Alex also served as a marketing intern for a cycling company while she studied abroad in London. She enjoyed participating in American’s Marketing Club and played on AU’s club volleyball team. Alex lives in Rosslyn, VA. Outside of Tandem, she enjoys running outdoors, staying active, and playing volleyball. She loves to travel and some of her favorite destinations are the Galápagos Islands, Tanzania, and Budapest.

Vickie Lee
Receptionist + Administrative Assistant

Vickie is a highly-trained executive assistant with more than sixteen years of experience in customer support and administrative management. In addition to her hospitality receiving guests at Tandem offices, Vickie works closely with all other staff to ensure that Tandem’s client service is second-to-none. Vickie’s professional education includes extensive certification in records and expense management systems.

Max Wiepking
Coordinator, Basketball Operations

Max provides support to Tandem’s basketball agents with on-court representation and services for the agency’s clients. His extensive basketball background both on-and off-the-court allows him to provide knowledgeable analysis of team rosters, salary cap scenarios and the Collective Bargaining Agreement. Prior to joining Tandem, Max worked as an analytics intern and a player development associate for the Dallas Mavericks. He also played four years of basketball at the University of Arizona.