Staff Directory
- Title:
- Associate Athletic Director for Brand & External Strategy
- Email:
Chris Hein enters his 11th year at the University of Washington in 2025-26. He currently serves as Associate Athletic Director for Brand & External Strategy.
In his cross-functional role, Hein leads ICA’s brand advancement and digital strategy teams, and intersects with multiple external units, including: athletic communications, marketing, revenue & ticket operations, broadcast operations, NIL & influencer marketing (Dawgs Unleashed), and Husky Sports Properties (Learfield).
In addition, Chris acts as ICA’s trademark and licensing liaison with UW’s upper campus marketing & communications team (UMAC), and is the brand relations lead for ICA’s primary retail partners, Fanatics (official e-comm and team store) and the University Book Store (UBS). His external scope is also connected to key relationships and initiatives with partners at the Big Ten Conference and Big Ten Network.
Chris is an original ICA x adidas team member (2018), helping shape day to day operations, communications, positioning, identity, co-marketing strategy, licensing, and the advancement of Washington's primary brand and apparel partnership.
Hein was hired in ICA as Manager of Digital Media in 2015 and elevated to Director of Digital Communications in 2016.
From 2015-2017, Chris oversaw departmental strategy and acted as ICA's chief digital liaison with the Pac-12 Conference, NeuLion, SIDEARM Sports, and each of UW’s digital platform partners. In addition, he acted as day to day digital lead for Washington’s ATH, football, and men’s basketball platforms, shepherding significant brand development and engagement growth during that time. Chris also led Washington’s OAS (Official Athletics Site) migration to SIDEARM Sports in 2016.
Hein was promoted to Director of Creative Communications in 2017, overseeing all ICA digital and creative team operations.
In 2019, he was named Assistant Athletic Director for Brand Advancement, and through that transition, built the framework for Washington’s current internal brand advancement unit, Sundodger Creative. Hein was part of the unit that garnered 2019 NACMA Marketing Team of the Year Finalist recognition, with ICA's integrated marketing & communications (IMC) platform playing a critical role in that success.
Along with his work helping shape external strategy and brand positioning over the last ten years, and most recently - influencing UW's transition to the Big Ten Conference, Chris has also been involved in the development of several targeted departmental campaigns, including Purple Reign (FB), Greatest Setting (FB), One Washington (FB), Tougher Together (MBB), Mighty are the Women (SB), Huskies All In (ATH), and more.
Prior to his time on Montlake, Chris worked in interscholastic athletics leadership at Lakeside School (Seattle, Wash.) for six years, leaving as Associate Athletic Director in 2015. His work spanned several different functional areas, including athletic & digital communications, sport operations, and organizational strategy. He was heavily involved with program-wide scope that resulted in a five-year strategic plan, a visionary program-head coaching model, and the construction of The Paul G. Allen Athletics Center and Ackerley Gymnasium in 2013.
Before arriving in Seattle and at Lakeside in 2009, Chris’ work in the interscholastic space started at Jackson Christian High School (Jackson, Mich.), where he coached soccer (high school & club) and worked as an athletics staffer for eight years. He also spent time as an athletic communications assistant at Spring Arbor University (NAIA) from 2005-2006.
The Jackson, Mich., native graduated with his bachelor’s degree (Sport Management) from Siena Heights University (Adrian, Mich.) in 2005 and his master’s degree (Organizational Management) from Spring Arbor University (Spring Arbor, Mich.) in 2008.
Chris and his wife, Nikki, and sons, Ollie and Sig, reside in Seattle’s Phinney Ridge neighborhood.
