TOM WILSON - CEO, GOVERNOR

Tom Wilson enters his eighth season as Chief Executive Officer and Governor for the Tampa Bay Lightning and the St. Pete Times Forum. Wilson assumed his position within the organization in the summer of 1999 after engineering Palace Sports & Entertainment’s purchase of the Lightning and the leaseholding rights to the 21,500-seat arena in which they play. In addition to his role with the Lightning, Wilson is in his 14th year as President of Palace Sports & Entertainment, Inc. During his 26-year tenure as the company’s top business executive, the Detroit Pistons and The Palace of Auburn Hills have moved to the forefront of the sports and entertainment industry. Wilson and his staff designed the successful blueprint, which led to the Pistons being recognized as one of the best-marketed and most highly valued teams in professional sports. Palace Sports & Entertainment has embarked on a similar path with the Lightning in Tampa Bay, one of the nation’s quickest growing metropolitan areas.

Since joining the Pistons in 1977, Wilson’s role and responsibilities have increased dramatically to the point where he now handles all business aspects of not only the Detroit Pistons, but of Palace Sports & Entertainment which includes The Palace of Auburn Hills, DTE Music Theatre, the Tampa Bay Lightning and the leaseholding rights to the St. Pete Times Forum. He was named Employee of the Year for 1990 by Guardian Industries, the Pistons’ and The Palace’s parent company. The award marked the first time Guardian Industries gave the honor to an employee outside of its direct glass manufacturing and fabrication divisions. In the summer of 1993, Wilson was named President and CEO of the Pistons.