Name: Josh Feinberg
Email: Email Josh here
Twitter: @joshfeinberg
Age: 25
Name of Company: Oakland Athletics
Favorite sport to play: Baseball
Favorite sport to watch: Football
Favorite professional team(s): Yankees, Jets, Nets
Favorite college team(s): Rhode Island Rams, St. Johns Red Storm

Please briefly describe your background in sports business:
I began my career began with two internships, first with New Jersey Nets, second, within the Athletic Office at the University of Rhode Island. My first full time position I encountered was with the Lakewood BlueClaws (New Jersey), the single-A affiliate of the Philadelphia Phillies. With the BlueClaws, my responsibilities were plentiful, including dealings with ticket sales, social media, career fairs, community relations, and special events. In August 2010, I made a career transition, moving cross country to work for the Oakland Athletics as an account executive. With the A’s, I build the team brand through season ticket, group, and suite sales.

If you could change one thing in sports business what would it be?
I would like to see a solution to the challenges facing collegiate sports in terms of improper benefits. There needs to be a change. There is no clear cut answer, but until the decision makers among the big time NCAA conferences take a stand, there will continue you to be infraction after infraction.

What’s your most prized possession that you display at your desk and why?
Opening Day commemorative baseball of the NEW Yankee Stadium (I know, it can be a conflict of interest to my employer).

Do you think you have encountered any unique challenges or advantages because of your age?:
I am ALWAYS the youngest person in the room at any business/networking function. It’s important to use your age and experience to your advantage. Create you’re own personal foot print. Just because it’s been done before a certain, doesn’t mean that’s the right way or the path you need to follow.

What campaign do you think is working right now?
Social media is an important tool that is continuing to gain notoriety. I believe there is a handful of sports franchises that using social media very well, but there are quite a few teams that do not use SM tactics to their advantage. Overall, I believe the sports industry has made strong strides during the past year, when using SM to strengthen a team’s fan base and continuing to build a team’s brand.

What’s one issue in sports that needs to be addressed immediately for the betterment of the sport?:
This may not be an answer for the “betterment of sports” but for the betterment of college students. Once upon a time, you would be able to find a college/university that had a Sport Management degree program. This was somewhat rare. Today, nearly every school out there, from state to state, have a Sport Management degree program. I believe these programs have become watered-down and do not have the same “effect” it did years ago. I would encourage students to pick a major that is more generic, be it business or communication studies. Further, create a minor that includes sports business/management in the shape of an internship at your school’s athletic department. This way, you do not limit yourself at the time of graduation, when looking for a job. Sports properties do not necessarily care what your “degree” states but that you have the qualifications, desire, and passion to be an asset to the company.

What’s the toughest part of your job and what’s the easiest part of your job?
Toughest: Selling tickets in a “traditional” fashion in a competitive, overly crowded sports market. Easiest: Creating new, out-of-box, non-baseball related purposes/ideas that drive people to buy tickets and experience A’s Baseball.

If you could give one piece of advice to young sports business professionals coming up the ranks behind you, what would it be?
Continue to build your professional network and be sure to never burn bridges with past encounters. Within this business, you never know “who know’s who”. The Sports Industry is an extremely close knit group of professionals, from coast to coast…everyone knows everyone!

Name: Steven Gibbs

Age: 24

Name of Company(s) Hoop Mountain Basketball, Zero Gravity Basketball, Team New England Select Basketball, The Pingree School

Web Site: www.hoopmountain.com

Favorite sport to play: Basketball

Favorite sport to watch: Basketball

Favorite professional team(s):
Boston Celtics, Boston Red Sox, New England Patriots, Boston Bruins

Favorite college team(s):
Boston College Eagles, Syracuse Orange, UMass Minutemen, Harvard Crimson

Please briefly describe your background in sports business:
Director of Event Operations and Marketing for Hoop Mountain Basketball Corporation, a partner of the New England Recruiting Report. I also serve as managing partner for the Zero Gravity Basketball Tournament Series and coach basketball at Pingree, the current New England Prep School Basketball Champions.

