Bill Robertson has initiated strategic communications plans for several sports teams and brings vast knowledge from his days as the head of public relations for four major league teams (Anaheim Ducks, Anaheim Angels, Minnesota Wild, Minnesota Timberwolves). Robertson discusses how going through the Disney Institute helped guide his career further, some of the issues with traditional and social media reach that teams deal with, and how communications departments push a brand further into the public eye.
This is a great episode for those who want to work in sports to listen to because its about wanting it more than the other person. Justin Kesterson has worked in various levels of college and high school athletics, including a Division I, two Division IIs, and now at the high school level, performing every type of duty including: broadcast, sports information, promotion, events management, marketing and corporate sales. Kesterson talks about graduating out of the Seattle University MSAL program during its infancy, being married but living two states away from his wife while working in the wilds of Montana at MSU-Billings as Sports Information Director, and how he continually outworked other interns at Seattle University.
In one of the more fascinating episodes for the podcast, Pedro Gutierrez talks about the Liga Mexican del Pacifico (Mexico Pacific League) where he serves as media manager. Gutierrez talks about the fight for baseball’s media coverage against the backdrop of futbol’s dominance in South American countries, as well as the International Drafting System and why Cuba is not in a part of the Liga Mexican del Pacifico. Twitter: @pedroagpt
BJ Pickard operates one of the largest fan engagement operations in professional sports. The Arena Football League's social media efforts rival that of that larger professional leagues, and Pickard discusses where the AFL was in terms of fan support prior to the 2009 lockout and how the AFL has managed to re-engage fans back into the fold since its rebirth in 2010. Twitter: @BJPickard
Chris Thompson is one of the premier sports information directors in the northwest. Known by everyone in sports communication in the Puget Sound Region, Thompson has experience at every division of NCAA & NAIA athletics. Thompson sits down to talk about his tenure at the University of Puget Sound, an NCAA DIII where he managed every sport's marketing & communication while also earning a master's degree at Seattle University and what led Thompson to the decision to focus more on his health, wellness and family. Thompson also discusses his role at The Evergreen State College where the staff "embraces the weird" and as sports information director of the NAIA Cascade Collegiate Conference.
A companion to this episode is a minicast available to premium subscribers with Thompson, where he discusses how to find "good stories."