Killington/Pico's Matt McAlary Recognized as a 2026 SAM Magazine 10 Under 30 Honoree

Fresh off the heels of announcing several managerial promotions, we've got yet another employee to recognize. Matt McAlary, Killington & Pico's Creative Services Manager, was recently named a 10 Under 30 honoree from Ski Area Management (SAM) magazine.

SAM magazine, currently published bi-monthly, has been the professional trade publication for the mountain resort community for 60+ years. Beginning back in 2007, their 10 Under 30 program "recognizes young professionals who are making meaningful contributions at their resorts and demonstrating strong potential for future leadership." This year's honorees, documented in SAM magazine's July 2026 issue, span a variety of roles across the industry, from Mountain Operations to Food & Beverage and everything in between.

Each year, resort leaders are encouraged to nominate team members in their 20s for this recognition, and the team here at The Beast thought Matt was an obvious choice for a nominee. (Full transparency: the author of this blog does not directly report to Matt, so I'm not getting any brownie points for writing this.) As we'll get to, Matt is certainly not one to brag about his own achievements, but he has done more than enough in his relatively short time here to thoroughly deserve this recognition.

Originally from Scarborough, ME, Matt first moved to Vermont in 2014 to attend the University of Vermont, where he was a member of the UVM Freeskiing Team. His professional career kicked off at Basin Harbor, a resort and boat club located on the shores of Lake Champlain. From there, he took on roles as a Marketing Manager and Brand Manager in the beverage industry, but always kept the idea of a job in the ski industry at the back of his mind.

"It was always like a dream. I don't think it was ever a goal, but it was always like, 'man, that would be the most ideal situation.' If I could find a role at a reputable resort that fit my skills and my interests, I would have to hop on it."

Luckily for Matt (and for us), that ideal role came around in May of 2025, as Matt was brought on as our new Creative Services Manager. His job is to oversee how the Killington & Pico brands are being perceived by the public, whether it's through social media content, advertising, signage, and more. You may recognize him from his work on camera in some of our content during this past year, but his role goes well beyond that. Besides planning much of our original content, he's often hard at work filming, editing, or leading our in-house design team.

Before landing here, Matt was an admirer of Killington's brand from afar. As a self-described consumer of the ski industry his entire life, he enjoyed our knack for sticking out in a crowd, even before we became independently owned.

"I was really impressed with Killington's prior content and brand marketing. I thought they stuck out particularly in Vermont, but also in the North American ski industry as a whole. They just never seemed afraid to break free from that sort of cookie cutter mold."

Due largely to Matt’s efforts, Killington Resort was named a finalist for NSAA's Best Social Media Campaign award this past winter. Though if you were to ask him about this, he wouldn't take much credit, if any. When answering questions about himself, he can't help but credit the team around him—even as we amassed over 30,000 new followers on our social media channels this past winter, Matt always shares the love. Clearly, having fellow creative minds around him is something he has come to enjoy about his line of work, especially here at Killington.

"I love the collaborative nature of it. That was something that I missed a lot in my prior role as the sole marketing entity of the company. I just love having people to bounce ideas off of, whether that's in formal brainstorms or just in passing. It's like a constant idea machine."

One of Matt's trademarks has become hosting "tissue sessions", brainstorming meetings where everyone submits ideas on a given topic anonymously before they're discussed as a group. Subjects covered in these meetings have ranged from Pico's upcoming 90th anniversary to ways we could better support one of our resort sponsors.

Though the concept of these tissue sessions is something Matt inherited from a previous gig, not many could conduct them as well as he does. Leading these sessions takes a deft mix of creative thinking and people skills. As someone who has been in a couple of those meetings, Matt clearly has a knack for this form of leadership. It takes something to be able to facilitate conversation and accept new ideas while gently putting aside ideas that don't seem destined for the final cut.

When asked about his leadership skills, Matt had this to say: "I don't necessarily think that leadership has come naturally, but I think creative thought leadership is something that has. I've managed the content and branding side of things in previous roles, and that has always just felt like a natural fit, whether it's bringing creativity out of the team or getting people to kind of see a vision that I have in my head."

Regarding the piece of advice that's helped him most along the way, Matt kept it simple. "It's come from every single boss I've had, but it's just to be curious, ask questions, and get out of your comfort zone."

To work as hard as Matt does, you have to embrace what some might call "the grind." When questioned about his favorite project(s) that he's worked on at Killington, his answer was a good insight to where his motivation comes from.

"Content as a continuous project to me is something that I'm super proud of and that I love working on."

Even outside of work, Matt lists one of his favorite hobbies as photography. Not every person would take a vacation from a fast-paced job in content creation, just to bring their camera with them on a week-long trip to Ireland, but Matt is one of those people.

As for almost anyone, positive feedback on the content he creates is also part of what helps him come back for more, especially on those less "cookie cutter" projects.

"Having been able to sprinkle in some lighthearted stuff has felt really good. Whether it's people curious why I'm dressed up in golf gear on the ski hill or just riding the lift with someone and them talking about a video we just put out, that's been super fulfilling."

Upon being tasked to list his favorite things about working at Killington, Matt doesn't have to think too hard to come up with answers.

"It's nice to have a team that's willing to be a little bit silly and lighthearted on camera. It's also nice to have the support from the top down to allow us to do those kinds of things."

In just a little over a year at Killington, he's already built up quite a few memories to look back on. Outside of the surprise pow days and afternoons skiing with the team on the hill, one particular event stuck out. "The Superstar Showdown was really awesome," he says. "Got to work with some awesome people—just to see the turnout was amazing."

Looking ahead to his second winter season on board, Matt surely isn't alone in anticipating the return of another big event.

"I've attended World Cup as a guest for a number of years, but just getting to be a part of that whole production process, the event planning... that's something I'm looking forward to."

As many Beast fans can attest, it takes more than one season to truly get to know every nook and cranny of this place. Even as an employee, Matt knows he still has plenty left to discover. "I was surprised at how big this place still feels after a year, just from a skiing and navigation standpoint," he says.

Matt, like many others, was drawn to Vermont at first by its proximity to his interests, namely skiing, golfing, and more. Plus, it was "just far away enough from home where it felt like a new place, but close enough where I could go back on a whim."

Now, after over a decade in Vermont, it's safe to say he's found at least a slice of that home right here. He currently lives in Waterbury, VT, where he looks forward to continued adventures with his girlfriend Samara and their dog Scottie.

If you're interested in reading about the full list of 10 Under 30 honorees, the article is available for free on the SAM magazine website.