This is the eighth "CoSIDA Corner" penned by CoSIDA President Doherty (University of Wisconsin). It appears in the Junel issue of NACDA's
Athletics Administration Magazine. Each issue is sent to over 10,000 university and athletics administrators, with CoSIDA's voice, thoughts and expertise being shared with these key constituents.
Athletics Administration is published each October, November, December, February, March, April, June and August.
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this CoSIDA Corner in PDF format
The case could certainly be made that the world has never been more connected than it is today.
We all have multiple methods to stay in touch with others: e-mail, text messages, Facebook, smart phones, etc. Sometimes it seems that it’s hard not to be connected.
In spite of this, one could just as easily make the argument that we’ve never been more disconnected, as well. And for the same reasons: email, text messages, Facebook, smart phones, etc. Yes, technology is a great thing, and these days it’s practically indispensable.
There is, however, another level of communication and that is the face-to-face (or voice-to-voice) variety. Some would argue both are dying arts. Sending an e-mail or text message is fine, but it’s not the same as picking up the phone and calling someone or visiting with another person over a cup of coffee.
Over the past 18 months or so, the leadership of CoSIDA, especially Executive Director John Humenik, has endeavored, as part of a key aspect of our organizational strategic plan adopted in 2008, to proactively reach out to a variety of groups within college athletics. The goal is simple: to develop and build relationships for better joint understanding and synergistic benefit.
I’ve written in this space previously that our organization’s membership believes it has a lot to offer in terms of helping to shape decision-making as it relates to communications-based issues. In order to demonstrate that, however, we have felt the need to pick up the phone or meet with someone face-to-face.
The effort has proven to be effective.
The leadership of the NCAA has been particularly responsive. Erik Christianson, the NCAA’s director of media and public relations, has been a key component in our relationship with the national office. Twice in the past three years, Christianson has coordinated CoSIDA leadership visits to the NCAA offices in Indianapolis.
Our most recent visit to the NCAA was this past April, and it was most fruitful for both sides.
Numerous members of the NCAA’s communications, marketing, branding, sponsorship and divisional management staffs graciously gave us nearly 36 hours of their time to discuss communications-based issues and how our two groups can continue to work closely to tell the great stories that exist in college athletics. The visit to the NCAA included a “working dinner,” valuable divisional breakout sessions, lunch and a wrap-up session.
Many of our NCAA-related activities have been the result of our leadership identifying an issue that is relevant to our membership. Once we do that, we contact the appropriate NCAA contact and offer our assistance or support, if it is desired. At the DI level, we have worked with the Recruiting and Amateurism Cabinet to assist them in topical discussions. Our DII and DIII leadership groups have worked with the NCAA DII and DIII staffs on branding and communications initiatives. These outreach efforts have yielded great results for CoSIDA as well, we hope, for those to whom we reached out.
Humenik has also been a presence with the Football Writers Association of America, the U.S. Basketball Writers of America, the Division 1A Athletic Directors’ Association and the NACDA staff, as well as at high profile events like the Final Four, BCS National Championship game and the NCAA and NACDA Conventions. Each of these interactions represents an opportunity for CoSIDA to collaborate with others in college athletics and to develop ways in which our organization can assist and grow the overall athletics enterprise.
I mention NACDA as well, and we are indebted to Bob Vecchione - who began his career in the collegiate communications field - and the NACDA leadership for their firm resolve and determination
to bring CoSIDA into the NACDA family as a partner for the benefit of not only our organization and membership, specifically, but also the enterprise of intercollegiate athletics as a whole.
The CoSIDA Board’s decision in December 2008 to accept the unique partnership arrangement that Vecchione and the NACDA leadership proposed has proven to be a highly significant one. That decision quickly and effectively opened so many new doors and opportunities for us. It provided access to build the types of relationships, through more personal and old fashioned face-to-face and voice to-voice avenues, that have greatly accelerated multiple aspects of our strategic initiatives. We are not only excited about what has already resulted from this partnership, but what the future holds as well.