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Professional Development
UC-Irvine: 2006 Business of Sports Conference |
| On Friday, May 12, 2006, students from SDSU’s Sports Business Management MBA program had a chance to attend the University of California-Irvine Business of Sports Conference. Hosted by the Paul Merage School of Business, the one day conference featured keynote speaker Leonard Armato, AVP Pro Beach Volleyball Tour owner and commissioner. Addressing the crowd during lunch, Mr. Armato spoke about his career in sports and gave advice to the attendees. “Combine your passion for life and your mission for life to truly build a rewarding career and life,” Mr. Armato said. He stressed the importance of having a value proposition and offering that to a potential employer. Mr. Armato spoke of the challenges of athlete representation in the 21st Century, but concluded that it is well worth it for the right individual. His number one tip for becoming a super agent: get a client! He also touched on the importance of creative marketing and integrated communications in today’s industry.
Before Mr. Armato’s speech, the crowd was lucky to hear from former CBS Productions president, Andy Hill. Prior to embarking on a successful career in the entertainment industry, Mr. Hill had the pleasure of playing basketball for Coach John Wooden at UCLA. In 2000, he co-authored the book Be Quick—But Don’t Hurry with Coach Wooden. Mr. Hill’s half-hour speech detailed his interactions and lessons learned with Coach Wooden. Entertaining and thoughtful, his speech deeply reverberated with each attendee.
In addition to Leonard Armato and Andy Hill, the conference held three panel discussions: Athlete Representation, Sports Marketing in the Digital Age, and Athletes and the Media. The conference ended with a networking event where attendees linked in with many of the top players in the Los Angeles sports industry. |
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