Getting the Most Out of an Internship

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For the past month I have been interning with the Akron Aeros, learning the ins and outs to getting a minor league baseball team prepared for the upcoming season.  Many may not see the value in an internship especially with the stereotypical idea of interns being there simply to fetch coffee.  At first I admit that I viewed it as a necessary evil to entering a career in the sports or entertainment field.  From week one though, I have found that it is much more than that. 

There are two key ingredients to what I would call a successful, meaningful internship.  It starts with an organization whose management and employees are willing to not just teach but give responsibility.  It is just as important for an employer to find value in an internship as it is for the student.  The Congressional Management Foundation, focused on improving congressional operations and citizen engagement wrote an article, Keys to a Successful Internship Program.  This article provides universal tips that any organization, regardless of their industry, could use to develop their own program.  Their advice for managing a successful program is:

1.     Develop a clear purpose

2.     Create a formal orientation and training program

3.     Provide clear guidance and structure

4.     Balance interns’ administrative duties with more substantive work

Specifics for how to accomplish each of these key elements can be found in the complete article. 

Second, just as it is important for an organization to be willing to teach, it is important for an intern to be enthusiastic about learning.  The most important advice I received when starting my internship was that it was up to me how much I get out of it.  An internship is not just about what you learned from books or in class, but making connections and sucking as much knowledge as possible from the professionals you are working with.  Regardless of if the internship is paid or unpaid, it is an opportunity to gain professional skills while determining what aspects of an industry or job a student wants to pursue. 

So as my journey as a graduate student is coming to an end, I am finding out that growth does not stop here.  The experience and knowledge I am gaining from my internship is the result of not only an organization willing to teach but also the opportunity for continuous learning.

Find Internship Opportunities

Super Bowl XLVI-Business Planning at Its Best

http://jakesdtvblog.blogspot.com/2011/02/indianapolis-super-bowl-logo-revealed.html

This week I came across an article in Sport Travel magazine.  While the cover story of the January 2012 issue is not directly related to creating business plans, it does bring to home why it is so important to set goals, make action plans, and gain an understanding of the business. Just as the owners of Growthink try to help their customers realize, the approaches by the NFL and city of Indianapolis on improving the Super Bowl experience are based on the key principals of why planning is important.  This is being said, to me, it was a perfect example of why business plans are necessary-not only for start-up but also in times of growth or restructuring.

The article goes in depth at how the NFL has looked at it’s past Super Bowls, what worked good well and what didn’t work at all.  The most interesting part to me was what this year’s host city, Indianapolis, has done to ramp up the customer experience with not only Super Bowl XLVI but also future events in mind as well.  The NFL created a customer service approach to improve on training volunteers and event staff, spreading out representatives both outside and inside the stadium to direct fans, and for the first time opening the Super Bowl Media Day to 8,000 fans. 

Indianapolis itself however, has transformed downtown into a Super Bowl Village.  Host committee chairman, Mark Miles, said, “We looked at our assets and tried to be objective about our strengths and weaknesses.”  Knowing the weather in Indiana could be unpredictable and somewhat unpleasant in early February, they still chose to take their compact, walkable “downtown atmosphere and assets and turn it into something that Super Bowl visitors and residents of Indiana could embrace and enjoy.” Outside of the Super Bowl, changes made downtown and expansions to key areas such as the Indianapolis Convention Center will attract companies and organizers looking for the next place to hold their event. 

What Indianapolis has done that many cities have not, is realize that they need to play to their city’s strengths, make their offerings unique, and think towards the future.  They have an understanding of their competition, market, and the need to push the bar just a little higher.  All of these are the same components that go into making a successful business plan and are pieces that I will take with me as I journey into the business world.  From Growthink's emphasis on using business plans as a resource in creating strategies to the NFL and Indianapolis's approach in understanding their market and the need for change, it is without doubt that I will use their experience while developing my own ideas and forming them into business plans in the future.

Related Links:

http://www.sportstravelmagazine.com/

http://visitindy.com/

http://www.icclos.com/

http://www.nfl.com/

To Plan or Not To Plan, That Is the Question

So you have a great idea for a business, but now how do you make that vision reality?  Many experts say the first step when considering starting any business is to create a plan.  However, others believe it is really only a necessary evil to gain financing and investors.

As the popular NBC show, Americas Great Next Restaurant, has proven to us, a business plan can help both a company and potential investors to understand all aspects of their operations prior to opening. The show’s primary investors, Bobby Flay, equally famous for his celebrity chef status as Steve Ells is for his Chipotle restaurants, are no strangers to identifying talent and opportunity.  They are not just looking at if a restaurant can turn a profit but also the person behind the idea and their ability to successfully develop a concept.

