Leading Lady in Love
Hockaday alum Mandy Ginsberg is a “fast talker, fast walker,” as she puts it. She has to be as a mother of two, a wife, and the newest CEO of Match Group North America, as of January.
If there was a “least likely to …” vote at Hockaday, Ginsberg probably would have won “least likely to move back to Texas” after she graduated in 1988.
After she left her Preston Hollow roots, Ginsberg lived in California, Philadelphia, New York, and Tel Aviv over the next 18 years. While attending business school as a single mother in Pennsylvania, Ginsberg learned that her mother was diagnosed with ovarian cancer, giving her a reason to return home.
“It’s one of the best decisions of my life, and one that I never regret,” she said.
Now, it’s almost comical for her to watch her 7- and 17-year-old daughters live her life, attending Lamplighter and Hockaday, respectively, and growing up in Preston Hollow, a mile away from her family.
Ginsberg was introduced to Match.com, media and internet company IAC’s flagship dating company, a decade ago when a friend from her days as a Hockadaisy informed her of an opening with the company.
“I had never run a business before, so it seemed like a perfectly reasonable thing to do,” she joked. “They were looking for someone who had a big focus on the marketing side, and they were really looking for a risk taker at the time.”
She started with the company at a time when competitor E-Harmony was growing the market and taking shares from Match. In her first few years, she helped the company increase its worth to around $20 million, and grow by 30 to 40 percent.
“We really focused on how do we get people out on more dates by connecting the right people with each other,” Ginsberg said.
In 2013, IAC appointed Ginsberg as CEO of Tutor.com. At the time, her eldest daughter was a sophomore in high school, and she was very focused on the journey to college.
And because her daughters didn’t want to leave Preston Hollow, the past three years were spent commuting to and from New York each week. In her new role, Ginsberg oversees operations for the Match.com US brand, Match Affinity Brands, OkCupid, and PlentyofFish. And even after 10 years with the company, she still loves her work.
“It’s one of the most remarkable businesses,” she said. “You’ll see a lot of monitors and numbers, but behind the numbers is what we do, which is connecting people. I think we have the ability to impact peoples lives more than any other profession in the world, other than the medical profession.”
In addition to her responsibilities as CEO and a mother, Ginsberg is a part of the Young Presidents’ Organization and is on the board of J.C. Penney. In what free time she makes for herself, Ginsberg spends time with her family biking or enjoying the outdoors, frequenting the Northhaven Trail.
“People often say your life is where you live and in your neighborhood, and it’s true,” Ginsberg said. “I have my work here, my kids’ schools, my home, my synagogue. I don’t have much of a reason to leave here.”