If you could change one thing in sports business what would it be?
Exploitation of intercollegiate student-athletes. For example, John Wall brings in millions of dollars to the University of Kentucky, but will be forced to leave Coach Cal and company after just one year to support his family and go to the NBA. I feel as there should be a way for superstars like this to get a taste of the income they bring in which could possibly help college athletes stay and graduate before turning pro.

What’s your most prized possession that you display at your desk and why?
I proudly display a John Calipari signed “Refuse to Lose” Basketball on my desk. This gives myself the motivation to “Refuse to Lose” any business deal, any basketball game, and conflict that comes up while I am in the office.

Do you think you have encountered any unique challenges or advantages because of your age?
I feel that being in a decision making position at the age of 24 presents both its challenges and advantages. A challenge is certainly the fact of having to manage, and direct peers that are much older. A positive advantage of my age is the fact that I am not as tied down as an older professional who is married and has children, this allows me to work 80 hours a week, that is something some that are older simply cannot do.

What campaign do you think is working right now?
Title IX. I feel that this has made women’s sports grow leaps and bounds all the way from the youth to the college level. It is really been impressive to see the youth participation numbers among females playing athletics, and the rise in popularity in Women’s sports such as NCAA Women’s Basketball and the Women’s Olympic Ice Hockey Tournament.

What’s one issue in sports that needs to be addressed immediately for the betterment of the sport?
There are two major issues I see that need to be addressed. First would be all of the cheating and scandals in NCAA Division I Men’s Basketball Recruiting. The second and most obvious is the Bowl Championship Series, we must crown a true national champion on the field.

What’s the toughest part of your job and what’s the easiest part of your job?
Being in the events industry, outsiders often feel the hardest part of running a high quality event, is directing the actual event. I strongly, feel the most difficult part of event planning is the sales/marketing and operational planning prior to the event and the easiest part is actually operating the event on site. This holds true in both my current role in the basketball industry and my past role, in event operations at the NCAA Division I level.

If you could give one piece of advice to young sports business professionals coming up the ranks behind you, what would it be?
Network, Network, Network!!!

Name: Jessica Lichtenberg
Email: Email Jessica Here
Age: 24
Name of Company: Shade Global Inc.
Web Site: www.shadeglobal.com
Favorite sport to play: Tennis, soccer
Favorite sport to watch: Basketball, baseball, soccer
Favorite professional team(s): Knicks, Yankees
Favorite college team(s): University of Michigan, Syracuse University

Please briefly describe your background in sports business:
My passion for sports and ingenuity led me to a position in athlete representation and sports marketing in New York, where I am responsible for the development of sponsorships, organic marketing ideas and creating commercial opportunities for client projects.

If you could change one thing in sports business what would it be?
A greater push towards using the power of sports and entertainment to positively change the world.

What’s your most prized possession that you display at your desk and why?
A picture of my family because it makes me smile and reminds me of who I am. My family has always been behind me and they are my biggest supporters. They taught me to follow my dreams, to keep trying until I succeed, to have passion for what I do and to never settle for mediocrity. From an early age they instilled that hard work, dedication and integrity are important values that will carry me through life.

Do you think you have encountered any unique challenges or advantages because of your age?
Yes, it has definitely presented me with both unique challenges and advantages.
As a young female in this industry I think I had to perform to a higher standard to earn the same respect and confidence from colleagues. I felt like I had more to prove for people to take me seriously because of my age. However, this has also had its advantages. Coming in at a young age I have the opportunity to make my own mark in the industry. Making a great effort to constantly soak up everything I can by watching others and by testing the waters, I have learned more and gained more exposure than I ever imagined I would have by this point.

