Sports Business students talk employment strategy with NFL UK
Date: 11/12/2015
The Sports Business Management programme recently hosted its annual Employability Conference, including a keynote address by Julian Mellini, NFL UK’s Strategic Analyst. The theme of this year’s conference was ‘Employment in Sport 4 Development’. A natural venue for this conference was the Black Prince Community Hub in the heart of Lambeth, which is home to many Sport 4 Development organisations and has hosted inspirational talks from Usain Bolt, Michael Jordan, Lebron James, Kobe Bryant, and Andy Murray.
Other conference presenters included Darrell Wilson, New Business Development and Philanthropy Manager for Laureus Sport for Good Winners Magic Bus, Rebecca Donnelly, CEO of Fight 4 Change, Anees Ikramullah, London Met Alumni and PhD Candidate studying Sport 4 Development at University of Kent, and Will Bryce, Operations Manager for NFL UK. Conference speakers shared their tips for success in the sports industry and discussed placement opportunities with their organisations. Keynote speaker Julian Mellini of NFL UK emphasised the importance of adding value to a sports organization: “We are not looking for sports fans. We are looking for employees with a skill set that can add value to our organization.”
Conference organizer Dr. Stephen Hills commented: “This year’s theme of Employment in Sport 4 Development was chosen to reflect the growth of this sector in the sport industry and the increasing number of our students now pursuing a career in this sector due to a desire to leverage sport to make a difference.” Second year undergraduate student Austin Greenlea reflected: “This conference was a timely reminder of the importance of developing my experience alongside my studies. I will be following up on the business cards I collected at this conference in the hope of securing a placement for this coming summer.”
