Speakers

We at ISBC are extremely thankful to all of our past speakers, emcees for sharing their time and expertise with us. With their help, we are all able to expand our knowledge of sports business and grow our love for the industry. Featured below are some of the amazing speakers coming to our 2020 Conference and a list of speakers from previous years.

MICHAEL STERK Red Line Radio Podcast -Barstool Sports

Conference Emcee

Michael Sterk is a 2009 graduate from the University of Illinois with a bachelor’s degree in Accounting. Upon finishing his undergraduate degree, Michael returned to the University of Illinois to earn a Master’s degree in Accounting. While attending the University of Illinois, Sterk walked on to the university’s baseball team as a pitcher and finished with a career record of 6-2 while primarily making appearances out of the bullpen. Michael began his professional life in the accounting sector, but in early 2019 he became “Barstool Carl” on a full-time basis with Barstool Sports after nearly 6 years with the company on a part-time basis. As an employee of Barstool Sports, Sterk blogs, hosts the successful “Redline Radio” sports podcast and has recently become the host of the national radio show “Barstool Chicago” on Sirius XM.

JULIE SUDERMAN Chief Financial Officer - BigTen Conference

Keynote Speaker

Julie Suderman will be entering her 12th year at the Big Ten Conference this summer. In May 2018, she was promoted to Associate Commissioner, Chief Financial Officer. Suderman served as the Big Ten’s Associate Commissioner, Finance from 2016-18 and from 2009-16, she was the conference’s Controller. During that time, she was responsible for overseeing the financial accounting and reporting of the conference. Before joining the conference office in 2009, she spent five years as the Controller at the Willow Creek Association. Suderman completed her undergraduate studies at the University of Illinois in 1995, where she majored in accounting. She later went on to earn her MBA from Kellogg School of Management with concentrations in strategy, marketing and nonprofit management in 2006. Julie is married with three children.

CHRIS HARTWEG CEO and Publisher - Team Marketing Report

Keynote Speaker

Chris is a marketer focused on making connections. Connecting brands, teams and fans. Melding sound data and creative ideas. Balancing big dreams with tight budgets. He is also a huge proponent of doing well by doing good. Doing right by others and building strong culture not only leads to better humans but generates stronger results -- and boosts revenues. Some of the brands and properties he has worked with include: AARP, ADA, adidas, Blackberry, Bud, Cadillac, Chevy, Chicago Blackhawks+Bulls+Cubs+Fire+White Sox, Dallas Mavericks, DiGiorno, ditech, EA Sports, FIFA, Glenlivet, LaSalle Bank, Lions Clubs, Miami Dolphins+Heat, Miller Lite, Motorola, New Balance, Nestle, Nike, Nokia, Northwestern University, Playstation, P&G, Sony, US Navy, Verizon, VW, Westfield and Xbox.

Today, Chris is applying all these experiences to reengineer and relaunch Team Marketing Report, which he acquired late 2017. The sports marketing information leader since 1988 produces the Fan Cost Index(R), SportsSponsor FactBook(TM) and TMR Insider(TM). In addition, he founded and serves as executive director of Painless Networking. Now boasting 8,000 members between LinkedIn and Painless.Network, Painless began in 2003 for marketing pros to painlessly connect, share best practices and eliminate degrees of separation. He also hosts the "Painless Podcast" featuring marketers and their success stories. Other previous work includes running his own consultancy, leading teams at several agencies and in house experience for a bank as well as a hospital.

MIKE MYERS Chief Strategy Officer - BirdieBox

Keynote Speaker

Michael Myers joined Birdiebox as the Operating Partner and Chief Strategy Officer, in 2017. Prior to BirdieBox, Myers had been working in Sports Marketing since 1999 and has a plethora of experience in Sponsorship evaluation, negotiation and procurement, fulfillment and re-evaluation. Aside from Sports Marketing, Myers has worked as the Vice President of Sales & Promotion with Live Nation Entertainment and briefly served as a Marketing Co-Chair with Susan G. Koeman for the Cure in the Chicagoland area. Additionally, in 2009, he founded The Sports Marketer in Chicago, a marketing agency that is committed to creating a direct pipeline to the leaders of the hardest to reach, yet most sought after, demographics. Here, Myers is able to utilize his skills to help brands create unique, memorable, actionable and measurable solutions to the constant and new obstacles facing brands. Myers is a graduate of Southern Illinois University, Carbondale.