A business plan can help a company to identify weaknesses in areas such as:  leadership and market feasibility as well as strengths such as: competitive environment and growth opportunities.  In a sense, it can help to determine if the idea you believe to be unique and great is truly worth pursuing.  It also gives you an opportunity to make adjustments and correct mistakes that can often result from under-planning.

The owners of the consulting firm, Growthink, have been helping entrepreneurs “successfully start, grow, and/or exit their companies” since 1999. Co-founded by Dave Lavinsky and Jay Turo, Growthink’s business plans have been featured in magazines such as Fortune, Businessweek, and Forbes.  The company not only provides services focusing on finding and securing investors but also “developing a strategic road map”.  They help their clients to set goals, make action plans, and gain a complete understanding of their business.  Probably the best summary supporting why a business plan is a good idea is their list of 20 Reasons Why You Need A Business Plan.

The NBA Is Back and Ready For Action

image from basketballwallpapers.com

It’s back!  Wait, was it missing?  With the end of the MLB season and winter meetings, mayhem of the NFL, and always exciting college sports, I barely had time to really miss it. But yes, if you are a basketball fan, you most definitely noticed that the NBA season just hasn’t been the same.  Well, more like it has been nonexistent.  Never fear, the NBA players and owners finally came to an agreement ending what seemed like a never-ending lockout.

Now, with training camps underway, trade rumors flying, and the preseason set to go the countdown is on as the first day of the NBA season approaches.  Only fourteen days until the Boston Celtics and New York Knicks tip-off noon Christmas Day at Madison Square Gardens, the perfect gift for anyone that may have actually missed watching the sport. 

Unlike the NFL lockout, basketball fans didn’t seem as committed to the cause of either side of the argument.  Evan Bretzman’s article on The Sport Hole explains the difference between the NFL and NBA lockouts in humorous terms that anyone who has dated can relate to.  While fans of the NFL “would have been crushed if the NFL had decided to cancel the season”, many of the same fans though they enjoy watching the NBA, were indifferent about the season or lack there of. 

Bretzman compares football to “a long-term girlfriend that you’ve shared some great times with, matured with, and learned to love…It’s the girl you take to Thanksgiving dinner.”  Losing that relationship is like losing a family member or best friend.  “The NBA, on the other hand, is more like the girl you see out sometimes and hook up with but have no intention of actually dating.” 

Regardless of your relationship with sports, basketball is here and ready to take back it’s fans.  With a shortened 66 game season and grueling schedule, it will prove to be interesting to see if the quality of play holds up to what fans have come to expect from the NBA.  Personally, I hope the upcoming season brings some much needed promise to a city plagued by the “Factory of Sadness” otherwise known as the Cleveland Browns. 

Related Links:

http://www.nba.com/

http://espn.go.com/nba/

http://thesporthole.com/explaining-the-nfl-and-nba-lockouts-in-relationship-terms/

The Cleveland Indians Snow Days "Snopening" Soon

Image from ClevelandIndians.mlb.com

The leaves are gone, temperatures have turned cold, and snow has fallen which means it’s time again for the Cleveland Indians to transform Progressive Field from “baseball park to winter playground” (Grayshock).  After a mere four weeks of hard work, this MLB team is bringing much needed life to a city that tends to go dark during the rough winter months. 

The Indians Snow Days is a winter festival for friends and families to enjoy the off-season and make memories in a unique way. Last year it was reported that just over 50,000 fans attended the 2010 Snow Days event.  Experiencing the success they were anticipating, the Indians are hoping for even better results in their second year.  Returning will be The Batterhorn, a 200 foot, 8-lane tubing hill, The Frozen Mile, “an ice skating track around the outfield and the first non-symmetrical ice skating path in the United States” (Indians.com), and The Rookie Rink,, a smaller rink for beginner skaters to practice in center field.

New this year will be The Frozen Diamond, a regulation sized ice skating rink covering the infield.  For baseball fans this may be hard to swallow but three main events are already planned to draw in a different breed of fans.  “The Frozen Diamond Face-Off” includes a High School Hockey Tournament spanning three days in December, a January 5^th competition between local high school rivals, St. Edward and St. Ignatius, and a January 15^th faceoff between Ohio State and Michigan Universities. 

For those not wanting to brave the elements, not to worry, there is an indoor Kidsland and “Warming Area” featuring arts and crafts, baseball and holiday activities, video games, televisions showing movies and sporting events, and visits from “Santa Slider”, the beloved Indians mascot.

