DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. – NASCAR announced Friday that John Ferguson has been hired to lead human resources strategy for the sanctioning body as Senior Vice President and Chief Human Resources Officer. In this role, Ferguson will oversee NASCAR Human Resources and provide strategic leadership around talent acquisition, employee engagement and culture development.
For nearly a decade, Ferguson served in HR roles at Monumental Sports & Entertainment (MSE) in Washington, D.C. and most recently as Vice President of People & Culture. While at MSE, he led the HR function for six sports team properties, including the Washington Wizards, Washington Capitals and Washington Mystics, four facilities, including Capital One Arena, and more than 2,500 employees.
Based in the Daytona Beach office in Florida, Ferguson will develop HR strategies designed to support and engage employees across more than 20 office and race-track locations in the U.S., and he’ll build a company culture that is empowering, innovative, diverse, inclusive and collaborative.
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“John’s passion for people and his enthusiasm for building a strong working culture aligns well with our direction as a sport,” NASCAR president Steve Phelps said. “John brings a wealth of experience and tremendous energy to our sport, and we look forward to the impact of his leadership as NASCAR continues on its path to growth.”
Said Ferguson: “NASCAR’s commitment to its people and to developing a talented, diverse team of employees is unwavering and inspiring. When you consider all that NASCAR has done in recent years to elevate the sport and build momentum for the future, it all begins with people and culture and I’m excited to build upon the great work already in place.”
Ferguson’s hire comes less than two years since NASCAR completed its historic merger with International Speedway Corporation and the successful integration of business operations to position the sport for long-term success.