Sheri Barros is doing amazing things in the sports, health, and social impact space. She has an extensive background in sports, including working in the front office of multiple professional sports teams like the Texas Rangers, San Antonio Spurs, and Oakland Raiders. Before she became the CMO of ZERO Prostate Cancer, she led Sports partnerships at the American Cancer Society for seven years. She took a Seat At The Table to close out our Women’s History Month Spotlight.
What’s your focus as the CMO of ZERO Prostate Cancer?
We really pride ourselves at ZERO prostate cancer, on being the voice of the prostate cancer patient community … A lot of men don’t know that it’s a blood test. … Men think that you go straight to the other kind of test, so we’re focused on breaking down some of that stigma around it, opening up the conversation … Once men know, they’re like, “Oh, okay, that’s not what I thought.” So, I’m really enjoying … just raising the awareness and making it … a more normalized topic to discuss.
What were some challenges you faced in this industry?
I was very conscious of being taken seriously as a woman and not fitting that stereotype that a lot of women get charged with when they have an interest in sports. I always was very conscious of … making sure that I could back up my interest with real business knowledge and always being really professional, sometimes to a fault. But … I’ve seen women … over correct for that a little bit. So I’m still a woman, and I’m still going to approach it … as a female executive … As soon as I open my mouth, I’m engaged, I’m locked in, I’m knowing what I’m talking about, and I’m really passionate about continuing to learn and grow from a business standpoint. So I think it’s just balancing those two.
Why did you want to help tell Edwin Moses‘ story?
What makes Edwin’s story so fascinating and amazing, especially in our community, is that he majored in physics, and so Edwin is actually a physicist in addition to being an Olympic champion, yes, so he is a literal rocket scientist. And the reason his film is named 13 Steps is because he used his knowledge of engineering and physics to come up with a formula of 13 steps to win the hurdles every time. And what’s so amazing about it is not only did he work out the formula, but it’s also very difficult to actually go out and run in 13 steps because it’s physically challenging. So he married his intellectual brilliance with his physical prowess, and that’s how he was able to go undefeated for nine years in a row while he was competing. If you talk to some of the icons and the GOATs of today, this was what was so fun about that project and helping him with the documentary. You have Tiger Woods saying Edwin Moses has one of the greatest streaks of all time. You have Michael Jordan when he was in the Olympics in Barcelona, saying Edwin Moses is one of the greatest Olympians of all time. Even Snoop Dogg, when he was doing the Paris Olympics, was asked about his favorite Olympic moment, and it was Edwin Moses winning the 400-meter hurdles in Los Angeles the last time the games were in Los Angeles.
It is Woman’s History Month. Who inspired you?
Of course, I have to start with my family, my grandmother and my mom. My grandmother got her master’s degree back in the 1940s before that was even heard of for a lot of women, especially women of color. So from an achievement standpoint, certainly her, my mom was a chemistry major at Spelman so I’m just used to women who do unconventional things. Also, some of those iconic figures like a Dorothy Dandridge. I love old Hollywood as well. So, Dorothy Dandridge is one of those women who really inspires me and certainly paved the way for a lot of a lot of Black women.
