Networking

The deadline to register for the 2019 4S Summit is quickly approaching (September 20). We have a jam-packed schedule this year, with an amazing line-up of education, and we don't want you to miss out!  Take a look at the education topics we have in store for you: Strategies Government Relations Navigating Local Politics International Sport Leveraging Your Internal Marketing Resources Sales Seeing is Believing What Rights Holders Want Stay to Play, Stay to Save, and other Fancy Ways to Track Room Nights Local Community Programming vs. Sports Tourism Events Services Safe Sport Event Security FAM Tours, Site Visits, and Client Gifts, Oh My! Sponsorship Corporate Partners How to Get the Most Return on Your Investment When Supporting Sports Events in Your Community Insurance View the schedule and full education session listing. 4S SUMMIT REGISTRATION Member Rate: $499...

Fall 2019 Sports Facilities Summit Mark your calendars for October 24 - 26 as we're hosting the 2nd Sports Facilities Summit!  Developed by industry leaders in sports facilities, events, and tourism, the Sports Facilities Summit provides education and facilities tours to industry leaders who want to learn about trends, and experience live operations of a sports facility. Created to facilitate discussions and networking, the Sports Facilities Summit hosts a series of events to explore all aspects of this industry. The fall Summit will be held at the Grand Park Sports Campus in Westfield, IN. Who Should Attend?    Convention Centers Developers & Architects Indoor/Outdoor Facilities Non-Traditional Sports Venues Parks and Recreation Stadiums & Arenas Sports Complexes Sports Destinations Sports Facility Vendors Sports Parks Topics Facility Development Facility Funding Facility Management Admin Issues F...

A record turnout of industry leaders in sports events and tourism attended the 27th annual symposium held in Knoxville, TN from May 6-9 to elect new leadership, honor members with national awards and participate in dozens of continuing education programs led by industry leaders. 

Way back in April, I had the pleasure of attending an etiquette session led by Patricia Rossi at the NASC (now called SportsETA) Women's Summit in Tampa. This was the second annual Women's Summit held in conjunction with the NCAA Women's Final Four basketball tournament. I wrote about my takeaways last year as well. Patricia was the last presenter in 48 hours chock-full of wisdom and knowledge bombs. All 70 attendees were exhausted, and perhaps more than a little sleep deprived, to say the least. You might say she had drawn the short straw. Not to mention, she was presenting to a bunch of awesome women who work in sports...let's just say (and I'm just surmising here), but this industry may be a bit more casual on the etiquette side of things than say, corporate finance. In a nutshell, Patricia rocked the house! She was engaging, hilarious, and an absolute delight. She is a southern belle that (if I'm honest) at first impression, intimid...

People tend to fall on three sides of the networking spectrum: The people that love socializing and meet all kinds of people The people that hate networking and skip these sessions or don’t participate The people that are good at networking and leave with a valuable lead and/or resource Depending on the day, each of us usually falls into one of these categories when we must attend networking events. Many factors contribute to how we react to networking including the hours worked that day, what’s happening outside of work, and energy levels in general.  Please take a moment to learn some networking lessons that may provide positive results while networking at the 2019 NASC Symposium. Look at this stack of business cards! These are on my desk right now. Can you imagine if your card is located near the bottom of that stack? I’m sure my card is at the bottom of stacks on hundreds of desks around the country. This is a constant reminder that I’...

The countdown is on for the 27th annual NASC Symposium! Before your bags are packed, check the conference website. Then, as you prepare to meet event rights holders, vendors and destination representatives from throughout the USA in Knoxville, Tennessee May 6- 9, you might want to check it again. This will help you ensure the most efficient and effective use of your time! NASC staff and volunteer members have worked diligently to provide several great resources to assist you as you get organized to attend the NASC’s annual meeting (for the first time or the 27th)! Follow the links below to find answers to many of your questions: Hotel & Travel Schedule Education Marketplace NASC FAQs Blogs Hotel & Travel: Traveling to a destination by yourself (especially for the first-time) can seem a bit intimidating. A little advanced homework will reduce potential concerns and set you up for a fun, successful conference experience. Review your...

TAMPA (For Immediate Release) -- A capacity crowd attended the second annual Women’s Summit hosted by the National Association of Sports Commissions in Tampa during the NCAA Women’s Final Four. Numerous female business leaders representing professional and collegiate sports along with government, financial services, marketing, public relations, and hospitality shared advice and tips to attendees of the Women’s Summit, which was first hosted in Columbus, Ohio during last year’s NCAA Women’s Final Four in partnership with the Greater Columbus Sports Commission. Two new awards were presented during the Women’s Summit as well. Linda Logan, Executive Director of the Greater Columbus Sports Commission, was honored with the firstever Trailblazer Award for her industry leadership, and the Rising Star Award was presented to Meaghan Hughes from Ann Arbor Sports Commission for her volunteerism efforts. “The Women’s Summit hosted by the Nati...

We are just over a month away from the 2019 NASC Symposium. No, you don’t need to start packing your bags just yet, but you do need to start planning out what you want your week to look like. We just released the education sessions for the 2019 Symposium in Knoxville, Tennessee from May 6-9. If you are part of a destination looking to attract more events to your city, you may consider sitting in on sessions like “Developing your Destination’s Sports Tourism Program” on Tuesday or “Bidding on NAIA Events” on Thursday. For the sales and development managers, there are also sessions for building brand awareness, partnership strategies, and valuing sponsorships. There are more than 25 education sessions planned for Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday, so there is something for each member of your team coming to the Symposium. Check them all out here. Also, if you registered for the CSEE course at the NASC Symposium, put on your crisis mode c...

The Spring 2019 edition of the NASC Playbook is available now.  Download your copy. Inside this issue: What kind of leader do you want to be Sports Facilities Summit On motivating your employees Why rebrand the NASC That aha moment 12 questions for CVBs and Sports Commissions Symposium education track line-up Staying competitive on and off the sports field  We encourage members to share information with your peers. Contact Meagan Grau, Director of Member Services and Engagement, at meagan@sportscommissions.org to learn more about how you can contribute to a future edition of The NASC Playbook. The NASC Staff

A mentor is someone that will guide you along the path you have chosen, someone that will help you overcome challenges and build your character, while being motivated to support you and being a positive influence on your journey. Have you identified important individuals that have had a positive impact on your life? These individuals could be friends or advisers that you haven’t talked to in years, but they are still mentors to you. Reach out to them, thank them and start up that new dialogue. For me, it was a college professor at Ohio State in 2003, and I never realized how important he was to helping create who I am today and why I ended up in the sports tourism industry in 2012. After nine years of working in a variety of roles in professional sports – from interning and working full-time for a Minor League Baseball team, to spending time selling sponsorships for a PGA golf tournament and then moving into event operations for a golf contractor, then finally landing...