“Snoepening” day is Friday, November 25 and runs until January 16.  Tickets range from $5.00 for those just coming to watch the fun to $100 for a family pack (2 Adults, 2 Children).  Group tickets and private buyout days are also available.

http://cleveland.indians.mlb.com/cle/fan_forum/snowdays.jsp#home

http://www.cleveland.com/tribe/index.ssf/2011/11/indians_snow_days_opens_this_f.html

http://www.cleveland.com/wfny/index.ssf/2011/01/indians_close_doors_on_first_e.html

Sponsorship and Fund Raising In Your Community

Picture From:  www.dojiggy.com

Over the last couple of months I’ve been working a great deal with fundraising for our school and community youth leagues.  The economy has made it even more difficult to not only maintain the costs of operating these education and youth sports programs but also continue to see positive results in fund raising.  While we have seen an increase in profits, most organizations in our region have not.  Much of our success can be attributed to the support of our community and the hard work and dedication of our volunteers but that can only carry an organization so far.  Realizing this, we have been attempting to find new, creative opportunities with more options and diversity in our fund raising.

While many of the education and youth leagues are still only considering sales from catalogs to sub sandwiches as fund raising methods, many forget the idea of looking to local business to help support their cause as sponsors.  Yes, we see names of businesses on the back of t-shirts or signs in the outfield of summer youth leagues, but what about the rest of the year and what are the businesses getting out of sponsorship?  In an interview with Full Sail University, Kathy Kopacz, sports marketing consultant in the sports industry for more than 20 years, gave these recommendations for obtaining successful sponsorship: Make sure that the goals and objectives of your organization is in line with your potential sponsor, look at the sponsorship as a partnership, and follow-up and deliver results.  Although this may be more directed to the larger sports industry, some points can be taken away to help in smaller organizations as well. 

For example, because sponsors of community organizations will most likely be on the local level, it may not be as important to show statistics or financial results from sponsorship but appeal to the business’s sense of pride in supporting something bigger.  Local businesses are usually aware of the benefits of sponsoring the communities they provide services to.  If the business is supporting a youth sports team, give them a game schedule with a special invitation to attend and send pictures and updates of the team’s season highlights.  For school events, have students write thank you letters or make a poster to sign.  Many times, all that is needed to gain and retain sponsorship is the simple acknowledgement of appreciation.

As the economy continues to hit families, organizations, and businesses hard, it will become even more important to ensure that the investment being made by sponsors is found to be worthwhile.  The question is, is your organization looking for unique, creative, and different ideas to present to your community and potential sponsors?

How To Get Sponsors For Your Event

Dicks Sporting Goods Sponsorship Request

How to Get Sponsors to Support A Walk-A-Thon or Other Fundraising Event

Cheerleading: From Youth Sport to Professional Marketing Strategy

www.graphicshunt.com

The topic of whether cheerleading should be considered a sport has been debated for years and there is still no clear winner.  However, there is no arguing the influence cheerleaders have on their peers and their ability to bring in revenue from youth to professional levels. 

I began cheerleading when I entered Junior High and I admit, initially it was the typical stereotype of girls jumping around, waving pom-poms and wearing pleated skirts.  That all changed as I entered High School and a group of professional cheerleading coaches and choreographers were hired to work with our squads and get us competition ready.  All of a sudden we were doing more than standing on the sidelines cheering.  We were becoming athletes as opposed to “Barbie dolls”.  We were running laps, building muscles, learning how to tumble, doing stunts, practicing for hours everyday and gaining respect and popularity.  Cheerleading now required year-round dedication because of our support in many sports and competitions as well as acting as a continuous role model and maintaining academic performance.

As cheerleaders transform into athletes, their ability to set trends among their peers becomes a greater asset to companies who want to market to girls, especially ages 7 to 17.  According to a 2007 study done by Active Marketing Group, 3.3 million Americans will participate in cheerleading, 1.3 million will cheer more than 60 days, and Pop Warner has seen a 20% increase in cheer participation.  In addition, the 5,400 cheerleading and dance squads make up 45% of total participation in the organization. (Active Network) These statistics are only in the Pee Wee through High School age range and do not include the major influence cheerleading has on colleges and universities of all sizes nationwide.  While colleges may not see as big a revenue from their cheerleading programs as youth or professional, they are stirring the biggest controversy with the attempt at making cheerleading a Title IV sport.

On the professional level, the role of a cheerleader is much different than in youth and college.  Cheerleaders are primarily a marketing tool for professional sports teams and an additional source of publicity and revenue.  The Dallas Cowboy Cheerleaders are just as recognizable as the football team they represent.  Appearances for the top professional cheerleaders ranges from $100-$500 per hour per cheerleader and they work closely with marketing and community relations teams to attract fans and new sponsorship. Although professional teams are reluctant to put a specific number on the value that cheerleading brings to their organization, it is obviously enough to keep the program running. 

Regardless of if you consider cheerleading a sport, it is undeniable that it is “big business”.  From youth to professional levels, the marketing opportunities for companies targeting girls and tweens to football and basketball teams appealing to men and women, the possibilities are endless.

http://www.activenetworkrewards.com/Assets/AMG+2009/Cheerleading.pdf

http://sports.espn.go.com/espn/page2/story?page=drehs/040316

http://www.cnbc.com/id/41291516/The_NFL_s_10_Best_Cheerleading_Squads