MEDIA RELEASE: 7 March 2019 – R00037
The Niagara IceDogs will get a helping hand from Brock University’s Sport Management (SPMA) students to address a problem impacting the hockey industry.
SPMA students will pitch their proposed solutions to the real-world problem during the seventh annual Sport Management Alumni Day on Monday, March 11, showcasing what they’ve learned in the classroom and tips they’ve picked up while working in the field.
More than 30 alumni will return to campus to hear the presentations and participate in the day-long event. The returning SPMA grads are now working for organizations such as Maple Leaf Sports and Entertainment, the Seattle Mariners, the Canadian Olympic Committee, Rogers Communications, the Hamilton Tiger-Cats and Ottawa Sports and Entertainment Group.
“Brock Sport Management students are increasingly participating in and winning case competitions hosted by industry partners and other universities,” says Sport Management Student Council President David Stark. “By hosting a case competition at Brock, we are hoping to garner more interest in Alumni Day and provide a fun and effective way to engage students in all years of study in experiential education.”
When initially developing the idea, the Student Council decided the IceDogs were a top industry partner choice because of the close ties they have to the Brock community.
“It was important to us to engage a local sport organization in order to help students, make a real connection with the theory behind what they are learning in the classroom and how it applies in a high-pressure situation,” Stark explains. “The IceDogs were a natural choice for us because they employ several Sport Management alumni and work regularly with Brock students to provide experiential education and placement opportunities.”
Students participating in the case competition will be given three days to develop a solution to the scenario presented. The top four teams will be selected to present a 10-minute marketing plan to a panel of judges comprised of Niagara IceDogs staff, and SPMA faculty and alumni.
“The Bachelor of Sport Management program at Brock has proven again and again that Brock is developing some of the best young talent entering into our industry,” says Nino Bourikas (BSM ’11), Director for Community Marketing and Group Sales for the Niagara IceDogs. “For us to be able to obtain knowledge and ideas from SPMA students on a marketing issue that we feel can be improved upon with the IceDogs is invaluable.”
While the exact scenario cannot be shared until it is released to participating students on Friday, March 8, Stark says it’s an issue that is “likely common throughout the Ontario Hockey League and applicable to other leagues and sports within the commercial sector of the industry.”
The final round for the case competition will be held in Goodman School of Business Room 308 at 11 a.m. Monday. The winning team will be announced at the Alumni Day lunch event.
“The SPMA Alumni Day is an opportunity for our program’s nearly 950 students to network with industry professionals and learn more about various careers available to them,” says Department of Sport Management Chair Kirsty Spence. “What started seven years ago has developed into a truly exemplar day of students learning from alumni and alumni being happy to return to campus.”
More than 30 Sport Management alumni representing a broad spectrum of organizations, positions and industry sectors will return to campus to share their experiences and insider knowledge with students on sport-specific topics such as globalization, finance, intellectual property, social responsibility and marketing.
More information on SPMA Alumni Day and a full schedule of panelists is available on the Faculty of Applied Health Sciences website.
For more information or for assistance arranging interviews:
* Dan Dakin, Manager Communications and Media Relations, Brock University ddakin@brocku.ca, 905-688-5550 x5353 or 905-347-1970
– 30 –
