“I’m not an athlete. I’m far from the athlete in our family, but I was exposed to college athletics and sportsmanship from a young age. It certainly shaped my life and career.” -Chris Iacoi
Being at his best is something Chris Iacoi spends a lot of time thinking about. Serving on UCLA’s iconic campus as Sr. Associate Athletic Director and Chief Financial Officer means using the lessons he learns every day to raise the bar for himself and everyone around him. Iacoi continues to pay attention to every detail, or PAINT THE CORNERS, no matter how big or small.
“I’m passionate guy; I want to motivate people by example,” explains Iacoi. “Also, getting to know them and where their goals are and not asking them to do something I haven’t done or won’t do with them. I’m here to be their guide and resource along the way.”
Iacoi oversees the management of the department’s budget and administration for the department’s finances. He also looks over Human Resources, Team Travel, Game Management, Equipment Operations, Facilities, Capital Projects, and Information Technology and serves as the principle adviser to the Athletic Director with respect to short- and long-term financial planning.
“Being there to celebrate the wins means a lot. Being on the internal, business side of things means we aren’t as visible, so being there to celebrate the little things means I can show them how those things add up and breed success in our department.”
He’s had a lot of “wins” to celebrate over his career. Prior to UCLA, Iacoi was at Boston College for over a decade. He began as an undergraduate student worker, and his role progressively increased to Business Manager in 2006. He was named the department’s Assistant Athletic Director, Business Operations in 2010. It was a steep climb from data entry to eventually being the main contact for all department finances, including long-term forecasting, budgeting, and reporting.
“Success is about the peace of mind you get from knowing you did your best,” he says. “It’s not always easy, but try to control those things that are in your control, understand that you don’t know everything, and just do your best in the process.”
The surroundings at UCLA are not lost on Iacoi; he knows he has a lot to live up to just working on a campus that inspires people every day. That’s why he puts in the time and effort to grow in his position and help his team strive to be better at everything.
“Just being better every day, whether it’s a better employee, father, husband, brother, friend. At UCLA excellence is in every aspect of campus, from athletics to academics, and beyond the time on campus. You have to bring your best every day. If you don’t this isn’t the place for you.”
Chris Iacoi knows setting a high standard will help his team reach both professional and personal goals. For that leadership, we are happy to honor Iacoi as one of our NEXT UP honorees.