Saturday, January 31, 2009

Separate Ways (World's Apart)

In a drastic shift of scenery, culture and etiquette I now find myself in a complete different world of professional sports than I was in only weeks ago. Perhaps it was the immediate transition from one continent to another, one industry to the next that exposed so many differences and has revealed so many answers. Throughout the past three weeks, one conclusion has made itself unquestionably clear; working at the NFL Media Center in Tampa, Florida is about as far away as one can get from Seoul, Korea.

The Land of the Morning Calm is a quiet and majestic place, filled with beauty and shades of mystery. Understandably, part of its mystery lays in my inability to comprehend the language. Still, the professional etiquettes of Korean professionals are particularly polite and rooted in kindness and respect. One bows throughout salutations and exchanges business cards immediately when meeting a new co-worker or prospective client. Most importantly, Koreans will ensure that they act in a respectable manner, fearing an unintentional insult above all else. All conversations are mostly tranquil, divided by an equal set of give and take.

Then there is the Super Bowl, “Americas Game,” which is an entertainment anomaly in itself. Luckily, this is my second Super Bowl. As a result, I am not as star struck as I was last year, but I think working this game immediately after time in Asia has made a strong impact and has taught me a lot.

Here, we see the openness of the American sporting industry. Strolling through Radio Row, one can overhear a wide assortment of howls, laughter and screams. People are hugging each other, texting while talking and dressed to the nines. The NFL Network has televisions scattered all across the Tampa Convention Center providing coverage of every second of Super Bowl madness. Players are paraded in front of the media, asked questions for hours and followed like paparazzi.

A little bit different than Samsung Thunder’s “Free Hug” program that takes place after every home game, eh? It is truly overwhelming to see the blatant differences in sports through such a small time frame and large scale. The aspect I find most interesting about these differences is that each culture (and media culture for that matter), exists to naturally. In Seoul, the nature of a sporting event takes place in accordance with the country’s unique culture. Naturally, it is the same for Americans and the way they consume, celebrate and live with sports. Neither is better or worse, it is simply sporting cultural relativism.

As a disclaimer, I will acknowledge that this is not a truly fair comparison as the Super Bowl is a once-a-year extravaganza and this country’s highest touted event. On the flip side, it helps to observe and analyze extreme scenarios, as they can often expose differences the greatest.

I’ve thoroughly enjoyed pondering the subject of cultural differences in sports, most of which have been influenced by our trip to Korea. As a result, I will seek to explore some of these questions and themes in my Masters Project, hopefully learning a lot about the world of sports along the way.

Sunday, January 18, 2009

Gamsa Hamnida...Hungu!

Right now, it is Sunday night and our trip is sadly very close to coming to an end. We have just returned on a long bus ride from the Paeju English village where we played sports with Korean kids, ate dinner with Korean interns looking to practice English and watched a local B-Boy dance performance. The bus ride home provided an ideal opportunity for introspection and reflection of the previous experiences in Seoul…some of which I am happy to share with you.

I am not sure how effective it would be to write about every place we have visited over the course of our adventures in Korea, as our trip itinerary serves that helpful purpose. Nonetheless, for those curious, the following list has most of what we have done this trip. With every organization we have visited, we were greeted with the utmost respect and admiration, always by an extremely important and active representative of the organization who gave us a lovely gift and treated us to a scrumptious and high quality Korean meal.

Here we go….SK Wyverns baseball team, FC Seoul, 2002 World Cup Stadium, Samsung Training Facility, Samsung Thunders game, Samsung Hi-Clear Badminton team, NEST, 1988 Olympic Museum, Chosun Ilbo Newspaper (biggest in Korea), IB Sport Marketing, Blue House Tour (Korean version of America’s White House and Canada’s 24 Sussex Drive), Peter Kim, CG Media – VP Program Sales and the staff and students of the Physical Education Faculty at Kyung Hee University. Tomorrow, we have our final meeting with Puma Korea before heading to the airport. My jacket is filled with business cards from people at all these places who are very enthusiastic and supportive of our studies and eagerly encourage us (all USF SM students) to reach out and find a way to work with them in Korea.

On top of all of this has been the rapid pulse of a booming city. With free time, both collectively and individually, we found ways to connect to Seoul. Whether it was through the interesting bathing at a Jimjilbang, tasty sips of Soju with Korean students or touring local museums, we will all have left this city with a much greater understanding for the Korean people and first-hand experience with their generosity and pride.

