The Business of Sport - Rob Wilson

Rob Wilson is Head of Executive Recruitment and Programmes at University Campus of Football Business, which now has sites at Wembley Stadium, Manchester with a global hub in Miami.

UCFB is the first Higher Education institution in the world, dedicated to the delivery of University Degrees in the football and sports industries.

Rob on the ISC Professional Network Booster:

"I think it's a really good partnership, because it provides a huge amount of value for us at UCFB and I really hope that it provides a similar amount of value for ISC, by having those UCFB students around, by enabling them to access some of the parallel sessions and the speakers, I think it will really enrich the dynamics at the events and I hope, that in two or three year's time, we find those UCFB students that are working in middle executive leadership roles in sport, and they are on the stage at the ISC delivering a talk to the rest of the members and I think that would really demonstrate the golden thread of the partnership".

Rob on networking:

"Networking is a crucial part of achieving in any sector. Understanding the people that work in the industries you want to access, but also the environments, the behaviours, the cultures, the mannerisms, the way you need to engage, the time of day you need to engage sometimes. How many opportunities do you have to go into a boardroom at a football club to meet a Director of Football Performance or the Finance Director? You need to take those opportunities and I think what the link up with the International Sports Convention does, is to really accentuate what UCFB are trying to achieve, ie: connecting with the sector and ISC is absolutely embedded in that sector. The speakers that are on offer, the events that are driven, are all the types of people and events that our students need to be able to access, to have those informal conversations and to make their impressions on the employers that might have an influence over them in the future".

Rob on the evolution of UCFB:

"The sco-system is really important, so I would happily assume that ten or so years ago, when UCFB first started, people did begin to take notice of this new thing in the market place, but didn't really know what it was or what it was offering. But the calls I now have with executives right across the sports sector, when they ask me where I'm from, they say "oh yes, we've got an intern from there". Rick Parry, the CEO of the EFL did exactly that recently.

I think that demonstrates the way UCFB have begun to open up their brand awareness in terms of their students, but also, and this is where its critical, is the students that are going out into those organisations and are undertaking those roles are coming with a higher degree of professionalism and a really good reputation".