Pitt Business

Three hours before kickoff, Heinz Field is quiet enough that Marcus Bowman can hear the sideline's grass turf crunch under his feet. Pitt Athletic Director Steve Pederson counts on Bowman to help coordinate game day activities - anything that needs done. "My most memorable moment was the first time I hosted legendary Pitt running back Tony Dorsett. He was so popular with the fans, that it literally took an hour to walk him through the parking lots," Bowman says. With Bowman, two days are rarely alike. He helps with Pitt's postseason trips, Title IX compliance, and Pitt's move to the Atlantic Coast Conference. He is the sport administrator for track and field. Bowman is also the liaison between Pitt athletics and IMG College, the company that manages and sells Pitt's multimedia rights. Last year, Bowman oversaw planning of Athletics at Pitt: The Forefront of a Century of Change - a gala dinner that, with sportscaster Bob Costas as host, celebrated Pitt's long legacy of African American athletes. Bowman credits Katz and CBA for building his problem-solving strengths. He will never forget his time as a reserve guard on Pitt basketball teams in the early 2000s that won two Big East regular season titles and one tournament title, and made the Big Dance four times. "My lessons as a student-athlete, whether they be time management, teamwork, leadership, or competition, helped me get to where I am today," Bowman says.

Inside Cavanaugh Marketing Network's conference room, the sales team guts out pushups, their boss shouting out totals. This isn't punishment for missed quotas. Founder Pat Cavanaugh uses pushup meetings to motivate. "Whether you play sports or not, people succeed by setting goals. Only 3 percent of people set goals," says Cavanaugh, a walk on turned starter on three Pitt men's basketball NCAA tournament teams in the late 1980s.

Cavanaugh is the creator of a sports apparel brand called Crons, based on the acronym, Come Ready Or Never Start. Crons supplies apparel and practice gear for dozens of mid-major NCAA schools - including Robert Morris and Duquesne universities - and also hundreds of high school teams and organizations. "Most people have been told at some point in their lives they can't get something done," Cavanaugh says. "We define our brand as a performance mentality brand. As a player, what motivates you more? Is it a piece of fabric, or a mentality?" This past fall, Crons became the official motivation brand of the Pittsburgh Penguins. The brand is an underdog in the $4-billion-a-year sports apparel industry - but Cavanaugh is OK with that. Crons, which also makes sports nutrition bars and sponsors youth goal and adversity training programs, has grown by 450 percent during the past three years. "The business skills I gained through my MBA have been priceless," Cavanaugh says. "Katz gave me a well-rounded skill set in sales, marketing, finance, and operations."

If you own a piece of merchandise from the 2011 U.S. Open at Congressional Country Club in Washington, D.C., then there's a good chance Hannah Fazio purchased it first. The United States Golf Association (USGA) employee is part of a small team that oversees product buys for the U.S. Open, a signature major that made legends of Arnold Palmer, Jack Nicklaus, and Ben Hogan, among others. The team's buys amount to roughly 25,000 boxes of inventory for the championship's football-sized merchandize pavilion. "It's hard to explain to people how big our operation is. We set up a major retail store in the middle of a golf course, complete with air conditioning and carpeting," Fazio says. Fazio's job requires more than good fashion sense. She spends her offseason scouting apparel lines and meeting with golf fashion designers, big names like Polo Ralph Lauren, Nike, and Adidas. Fazio selects what to buy, negotiates pricing, and determines product quantities. If something is amiss, Fazio works with the vendor to correct it. Imagine laboring all year for a one-week payoff - that's what Fazio does. "We have to buy our product carefully. Even though our store is only open 11-12 days, we bring in $10 million-$15 million of revenue, depending on the year and location," she says. Fazio has never played a full 18 holes of golf - but that doesn't hold her back in work. "The beauty of my business education is that it's so well rounded and applies to so many different industries."

In an age of fantasy sports leagues, when just about everyone is drafting rosters of stars, John Algie is doing the real thing: creating from scratch a professional expansion team, Major League Lacrosse's (MLL) Ohio Machine. "There's a lot more to it than looking at a guy's stats and determining who has the best numbers," says Algie, the team's president and general manager. Algie, a former face-off midfielder at Pitt, is molding a locker room around team-first, hard-nosed players, a team built on defense, true to Ohio's blue-collar roots. The Machine's first-ever game is May 5. In the meantime, Algie is drawing on his business education to build business partnerships and grow a fan base - a balancing act that requires juggling the interests of multiple stakeholders. "We're a brand-new company, essentially a start-up. Ticket sales are our lifeblood," Algie says. He is using grassroots marketing initiatives to fill seats at Machine home games at Ohio Wesleyan University's Selby Stadium, about 30 miles north of Columbus. Algie, who formerly worked as MLL's director of league operations, says lacrosse is the fastest growing sport at U.S. high schools and colleges, and MLL attendance jumped 21 percent last year.

"My business education has been very helpful in understanding the potential economic repercussions of every decision that we make as an organization," Algie says.

