Oba, Lash, Trick, Ricky, Sol, and All Ego — What Project Managers Can Learn from WWE’s New Era

For decades, WWE has thrived on evolution. From the eras of legends to global superstars, the company has continuously refreshed its roster, presentation, and storytelling to maintain audience engagement across generations.

Today, a new wave of talent is beginning to steer the ship. Names like Oba Femi, Lash Legend, Trick Williams, Ricky Saints, Sol Ruca, and Ethan Page represent more than rising stars — they symbolize succession planning, talent pipelines, and portfolio evolution in action.

For Project Management Professionals (PMPs), this shift mirrors exactly how projects mature into programs, and eventually, enterprise portfolios.

📈 From Individual Matches to Portfolio Strategy

A single wrestling match is like a project.
It has:

• A timeline
• Stakeholders
• Risks
• Deliverables
• Audience expectations
• Entrance music
• Milestone scripts
• Comedy or serious story
• Interruptions, cheating, or surprises

But WWE does not survive on one match alone. It survives by managing an interconnected ecosystem of talent, branding, marketing, merchandising, live events, and media rights. That is portfolio management.

Similarly, organizations do not thrive from one successful project. They grow through the strategic alignment of multiple initiatives working together toward long-term business value.

The emergence of WWE’s next generation demonstrates a key PMP principle:

Sustainable organizations must continuously develop future leaders before current systems peak.

🚀 Oba Femi — The Powerhouse Deliverable

Oba Femi represents what happens when an organization identifies high-potential assets early and invests heavily in development.

His presence feels strategic:

• Dominant execution
• Strong branding
• Clear marketability
• Long-term scalability

In project management terms, Oba is a high-value deliverable with enterprise potential. Putting Oba Femi up against the industry's biggest threat Brock Lesnar at WrestleMania shows the intent to make him a longstanding star. In the buildup to this match up Oba, the Alabama graduate, found himself in tears from the overwhelming crowd response to him power bombing the beast, Lesnar. In the industry they call this, "being over", and in the following episode of Monday night Raw, Femi stated that he,—has arrived. And the crowd agreed with a resounding OBA, OBA, OOOOBA. This crowd reaction is a verified deliverable.

Organizations often fail because they only focus on immediate project completion rather than future organizational capability. WWE appears to be doing the opposite — building infrastructure around tomorrow’s stars before they fully mature.

That is portfolio foresight.

🌟 Lash Legend — Leadership Presence Matters

Lash Legend brings something many PMPs recognize immediately: executive presence. She is a multi sport start having being playing professional basketball before arriving on the WWE scene. On the main roaster her notables include, eliminating more that 5 top talent super starts at the Royal rumble, earning the tag team championships with Nia Jax, and earning her WrestleMania moment. It's also worth noting her relationship with Trick Williams and forging her own path despite both striving for superstardom at the same company. They both bring their own flair to live TV.

In project environments, communication can influence outcomes just as much as technical execution. Lash demonstrates: 

• Confidence under pressure
• Ability to shift and pivot
• Strong stakeholder engagement
• Brand consistency
• Visibility
• Strong mic work/fan engagement

Many projects fail not because the work is poor, but because leadership communication breaks down.

A portfolio thrives when leaders can articulate value clearly to stakeholders, sponsors, and teams. This is evident due to the NXT performance center development. Lash, like other top names in the industry, spent time here connecting with the audience and creating move set redundancy with viewers. Her finisher, the Lash Extension, first debuted in early developmental matches with her former partner Jakara Jackson (Mara Sadè now with TNA wrestling).

This is a great example of earning project value while building up to portfolio value, a skill that WWE management strives to do with ever super star. PMPs need to apply this type of longevity delivery for their organizations around the world.

🎯 Trick Williams — Momentum is a KPI

Trick Williams may be one of the clearest examples of momentum management in modern wrestling. With his lemon pepper steppers, he splashed onto the main roaster with confidence to spare. He was North American champion and NXT champion. His time before main roaster call up was marked during TKO's purchase of TNA wrestling—a separate wrestling promotion. Shawn Michaels, over seer of NXT, handled this merger perfectly by making Trick, TNA champion. This forced WWE viewers to enjoy both promotions since the main star and storyline was involved on both promotions, boosting both brands as a result.

