Jordan Redavid
Birmingham, AK (USA)
Role(s):
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Next Step Athletics LLC
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Startup
Location:
Birmingham
Industry:
Sports/Recreation
Year Founded:
2009
Number Employees:
1-10 people
Description:
There is a growing population of sport administrators and professionals in this world. People whose passion and drive stems from the belief that athletics extends far past the field of play and into the realm of livelihood. This growing mass of people are hungry to take the next step off the field and into a classroom to become professionally trained in areas like Sport Management, Sport Administration, Sport Marketing, NCAA Compliance, Coaching, Facility management and more. This rampant growth is embodied by the growing number of collegiate institutions who are seen implementing curriculum and seeing exponential returns as evidenced by huge numbers of enrollment in their programs. But when these people, most of who grew up with dreams of becoming the next big player in the industry they love, athletics, receive their formal training and earn their diplomas they are met by undue adversity. What is their next step?
Very little direction is given to those who make it this far because there is no precedent as to the proper method of getting their foot in the door. Years of "The Good Ole Boys Network" and similar tales have left these hungry young professionals without direction and frustrated.
The overwhelming majority of which desperately compete for entry level internships or positions with any company willing to take them so that they may be lucky enough to meet a handful of people whom may one day serve as a reference. On the contrary, most people whom graduate college with a degree in business, marketing, secondary education or public relations have little trouble finding employment because there are hundreds of resources for them to exhaust. They can call a friend or family member who works for some multinational and get an in, or they can peruse any number of the dozens of job boards that exist, most of which are robust with job openings that fit their specifications. When you juxtapose the two circumstances the opportunity is not in favor of those wishing to become sport professionals. That’s where we come in...
Next Step Athletics LLC is located in Birmingham, AL and we are dedicated to serving this massive and growing population. We were founded by 4 people with tons of experience in the field. We have all played intercollegiate sports, studied the curriculums of Sport Administration at the finest institutions and earned gainful employment in the sector. From NCAA Compliance Officers at some of the biggest Div-I FBS institutions to playing in the NFL, we have the experience! We have been through the struggles described above and are fed up with nobody taking action. Our company was initially founded with the intent to provide athletic skill instruction and life coaching for those trying to succeed on the field/court. We have been very successful with this and now we turn our focus to our main goal: serve our peers and colleagues justice by giving them the tools they need to succeed in this industry. These people need more than a job board, they need an online community of people just like them where they can interact and share successes and failures. They need an environment of people who are focused on the same vision, where employers can come and not only post job listings but search an online community of hungry, qualified candidates. Community is the operative term here.
An effective community of sport professionals is what is needed in this ever-growing industry. Therefore we must also provide solutions for those who may not fit into the mold of young sport professionals looking to break into the business but rather those who have become well engrained in this culture and carved out nice titles for themselves as Athletic Directors, CEO’s, VP’s and other decision makers. From top level management to the smallest professionals serving the industry, there are needs not being met. When any of the afore mentioned people want to be kept informed about the lifeline of the industry, they turn to the pages in the publications of Street & Smith products. They can be kept abreast of new ideas sweeping across the industry by simply reading your literature however they are still thirsting for something more.
When someone reads an article in one of your publications that discusses a new stadium being built by a professional sports franchise, how can they find out what architects and consultants offer a similar service? What about the cutting edge technology that is going to revolutionize the ticketing world? The new concessionaire who all the major players are using? Sure, they can usually find the name of one or two entities related to their question in either the article itself or perhaps an ad located on another page in the publication but that doesn’t provide enough options does it? Most decision makers like options, comparables, something to weigh pros and cons from a variety of vendors before they decide who they are going to select for the job. Further, for those vendors that make the initial cut in this decision making process, how can a sport professional determine the reliability, credibility and quality of their work? Sure, they can scour the directories of strangers that are “colleagues” in hopes they can get some constructive insight or they can call the vendor themselves and hope for honest testimonials but that isn’t the best course of action. What if there was a place where these managers and professionals could connect with one another, see a robust directory that includes hundreds of vendors, consultants and firms that fit into any need based category. What if they could see contact info, colleague ratings of satisfaction, request a quote from them or find another industry professional who has used them in the past? Well then you would have your answer!
Next Step Athletics LLC is proud to rise to the occasion. We will be hosting the only one stop shop for all levels of sport professionals. Whether you are in high school looking for a university that offers a sports management curriculum, or a college student looking for that great summer internship opportunity, we will be the place to go. If you are that local high school that is thinking about building a new weight room and want to find an adequate vendor, or the Athletic Director of a small Division III institution wants to hire a consultant to discuss making the jump to Division II, or perhaps the VP of External Operations of a professional sports franchise is looking to hire a new fundraising chair, we will be the place to go.