Of course, as with anything in life, there will be more emotions that will flow from this trip once it is over. I already know I will soon talk about Jason, a student who has joined us for every leg of the trip. This week has been part of his internship for a Korean Sport Marketing firm and he has been doing a great job. Relatable as an aspiring sport management professional and appreciated for his everlasting help in explanations and translations, he has infused the trip with incredible character.

Lastly, on behalf of all the students from this class, I would like to thank Dr. Choi. All of our lectures have been interesting and thought provoking. The networks extended to us, not even to mention all of the local experiences, could never, ever have been achieved otherwise. We all know how much effort he has poured in to this and are extremely grateful.

I look forward to updating this blog with some after thoughts of the trip. Right now, for our last evening, I am about to join some friends in the lobby and visit the famous Noryangjin Market which is a 24-hour Fish Market…a bit late for raw fish but one last attempt to make the most of such unique surroundings.

Thanks for reading. For any questions about our trip to Korea or the USF Sport Management Program email me at ccsterling@usfca.edu.

Wednesday, January 14, 2009

Anyang Haseo...Ham-Samneda

A wise friend of mine once told me that he loved the first 48 hours of traveling the most. The rationale behind this bold statement was the pure love of being in a totally foreign environment and living by perception and intuition alone.

I had kept this philosophy near my heart before embarking on this great journey with my fellow classmates. After 24 hours of what feels like the longest day I’ve ever roamed, I am filled with smiles, a deep respect for the country I visit and still vast curiosity.

Our day started early, before the rise of Seoul’s sun. Living in San Francisco, I forgot all about darkness, gloom and cold weather. It didn’t take long to remember what it is like and to be partially honest, (despite my devout pride in being Canadian) I’m sort of excited to forget.

Our group boarded the bus with visible breath at 8:00am and headed to SK Wyverns stadium in Inchon, a suburb of the capital. The bus was filled with an inquisitive aura. We had landed late the night before and had seen very little of Korea and had few interactions with it's people. Suddenly, we were on a bus headed to meet and great the front office staff of the 2007 and 2008 KBO Champions. No one knew what to expect, yet after the visit, no one was disappointed.

At first, we were given a tour of the stadium by the team’s equipment manager, which included photo sessions on the field and a 1993 Joe Carter-esque running of the bases by yours truly (*note – all Torontonian boys born after 1987 will do this if presented the opportunity). They had explained some of the stadium’s planned renovations, which were very creative and interesting. After toying around the team’s gym and batting cages we were escorted to a conference for they day’s first lecture on the professional sporting industry.

It was incredibly well prepared, intriguing and interesting. The presenter had outlined SK Wyverns progression since their inception in 2000, outlining different marketing decisions they made and the corresponding results. All of this information was presented in the background of the nature of Korean professional sports, which is extremely different than those in North America. Understanding the blueprint motivations for creating professional teams in Korea as well as learning the ownership structure of these teams served as a great stepping stone to understanding this foreign culture and industry.

After the informative lecture and helpful Q and A session, the staff of SK Wyverns treated us to a delicious traditional Korean meal. Kimchi, Bulgogi and Bimbimbap, oh my! It was so delicious and served as a great opportunity to digest the information we just learned through casual conversation and culinary experimentation.

A great start to what will be an incredible trip. I have to stop now, as the Seoul nightlife is calling my name but I do look forward to sharing new experiences as the trip goes on.

All the best from Seoul. Wish the rest of Cohort 27 was here to explore.

Monday, January 12, 2009

Excitement, Anticipation and Curiosity

At the end of our Sport Marketing class, Professor Andrew Choi was delivering his final speech before distributing the course evaluation forms. While bidding his final farewell to the students, Dr. Choi openly asked our class how many students would be interested in potentially taking an international sport immersion class abroad. Around half of the class’s hands were in the air - some instantaneously and others gradually, but all in all, the unified group of raised arms signalled the first breath of life into a special endeavour.

Since that moment, Dr. Choi has poured in an incredible amount of effort into making our upcoming Global Sport Management Immersion Week a reality. There will be 11 of us taking off for Seoul, South Korea tomorrow (eight students from the San Francisco campus and three from Southern California) on what should be an educational and empirical adventure of a lifetime. Dr. Choi has worked relentlessly in creating the most beneficial itinerary for our class, one that blends our understanding of a foreign sporting industry with a new and exciting culture.

The aims of the course are laid out in the syllabus, which offer some insight into the objectives of the class. ..

