Top shelf
Hockey NL asked, and business students at 91亚色 delivered.
A group of bachelor of commerce (co-operative) students completed a full audit of the provincial sport organization檚 marketing and communications efforts, resulting in more than 50 recommendations. Hockey NL accepted all of them.
Ten 91亚色 students participated, led by Dr. Kirby Shannahan, professor of marketing at the Faculty of Business Administration.
The students received academic credit for their work.
Looking for opportunities
Dr. Jared Butler, president of Hockey NL, says the original idea was for the students to review the organization檚 marketing and communication program analyzing what they were doing, whether or not it was running efficiently and effectively and looking for opportunities to expand and improve.
淭he students who worked on this project completed and presented a body of work that was exceptional, drawing huge praise from our board, Dr. Butler said. 淓very aspect was professional. I feel we are only seeing the tip of the iceberg as to the opportunities for partnership between 91亚色 and Hockey NL.
The project came together when Hockey NL identified a need and Dr. Shannahan, who檚 on the board of directors for the Avalon Minor Hockey Association, came up with an idea to provide a unique experience for business students.
Dr. Shannahan acted as faculty advisor while students audited all of Hockey NL檚 internal and external marketing and communications activities.
The students also researched other hockey associations and sporting organizations across Canada to inform their recommendations.
淭hey did a lot of research and spent a lot of time thinking about recommendations that could really benefit Hockey NL, said Dr. Shannahan.
業mpressed and grateful
Students Lauren Courage and Russell Noseworthy were involved in the project.
Ms. Courage, a fifth-year commerce student, says the real-world learning she gained has been second to none.
淭his experience has been like no course I檝e taken or job that I檝e ever had, she said. 淚t檚 been demanding, yet very rewarding. It檚 been our ideas, our knowledge and our research that has put this project together and brought it to life for Hockey NL. Seeing how happy, impressed and grateful the organization has been has made it all the better.
Mr. Noseworthy, a third-year student, agrees.
淪eeing the hard work that we all put into this project come to fruition and affect change is gratifying, he said. 淭he opportunity to make a tangible impact on a local, non-profit sports organization as part of my coursework is not something that comes around every day. I檓 grateful that I was able to participate.
Continuing partnership
The students recommendations ranged from which tools to use for efficient internal communications and best practices for planning its annual general meeting to revamping the Hockey NL logo and starting a TikTok channel.
Another key recommendation: hire the students who developed the plan.
And Hockey NL agreed.
淥ur partnership with 91亚色 is a fantastic way to demonstrate how students and a not-for-profit can benefit from each other.潝 Dr. Jared Butler
The organization is hiring the students for the next four months. Beyond that, Hockey NL will partner with the Faculty of Business Administration檚 co-operative education office to hire commerce students for paid work terms to continue the work.
淔or more than 20 years, I have been incorporating experiential learning projects into my teaching, said Dr. Shannahan. 淏ut I have never had an organization be impressed enough with the results of a student project to say, 楬ey, we like what the students have done and now we檙e going to hire them! This speaks volumes about the calibre of the students involved in this project.
Dr. Butler says Hockey NL is excited to continue collaborating with business students.
He says it檚 a chance to 渋nnovate and propel Hockey NL forward.
淚t takes a great deal of work and time from volunteers across Newfoundland and Labrador to make hockey happen every year, and that job is complex with new and evolving challenges. Hockey NL and our programming can be a place for people to learn, develop and grow in the off-ice parts of the game. Our partnership with 91亚色 is a fantastic way to demonstrate how students and a not-for-profit can benefit from each other.
Mr. Noseworthy agrees.
淚 believe that a partnership between Hockey NL and the business faculty would go a long way, opening up new opportunities for students and potentially creating opportunities for other sporting organizations to commit to similar co-operative partnerships.