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2019

SPORTS HAVE NO LIMITS

UNDER THE SPOTLIGHT OF SPORTS MEDIA

Steve Raquel - President of IOV Media and Adjunct Lecturer for the Gies College of Business

Alex Roux - Social Media Producer for the Big Ten Network

Derek Throneburg - VP of Brand and Marketing Strategy for the Indiana Pacers

HOW TO RECRUIT AND DEVELOP THE IDEAL ATHLETE

Lisa Strasman -President of NCSA (Next College Student Athlete)

Chris Smith - CEO and Founder of Athlete Network

Keiko Price - Senior Associate Director of Athletics, UIUC Sports Administration

THE IMPACT OF SOCIAL AGENDAS ON SPORTS

Adrian Burgos Jr. - Author and History Professor at UIUC

Cari Van Senus - NCAA Chief of Staff

Damani Leech - Senior VP of Football Strategy for the NFL

THE DEALS THAT DRIVE THE GAME

Deryk Gilmore - NFL Sports agent through Priority Sports Entertainment

Alex Burge - Client Executive and Agent at Excel Sports Management

Mike Galeski - Senior Manager at Sports Marketing UL

BUILDING A SPORTS TEAM AS A COMPANY

Liz Geist - Director of Human Resources for the Chicago Bears

Marie Sutera - VP of Human Resources for the Chicago Blackhawks

Ann Weiser - VP of Human Resources for the Chicago Cubs

THE CHANGING DYNAMICS OF FAN INTERACTION

Kent Brown - Associate Director of Illini Athletics Media

Ryan Sullivan - Senior Communications Coordinator, Big Ten Network

Chris Hartweg - Painless Podcast Host and Founding Partner at Huddle Pro

2018

Conference

MASTER OF CEREMONIES

Carey Davis - Super Bowl XLIII Champion, Analyst for ESPN St.Louis

KEYNOTE SPEAKER

Keith Bruce - President of Quintevents International, CEO of Super Bowl 50

Host Committee

STRAIGHT FROM THE FRONT OFFICE: A CONVERSATION ON LEADERSHIP IN SPORTS

Kevin Warren - COO of the Minnesota Vikings

Tim Buzard - SVP of Administration for the Chicago White Sox

SPORTS AGENCIES: A COMPREHENSIVE APPROACH TO ATHLETIC REPRESENTATION Andy Szabo - Manager, Corporate Partnerships at PCGSPORTSDESK

Lauren Ahasic - Account Supervisor at Paragon Media; Gatorade Team

Sean Wallis - Director; Partnerships development at W Partners

Luke Reiff - Fighting Illini Sports Properties

SALES IN SPORTS: COMMUNICATING THE VALUE OF THE GAME

Mike Ernst - Senior VP of Ticket Sales, Service, Operations, and Marketing for the Chicago Fire

Megan Malone - Corporate Partnership Manager for the Chicago Bears

Justin Ramquist - Senior Director of Ticket Sales, Premium and Corporate

INSIDE THE MACHINE OF COLLEGE ATHLETICS

Joni Comstock - Senior VP of Championship, NCAA

Erin Harvego - VP of Marketing, Big Ten Conference

Josh Whitman - Athletic Director, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign

Dave Schnase - VP of Academic and Membership Affairs, NCAA

HEAD INJURIES IN SPORTS: PROGRESS IN THE SEARCH FOR A SOLUTION

Kevin Jackson - Former Senior Research Scientist at the Beckman Institute

Ed Sherman - Players Tribune Writer at the Sherman Report

Julian Bruene - Sports Medicine Physician at Midwest Orthopedics at Rush

INNOVATION IN SPORTS: HOW TECHNOLOGY SHAPES THE FAN EXPERIENCE

Adam Grossman - CEO, Founder of Block Six Analytics

Keith Bruce - President of Quintevents International, CEO of Super Bowl 50

Host Committee

Andrew McIntyre - VP of Technology for the Chicago Cubs

PAINLESS PODCAST

Chris Hartweg - Painless Podcast Host and Founding Partner at Huddle Pro

Joe Ronovsky - Manager for Corporate Sponsorship Sales for the Chicago White Sox

Anthony Kryzak - Sales Development Manager for the Chicago Wolves

2017

Sports business: An Industry of opportunity

KEYNOTE SPEAKERS

Max Siegel - Chief Executive Officer at USA Track and Field

Patrick Lucey - Director of Data Science at STATS LLC.