Many times, Mark Frantz pushed on when his muscles had turned to jelly and his mind screamed, "Stop!" Through endurance sports, Frantz - a former NCAA All-American swimmer who qualified for the USA Triathlon National Championships 10 times - reinforced his business philosophy: stretching the limits, outperforming competitors, and always trusting oneself. "I'm a firm believer that competitive athletics is beneficial for other things in life," Frantz says. Frantz is cofounder of BlueDelta Capital Partners, a Virginia firm targeting up-and-coming companies in the federal government technology sector. His venture capital experience at The Carlyle Group taught him to respect the J-curve: a term for start-ups that begin with promise, and then burn cash while growing, before reaching new heights and profitability. "As VCs, we coach and scout. As a coach, we help the company's management perform better. As a scout, we look for talent to hire and bigger companies to partner with," Frantz says. Though no longer competing in triathlons due to injury, Frantz credits the sport - which combines swimming, biking, and running into one race - for keeping his spirit sharp. "Look, some race days you want to quit. It's 98 degrees and you don't want to run a 10k after already swimming a mile and biking an hour. But you keep going, just like an entrepreneur doing whatever it takes, whether it be deal negotiations, mundane paperwork, or the daily brushfires," Frantz says.

The pass-happy NFL is a bear market for one-dimensional fullbacks - blockers now have soft hands and nimble feet to go with their jaw-rattling hits. Henry Hynoski Jr. (CBA '11), a rookie starter for the Super Bowl XLVI-winning New York Giants, fits that mold. "It's the only position where you have the opportunity to do three things: run, block, and catch," says the 6-foot, 2-inch tall, 265-pounder from Elysburg, Pa., who blossomed under former Pitt football Head Coach Dave Wannstedt. Hynoski's storybook NFL season began rudely. He went undrafted after pulling a hamstring at the NFL combine. His mother, Kathy, prepared dossiers on NFL teams with fullback needs, and Hynoski used that market research to wisely select the Giants' offer. "It was humbling to be in the huddle with Eli Manning and some of the greatest players in the NFL," Hynoski says. Number 45 earned his playing time, and in the Super Bowl, Hynoski caught two passes for first downs, and cleared a path for the Giant's 114 rushing yards. In the third quarter, with the Giants trailing the New England Patriots 17-12, Hynoski recovered a fumble downfield. "One of the best memories of my life is holding the [Lombardi] trophy on stage afterwards with my mom and dad," Hynoski says. He credits his business education for the time management skills that helped him adjust to grueling practice and travel schedules. "Bling is not really my style, but I'm going to wear my Super Bowl ring everywhere," Hynoski says.

Ever loyal to the blue and gold, Amy Niceswanger rides the highs and lows of Pitt sports. Her passion - and knowledge - isn't lost on donors to Pitt athletics, the people whom Niceswanger courts in her job. "They call, in both good and bad times, because they are invested and passionate about our program," Niceswanger explains. "I love nothing more than picking up the phone and calling them to say, 'Thank you for your donations,' or, 'How about that win last night!'" Niceswanger, in her 13th year on the job, is part donor rep and all sports nut. With lots of pep she runs the Panther Club, the fundraising arm that generates revenue for student-athlete scholarships that last year received $7.6 million in gifts. Niceswanger builds relationships with more than 6,000 alumni and friends of Pitt athletics, but never loses the personal touch. "I enjoy interacting with them and hearing their great Pitt stories. With some donors, it's like family." Niceswanger's business education helps in the areas of negotiations, time management, and team projects. Niceswanger, a former member of the Pitt Cheerleaders and Dance Team, enjoys seeing her work help young people reach their potential. "It's very rewarding. We get to see student-athletes come in as freshmen and watch them develop and ultimately exceed both their athletic and academic dreams."

Seated in a Pitt athletics' conference room, two floors above the hardwood of the John M. and Gertrude E. Petersen Events Center, Chris Ferris is in the zone. "Any time we can combine Pitt basketball with helping the community, that's a pretty cool thing," he says during a fall meeting between the Greater Pittsburgh Community Food Bank, UPMC Health Plan, and Pitt athletics. Ferris and his team spearhead the Pitt Women's Basketball Hometown vs. Hunger promotion - part of Ferris' larger mission to develop the advertising campaigns that drive ticket sales and to assist with development activities that spur fundraising and corporate sponsorships. "The athletics world is very flashy on the outside," explains Ferris. "People think, 'I'll be on the sideline for Pitt-Notre Dame or Big East primetime basketball games.' But there's also Monday through Friday, and everything that comes with it." Not that Ferris is complaining. He loves his job and credits his Katz MBA for making his to-do-list mentality more strategic. Ferris recalls memorable Pitt sports victories, but is most proud of accomplishments that happen between the whistles. He once played a small part in helping a child, through the Make-A-Wish Foundation, live his dream of sitting on the bench with Pitt men's basketball Head Coach Jamie Dixon. "Coach introduced the child to every section of our Oakland Zoo, and the students gave a standing ovation. That was a day he and his family will never forget."