Korea is one of only a handful of countries in the world which has hosted both the FIFA World Cup (2002) and the Summer Olympics (1988) – two of the largest sporting events in the world. Considering the small size and population base of the nation, the Korean sport industry has seen remarkable growth and success in modern history, generating top-10 performances in recent Olympics, massive followings in professional leagues, and elite status in grassroots programs in such sports as golf, baseball, and taekwondo.

This course aims to provide a sport-cultural immersion program in Korea to learn about the global perspectives in sport management. Topics include, but not be restricted to, international sporting events, state-of-the art sport venues, sport business practices, sport policies, sport media and broadcasting rights, sport management education, and student athletes in Korea. In addition, the course will provide ample opportunities to learn about the social, cultural, and historical aspects of Korea.


As a student, I couldn’t be more excited for a course and I know my peers share the exact same sentiment – otherwise they wouldn’t be doing it! The tasty foods, the historic sights and the interaction with local Koreans are all such exciting prospects. Not to mention a totally different and important perspective of the global sports scene. I’m confident we will all grow individually and collectively from this once-in-a-lifetime expedition.

Our flight leaves in less than 12 hours which means the anticipation continues to mount appropriately. Based on a promise made to all my friends in Cohort 27 who sadly can’t join us for this class, I’ve pledged to keep everyone up to date and informed by updating this blog on a consistent basis. I hope everyone has as much fun reading it as I will have writing it!

Lastly, although I look forward to thanking him in person tomorrow at Inchon airport, I want to express my gratitude to Dr. Choi for giving us the chance to participate in such an incredible opportunity. All of the students are so appreciative of his efforts. He’s worked furiously to make this happen and we all are extremely grateful and look forward to enjoying and learning about his country’s special culture.

Friday, January 9, 2009

Cohort 27 Accomplishments

It took me a while to come up with my first entry for 2009. Originally, I had thought to string together a “Best of…” compilation to sum up the year in sports, but decided against it acknowledging there are so many other media sources that can provide more insightful coverage. At a brief loss for content and ideas, I confided in a dear friend, Raiders co-worker and USF Sport Management graduate in Will Kiss who provided sage advice.

The challenges of looking back on an entire year in hindsight and introspectively digesting are extremely difficult. Despite the rapid speed that time fleets at, 365 days fits quite nicely as a period of time to evaluate all one has strived for, accomplished and experienced.

For some reason, whenever I think about any personal achievements made since moving to the Bay Area, it all comes back to the orientation dinner in July, 2007. There are 35 strangers sitting in a room. They have no experience in an industry they so passionately love. They’re all willing to do anything to get in and ultimately love their jobs and careers.

It is incredible to see the progress we have made as a cohort one year and a half after starting the program. If I would have presented the following list of positions in the Bay Area sporting industry to our class at orientation, I don’t believe anyone would think it is possible. Well, it’s all true. Impossible is nothing.

The following is a partial list of positions held by students in Cohort 27 throughout the year of 2008. Many students have done additional internships at organizations not listed here. With such great progress in only one year, it seems as if the sky is the limit for 2009 and beyond.

As you will see the variety of organizations and positions our class is involved with spreads across all facets of professional, collegiate and other areas of the sporting industry. With the exception of very few, all of these positions were attained after starting the Sport Management Program.

(*Because I have not had the full disclosure of my classmates, no names are attached to the positions. If anyone wants their name attached to their title, kindly e-mail me and I would be happy to put it up)

Cohort 27, 2008

Organization: San Francisco Giants
Position: Baseball Operations Intern

Organization: 2008 US Open, USGA
Position: Championship Office Intern

Organization: Dunkshoot Magazine (Japan)
Position: International Basketball Scout

Organization: Mavericks Surf Ventures, Inc.
Position: Environmental Manager

Organization: Giants Enterprises
Position: Sales Coordinator

Organization: Stanford University
Position: Marketing Associate

Organization: Cal Athletics
Position: Assistant Director of ticket sales, Marketing

Organization: 42nd International Children’s Games
Position: Liaison to Honk Kong, China delegation

Organization: San Jose Earthquakes
Position: Corporate Accounts Manager

Organization: Comcast Spotlight
Position: Sports Sales

Organization: Roller Soccer World Cup 2008
Position: President of Organizing Committee

Organization: San Francisco 49ers
Position: Football Operations Intern

Organization: Decathlon Health Club
Position: Assistant Athletic Director

Organization: Emerald Bowl
Position: Media Services Coordinator

Organization: NFLPA
Position: Salary Cap/Arbitration Intern