THE BIG LEAGUES: RUNNING A PROFESSIONAL SPORTS FRANCHISE

Joseph Spencer (moderator) - President of Illinois Uplifting Athletes, Illini Football Player

Kevin Warren - Chief Operating Officer for the Minnesota Vikings

Mike Ernst - Senior VP of Ticket Sales for the Chicago Fire

Kiernan Kelliher - Director of Finance for the Chicago Bulls

Rex Carter - Director of Risk Management for the St.Louis Cardinals

Pete Hassen - VP of Marketing for the Chicago Blackhawks

MATHLETICS: A NUMBERS GAME

Narendra Ahuja (moderator) - Research Prof. in the Dept. of Electrical Engineering at the University of Illinois

Patrick Lucey - Director of Data Science at STATS LLC.

Spencer Anderson - Manger of Basketball Administration for the Indiana Pacers

Sheldon Jacobson - Professor of Computer Science at the University of Illinois

THE FAN EXPERIENCE

Jenny Deway (moderator) - Assistant Director of Illini Athletics Communication

Derek Throneburg - VP of Brand and Marketing Strategy for the Indiana Pacers

David Kissel - Strategic Advisor and Former CEO at Instadium

Scott Robinson - Senior Associate and Senior Designer at Populous

Adam Grossman - CEO and Founder of Block Six Analytics

REBRANDING THE GAME: THE IMPACT OF MARKETING IN SPORTS

Steve Raquel - President of IOV Media and Adjunct Lecturer for the Gies College of Business

Jonathan Kander - Sports Marketing Manager at Gatorade

Sean Wallis - Director of Partnership Development at W Partners

Pete Hassen - VP of Marketing at the Chicago Blackhawks

U OF I ATHLETICS: AN INSIDE LOOK

Dr.Michael Raycraft (moderator)- RST Lecturer at the University of Illinois

Josh Whitman - Athletic Director for Illini Athletics

Janet Rayfield - Head Coach for the Illini Women's Soccer Team

Brad Wurthman - Associate Director of Illini Athletics

REACHING THE SUMMIT: WOMEN IN SPORTS BUSINESS

Cheryl Cole (moderator) - Professor at the University of Illinois

Renee Chube Washington - COO at USA Track and Field

Carol Voronyak - Director of Talent Recruitment and Negotiations at ESPN

Mary Lee Gilliand - President and CEO at Madison Strategic Partnerships, Executive Director of MS Strategic Brand Communication at UIUC

THE EVOLUTION OF SPORTS MEDICINE

Dr.Jim Mauer (moderator) - Counselor at the Carle Foundation Hospital and Mental Health/Sports Psychology Counselor for Illini Student-Athletes

Kevin Jackson - Senior Research Scientist at the Beckman Institute

Dr.Julia Bruene - Sports Medicine Orthopedic Physician at Midwest Orthopedics

Matthew Zalewski - Athletic Trainer at Athletico

FOOT IN THE DOOR

Emily Barretta (moderator) - Co-Founder ISBC, Business Advisory Consultant at Ernst & Young

Zach Dicken - Director of Sales for the Chicago Fire

Michael Casey - Analyst in the Chicago Cubs Strategy and Development Group

Austin Hunt - Associate Account Executive at IMG

THE VOICES OF SPORTS MEDIA

Jim Dahl (moderator) - Associate Dean of Undergraduate Affairs, UIUC College of Business

Chad Boxenbaum - Game Entertainment Associate for the Chicago Bulls

Sam Panayotovich - Sports Reporter, Anchor, and Host at WGN Radio

Michele Steele - Reporter and Anchor for ESPN

Ed Sherman - President of ShermanReport.com

Speakers

MICHAEL STERK Red Line Radio Podcast -Barstool Sports

JULIE SUDERMAN Chief Financial Officer - BigTen Conference

CHRIS HARTWEG CEO and Publisher - Team Marketing Report

MIKE MYERS Chief Strategy Officer - BirdieBox

2019

SPORTS HAVE NO LIMITS

2018

Conference

2017

Sports business: An Industry of opportunity

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