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.

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.

Max Wiepking
Agent

Max is a certified agent by the National Basketball Players Association. 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.

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.