Lela Davidson has spent her career building businesses, leading teams, and navigating reinvention. As Chief Operating Officer at Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art and the Momentary, she leads a diverse portfolio that includes hospitality, retail, events, and guest experience. Lela has guided organizations through growth, disruption, and periods of significant change. Her experience spans finance, hospitality, retail, arts and culture, and board leadership—where uncertainty is often the norm rather than the exception.
Lela’s perspective is simple: the future rarely unfolds according to plan. Instead of betting on a single outcome, she believes in building multiple paths forward—developing capabilities, relationships, and opportunities that create resilience in a changing world. Her work is grounded in a practical belief that while we cannot control what happens next, we can control how prepared we are to meet whatever shows up.