What campaign do you think is working right now?
NBC’s “Countdown to Vancouver.” The Olympics is truly a spectacular affair that captivates the world. Athletes of all trades train their entire lives for a chance to compete in the world’s greatest sporting event.
The “Countdown to Vancouver” coverage is doing an excellent job piquing interest by sharing the stories behind these incredible athletes- who they are and how they got there- and previewing highlights of the upcoming Winter Games.
The series engages viewers to become a part of the excitement. You connect to these individuals; you feel the genuine passion, the trials and triumph of these athletes, their commitment to excellence and the sacrifices they have made. Olympians not only represent themselves, but they represent their entire country on the world’s stage. Only a handful of people in the world ever earn the chance to do that.

What’s one issue in sports that needs to be addressed immediately for the betterment of the sport?
Athletes’ awareness of the responsibility they hold as role models in society. These individuals have a great ability to influence others through their actions.

What’s the toughest part of your job and what’s the easiest part of your job?
The toughest part of my job is the intense, high-pressured, 24/7 nature of this industry. The easiest part of my job is stirring up creative concepts to pursue.

If you could give one piece of advice to young sports business professionals coming up the ranks behind you, what would it be?
It’s going to be a wild ride so hold on tight! Take every opportunity to learn everything you can and ask a lot of questions. Don’t be afraid to initiate a new idea or try a new avenue because you think no one will listen- stand out and make yourself known.

Name: Jeff Brunelle
Age: 23
Email: jeff@carrotcreative.com
Company: Carrot Creative, Lacrosse All Stars
Website: http://carrotcreative.com
Favorite professional team(s): Portland Trailblazers, Seattle Sonics (RIP), Yankees
Favorite college team(s): Oregon Ducks, Alabama Crimson Tide, Gonzaga

Please briefly describe your background in sports business:
I am currently Director of Sports & Entertainment at Carrot Creative, a new-media marketing agency located in New York City. Specializing in social media, our sports and entertainment department provides custom development and communications planning for athletes and sports organizations. Prior to Carrot, I worked in Time Inc’s Consumer Marketing division as an assistant marketing manager for Sports Illustrated. Before working full time for Sports Illustrated, I was a campus representative throughout college and I did a summer internship in Consumer Research for SI. After graduating college, I also co-founded LacrosseAllStars.com with my friend Ryan Craven; the site is now a leading content hub for lacrosse news and fan commentary.

Even as a leader, most young professionals are still sitting in a cubicle at this point in your career. What’s your most prized possession that you display in your cubicle?
My younger cousin Patrick made a lacrosse player out of clay for me when I graduated college. It has a green and yellow jersey and wears #12 like I did. Patrick is a HUGE Oregon State fan, so the fact that he made something in University of Oregon colors meant a lot. I’ll always keep it with me.

Do you think you have encountered any unique challenges or advantages because of your age?
Yes and no. When I worked in a corporate role I often felt like my age hindered my opportunities, especially since many of the people I worked with were older. When I switched over to Carrot, I felt like my age was a positive thing. They recognized my drive right off the bat and offered me a lot of responsibility. Now whether or not it’s a challenge or an advantage usually depends on the client I’m working with.

What campaign do you think is working right now?
I want to say something else besides Nike, but I can’t. Those Nike Pro Combat commercials with Adrian Peterson are one of kind; when it comes on TV I stop everything to just watch. In terms of social media, another great example is Nike’s Leroy Smith campaign (The Man Who Motivated Michael Jordan). They made a lot of noise with that one.

What’s one issue in sports that needs to be addressed immediately for the betterment of the sport?
Depression. That might sound odd, but if you look at today’s athletes we’re seeing more and more come out publicly with their problems. Take Stephon Marbury or Michael Beasley for example, pro athletes have so much weight on their shoulders – if I could change one thing it’d be to take a few pounds off.

If you could give one piece of advice to young sports business professionals coming up the ranks behind you, what would it be?
Work hard and mind the details. People remember if you make mistakes, but if you get things right every time you’re accountable. That can go a long way.