Sports Organizations: Behind the Scenes By: Matthew Murphy

Table of contents (Ex. 3.= slide number) 3.What Was Researched 4.Products of my Research 5.Organizations Researched 6.Carolina Railhawks 7.Interview (Railhawks) 8.Job-Shadowing (Railhawks) 9.Carolina Mudcats 10.Interview (Mudcats) 11.Job-Shadowing (Mudcats) 12.Durham Bulls 13.Interview (Railhawks) 14.Job-Shadowing (Bulls) 15.USA Baseball 16.Interview (Railhawks) 17.Toronto Blue Jays 18.Interview (Railhawks) 19.Summary 20.Conclusion

What Was Researched A “Behind-the-scenes” look at Sport Organizations and their staff and facilities. – Job-Shadowing events and game-days at certain facilities. – Interviewing staff from all of the organizations listed. (Refer to Organizations Researched)

What I Obtained From This Research Knowledge of the organizations from the interviews and questions asked on the job. Experience in day to day operations of staff from job-shadowing. Pictures from day to day processes to Fan related photos of the organizations. Interviews with staff from these organizations.

Organizations Researched Carolina Railhawks (slide 7) – Interview – Job-Shadowing Carolina Mudcats (slide 10) – Interview – Job-Shadowing Durham Bulls (Slide 13) – Interview – Job-Shadowing USA Baseball (Slide 16) – Interview Toronto Blue Jays (Slide 18) – Interview

Carolina Railhawks North American Soccer League (Semi-Pro) WakeMed Soccer Park located in Cary, NC Seats about 10,000 fans (includes temporary seating) Acheivements – USL Runner-up (2009) – NASL Conference Champs (2010) – NASL Champs “Regular Season”(2011)

Interview (Railhawks) Chris Vurnakes- Manager of Fan Development – 2008 NC State Graduate – Master’s Degree (Sport Management) Information Learned: – 10 Full time staff (about 50 part time/game-day staff and interns) – Build a network with the fans to make for a better experience – Con: difficult to gain awareness, to educate and find sponsorships for the organization. – Food courts run by Third Party business.

Job-Shadowing (Railhawks) Experienced a lot of positions at the Railhawks. – Game-day Operations – Media – Ticket Sales – Promotion – Community Outreach/Awareness

Carolina Mudcats Single-A Semi-Pro Team (Carolina League) – Farm team for the Cleveland Indians Five County Stadium located in Zebulon, NC – Seats around 6,500 Achievements: – League Titles: 1935, 1947, 1962, 1988, 1991, 1995, 2004, 2006 – Division Titles: 1988, 1990, 1991, 1995, 1996, 1997, 2002, 2005, 2006, 2011

Interview (Mudcats) Sean Nickelsen- Director of Market and Sales – Bachelor’s Degree Information Learned: – 15 Full-time staff (about 50 game day staff and interns) – Provide affordable Family Friendly Entertainment – Con: the Hours (sometimes 12 or more hour days) – Food courts run by part-time staff

Job-Shadowing (Mudcats) Experienced many positions at the Mudcats. – Game-day Operations – Ticket Sales – Promotion – Community Outreach/Awareness

Durham Bulls Triple-A Semi-Pro Team (International Leagues) – Farm Team for the Tampa Bay Rays Durham Bulls Athletic Park located in Durham, NC – Seats 10,000 fans Achievements: – League Titles: 1924, 1925, 1929, 1930, 1940, 1941, 1957, 1965, 1967, 2002, 2003, 2009 – Division Titles: 1980, 1982, 1984, 1989, 1998, 1999, 2000, 2002, 2003, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011

Interview (Bulls) Marquette Branch- Baseball Operations – Bachelor’s Degree NC State Univ Sport Management Information Learned: – 20 Full-time staff (50 part-time and 10 interns) – Ensure every costumer/fan enjoys their experience – Con: Weather, Games during business hours – Food courts run by part-time staff

Job-Shadowing (Bulls) Almost no real interaction on Game day. (Essentially a fan) – Do to this fact I observed the other staff members rather than experienced it first hand. What I saw: – Game-day Operations – Media – Ticket Sales – Promotion – Community Outreach/Awareness

USA Baseball The National Team of the United States – Still Amateur organization (works with Minor League and College players) No field to call their own. Play all around the country and world. Achievements (N/A)

Interview (USA) Lindsay Robertson – Director of Community Relations – Bachelor’s Degree in Community Relations from UNCW Information Learned: – 13 Full-time staff (15-20 interns) – To govern, promote, and develop it’s players at both a national and an international level. – Cons: Always changing and being challenged with unique situations (players, games, fans) – This organization actually covers all of the teams from the 14u league up to the WBC (World Baseball Classic).

Toronto Blue Jays Major League Baseball Team (MLB) – American League (East Division) Rogers Centre located in Toronto, Ontario – Seats 49,282 fans Achievements: – World Series Titles: 1992, 1993 – AL Pennants: 1992, 1993 – East Division Titles: 1985, 1989, 1991, 1992, 1993

Interview (Blue Jays) Nick Manno – Pro Scout – Education: N/A Information Learned: – Staff: N/A – Cons: Long trips away from family, and weather – Build an organization capable of sustained success and ability to compete annually for championship – Takes a good eye to scout with the knowledge of the game at hand.

Summary Most of the organizations’ ideals were to satisfy the consumers/fans. Level of the organization affected the events and amount of staff on hand. Cons of the organizations were almost all different for each position covered. Education was a big part of each organization because a degree was needed to be a full-time staff member.

Conclusion Experiencing the work put in first hand gave me new respect for the staff members of these organizations. Their hard work and dedication to provide a “Family” environment is second to none. The dedication and teamwork to bring these events together is truly astounding. Every person has a role to perform and to be able to coordinate each event is a new challenge in itself. Without these people providing costumer service and working behind the scenes, we as fans would never get to see or enjoy the sports we watch today.