Hermance Blum is the latest female to be promoted to poker’s higher echelons of power after being promoted to the position of General Manager of WPT Europe.
Who is that woman?
The first time I saw Hermance Blum was in the Aviation Club de France (ACF) during the World Poker Tour (WPT) Grand Prix de Paris, and that’s the thought that her movement conjured in my mind.
She was like a whirlwind.
How on earth can a woman move that quickly whilst wearing high heels?
She was dressed to kill. But she wasn’t getting ready to party. She was going to work.
She has a determination, and work ethic that is rare to see in an industry that sees people folding a lot. An action that can bring a certain lethargy to everything, but there is no room for placid posturing when Ms. Blum is about. You can’t help but get caught up with the fever.
What I really loved, and continue to love, about the way Blum goes about her business, is her understanding of the power of the customer. Her attention to detail, and need to have everything picture perfect for her customers is a lesson we can all take to heart.
When faced with the hard or easy road she chooses to forge ahead down the hard road. Blum is the type of person who walks into a poker room and notices that the branding is ok. Not great, but just ok. She can ignore it. Nobody would notice. Except she has, and she sets about making it just perfect.
So it’s not a surprise to see her replacing Neil Barrett as the new General Manager of WPT Europe. The press release said that ‘Growth in Europe remains the key priority in WPT Season XIII and beyond’ and I’m glad to see that our future is in good hands.
Blum looked up to Barrett. He was her mentor and friend, and she will be using everything she learned from her time under his tutelage to take the European division to the next level.
The French firebrand has been with the WPT since 2011, where she held a variety of positions, before really cutting her shape out of the Marketing and Operations managerial position that she held prior to her promotion.
In her time at the WPT, her smarts, hard work and dedication has seen the European National and Main Event roster grow to 18 events, back in Season X, to 30 events for the upcoming Season XIII.
“Hermance’s passion and commitment to her work have earned her respect throughout the global poker community. Her creativity and tenacity have greatly contributed to the WPT’s significant growth throughout Europe, and I am confident the Tour throughout Europe will be in good hands,” said WPT President Adam Pliska.
“Hermance is also an example of how the WPT takes great pride in identifying, hiring, and promoting the best talent in the business to fill key strategic roles. With her appointment, more than half of WPT’s senior leadership are now exceptional women, reflecting the evolving face of this industry.”
The new role will see Blum overseeing WPT Europe commercial, marketing and operational efforts.