Crowd engagement, merchandise traction, social media growth, and audience reactions are all measurable indicators — essentially KPIs.

PMPs understand that momentum matters:

• A delayed project loses confidence
• A disengaged team lowers productivity
• Poor communication reduces stakeholder trust

Trick’s rise shows how organizations should monitor performance indicators beyond raw output. Energy, morale, and audience buy-in are metrics too.

📊 Ricky Saints — Rebranding and Change Management

Ricky Saints reflects organizational adaptation. He is —Absolute. Featured in high stakes matchups again Cody Rhodes, Oba Femi, and Ethan page. In 2025, ascended the ranks and won the NXT championship. Earning himself a Main Roster spot.

Transitions between companies, audiences, and systems require effective change management. In WWE, talent often must:

• Adjust presentation styles
• Adapt to new workflows
• Learn new operational expectations
• Maintain performance under scrutiny

This mirrors what happens during mergers, restructures, or portfolio realignments in corporate environments.

The best project professionals know:

Adaptability is a competitive advantage.

🌊 Sol Ruca — Innovation Creates Market Differentiation

Sol Ruca stands out because she brings a unique style and energy that feels different from traditional performers. Her finisher, Sol Snatcher, is far from anything any WWE fan has seen before. It features her jumping off the second rope, and reverse flipping to catch the head of a nearby opponent and dropping them in a Cody Cutter style drop. Fans embraced her quickly in her short 4-year career which propelled her to the Royal Rumble (elimination style 30-woman match) where she lasted till the final 3.

Innovation is one of the most overlooked drivers in portfolio management. Why? Portfolio leaders tend to stick to the long-term portfolio road map. Trusting that each project should achieve portfolio goals. What Sol Ruca's journey shows it's that innovation can happen even while sticking to the North Star.

Organizations that encourage:

• Creativity
• Agile thinking
• New presentation methods
• Emerging technologies

often outperform competitors who rely solely on legacy systems.

Sol represents the value of innovation pipelines within organizations.

🧠 All Ego Ethan Page — Strategic Branding in Portfolio Management

Ethan Page understands branding exceptionally well. His “All Ego” identity is memorable, marketable, and adaptable across platforms. As he's featured on AAA wrestling winning the mixed tag team championships with another house hold name Chelsea Green.

Project managers sometimes underestimate personal branding and strategic positioning. Yet within organizations:

• Visibility affects promotion opportunities
• Communication impacts influence
• Reputation affects stakeholder confidence

A strong portfolio manager is not only operationally effective but strategically recognizable.

🏗️ WWE’s Real Success: Succession Planning

The true lesson here is not simply about wrestling talent.
It is about organizational continuity.

WWE understands a critical business principle:

If future leadership is not developed early, organizational decline becomes inevitable.

This applies directly to:

• Project Management Offices (PMOs)
• Engineering firms
• Healthcare systems
• Construction programs
• CapEx initiatives
• Technology portfolios

The organizations that survive long-term are the ones already preparing their next generation before transition periods begin.

🔄 Projects Become Programs — Programs Become Portfolios

Every superstar begins as a developmental prospect.
Every portfolio begins as a single initiative.

The progression often looks like this:

WWE Perspective

• Individual Match → Rivalry → Championship Program → Brand Leadership

PMP Perspective

• Project → Program → Strategic Portfolio → Enterprise Transformation

The biggest takeaway for PMPs is simple:

Organizations grow when leadership treats talent development as a strategic investment rather than a temporary operational need.

🏆 Final Bell: The Next Generation is Already Here

The rise of Oba Femi, Lash Legend, Trick Williams, Ricky Saints, Sol Ruca, and Ethan Page shows that WWE is actively investing in the future while still delivering today.

That balance is the foundation of strong portfolio management.

For PMPs, the lesson is clear:

• Develop future leaders early
• Monitor momentum metrics
• Embrace innovation
• Manage change strategically
• Align talent with long-term organizational vision

Because in both wrestling and project management…

The organizations that evolve are the ones that stay on top.

End:

This is not the end of this series. I will next dive in to WWE's acquisition Triple A Wrestling.