Sports business hopefuls hear from experienced industry pros at Worcester summit
Photo | Eric Casey
Propsective sports business workers line up to speak with teams and other sports-related organizations at the New England Sports Summit on Friday.
Hundreds of high school and college students looking for a future in the business of professional sports attended the New England Sports Summit at the College of the Holy Cross’ Hart Center at the Luth Athletic Complex on Friday, as experienced veterans in the space shared some words of wisdom on how to succeed in the highly-competitive industry.
The event, a follow-up of the 2023 Worcester Sports Management Summit, was put together by the Worcester Bravehearts and Masis Staffing, the Worcester-based company whose ownership also owns the Bravehearts.
The event featured a keynote question-and-answer session featuring Kati Fernandez, a Holy Cross graduate who has served as the senior director of development for Connecticut-based ESPN since 2020.
A native of the Dominican Republic who immigrated to Cambridge at a young age, Fernandez faced a somewhat unconventional path into sports. She graduated with a bachelor’s degree in music and pre-medical studies. A connection with a mentor led to a producing job with NFL Media, which was followed by a stint at Hulu before Fernandez ended up at ESPN.
Fernandez told the crowd their network would be one of the most valuable assets in the sports business world, reminding them to be mindful of the benefits of having good relationships with peers and professors and remembering the potential impact of their social media presence.
“All of you are coming into the career force at a time where your digital footprint will never go away,” she said. “So there’s a due diligence that all of us should be conscious of. But [social media] is so key, and LinkedIn has been critical for me even now in my career.”
A panel later in the day featured five sports business professionals with ties to Central Massachusetts, who told attendees they would need to be willing to wear multiple hats, particularly in internship roles, and try to gain as much experience as possible before graduating college.
“I did as many things as possible [in college] so when I got into the workforce. I had the experience that other people didn’t,” said Nic Clark, a sales consultant for the NFL team Tennessee Titans, who grew up in Mendon. “The best advice I can give you is to get as involved as possible so when you graduate, you have a resume that looks a lot better than others.”
Booths featuring representatives from the Boston Red Sox, Boston Celtics, New York Yankees, and The Kraft Group, the owner of the New England Patriots and New England Revolution, attracted the most interest, with long lines of prospective interns and entry-level employees snaking around the venue’s second-level walkway.
Additional booths in the hallway included representatives from a number of local sports organizations, including the Worcester Railers, The Worcester Red Sox, and Worcester Fuel FC, a local pre-professional women’s soccer team.
Eric Casey is the managing editor at Worcester Business Journal, who primarily covers the manufacturing and real estate industries.
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