By: Carolina Keen, Contributor
Laurentian’s Sports Administration program is set to host the largest sport business conference in Northern Ontario March 2nd through 5th of this year.
The Northern Sports Industry Conference (NSIC) will take place both on campus and at the Holiday Inn downtown, and is targeted towards sports business students and professionals looking to break into the sport industry.
The team is expecting more than 20 prominent guest speakers and 100 students eager to pick their brains and learn from their years of experience.
“We are aiming for this conference to help students and young professionals explore the world of sports,” said Josh Bousada, Director of Marketing for NSIC. “The sports industry is very tight-knit but has much so much to offer, which people do not realize. We want to give a chance for the population of Northern Ontario to have access to this type of networking event, that [often] only take place in the Toronto area.”
The event is being run by a group of seven SPAD students as a part of their third year Event Management course, and was inspired by other university conferences the organizers have attended in past years.
“As one of the premier sports business programs in Ontario, it didn’t make sense that we were continually attending sports business events and conferences at other universities,” said co-chair Ryley Robinson. “It’s time we showcase our program and our school to the rest of the country.”
“An event of this size catered to sports business students has never been held before in Northern Ontario, let alone organized by a group of students.” said co-chair Roberto Bagnato.
The theme for the conference is #BreakingTheIce and will consist of four panels of guest speakers: International Sport and Sponsorship, Leaders In Sport, The Rise of the CFL, and Breaking into the Industry.
Five speakers have been announced so far with over 15 more to be named as the conference nears.
Speakers already confirmed include Kyla Csumrik, Account Executive with the NHL in Partnership Marketing, Andrew Baker, Director of Games with the Canadian Olympic Committee, Stephen Tihal, Account Executive with the NHL in Partnership Marketing, Francois Robert, Director of Partnerships for the Canadian Paralympic Committee, and Alannah Della Vedova, Brand Specialist for Loyalty and Innovation for Rogers Communications.
Tickets are available for purchase through www.northernsportsconference.com until February 21, 2017.