The Games, from a Different Perspective
Working with LA28 has changed one Korn Ferry recruiter’s perspective on the Olympic and Paralympic Games—and her daughter’s outlook on what’s possible.
For years, Korn Ferry’s Roselle Roseta watched the Olympic and Paralympic Games the way many people do: On television, marveling at athletes, then moving on with her week. It was entertainment, something that showcased gorgeous city skylines and gripping narratives of marathon runners diving over the final line and aging stars trying for victory one last time.
Then her daughter was born with a disability, and the Paralympics started meaning something different.
Now, when she watches Paralympians compete, she thinks about what it means for her daughter to see people like her performing at the highest level in the world. “It’s really inspiring for me because it gives me a chance to tell my daughter, ‘Hey, this is something you can do.’”
Recruiting for LA28 and helping to build a workforce of some 5,000 is indeed a challenge. But when Korn Ferry asked if Roseta would like to join the firm’s team working with the Games, she didn't hesitate. “I pinch myself because I’ve never been part of something that has a global impact of this scale,” Roseta says. The role would shift her perspective in many ways.
"I pinch myself because I’ve never been part of something that has a global impact of this scale."
Before embarking on LA28, Roseta had her favorite sports: gymnastics, swimming, track and field. But recruiting, say, for the sports managers responsible for each discipline changes how you see the Games. You begin to understand the precision and planning needed long before the Opening Ceremony. And the niche skills each role demands. “I can’t say I have a favorite sport now,” she says. "We see the fun side of things, but not how much work goes toward the final product."
That insight shapes how she approaches her searches. Roseta isn’t just filling roles but looking for a culture fit on one of the most complex organizational builds in sports.
What she listens for in every conversation is the real answer to a simple question: Why do you want to be part of this?
She knows the genuine answer because she has one herself. One afternoon she walked into her daughter's room and found her watching gymnastics on her computer. No one had suggested it; she found it on her own. In that moment, something was clarified for Roseta—not just as a recruiter, but as a mother. The Games were coming to Los Angeles and the athletes her daughter was watching were going to be performing in real life—essentially in her own backyard. Many of the roles Roseta is recruiting for are finite, but the experience, and what it does to your sense of what’s achievable, isn’t.
Learn how we’re helping build the talent infrastructure for one of the world’s largest sporting events.
