April 22, 2009

Ross Bjork, Senior Associate Athletic Director - University of California, Los Angeles -

Ross Bjork has been the Senior Associate Athletics Director for External Affairs at UCLA for the past three years. His interest in athletic administration began when he was a student-athlete at Emporia State. He has worked at universities on both coasts.

1) Number of years in your current position?
3 years and 7 months as of April 1

2) Why/when did you decide to pursue a career in intercollegiate athletics?
I grew up playing sports almost every day of my life and realized in high school that I wanted to work in the sports field in some fashion. I dreamed of being the general manager of the KC Royals but that wasn't in the cards. Having the chance to be college student-athlete and play football peaked my interest in athletic administration so I volunteered in the athletic department at Emporia State and that opened my eyes to the possibilities in college athletics. I also felt this path was a great way to give back to the profession.

3) What was your path to working in athletics development?
One of my first "jobs" at Emporia State was to sell game programs at basketball games so I started "selling" early in my career. From there, one of my early mentors told me that a fund raising career was the quickest route to become a Director of Athletics so I pursued this path entering graduate school. After graduate school, I secured a fulltime job at Western Kentucky University in the Hilltopper Athletic Foundation office and learned all aspects of athletic development which parlayed into positions at Missouri, Miami and now UCLA.

4) In your mind, who in this industry can serve as a good role model?
There are so many great people in this business so it is hard to single out just one person. A few people like Bobby Purcell, Lu Merritt, Pat Ogle, Gary Barta, Mike Hamilton, Haila Kaufman, Brian Crockett, and Greg Byrne, have always been great role models in my mind. I would encourage people to find someone on your campus or in your department that you can rely upon for good role modeling on consistent basis and then seek national leaders to augment your experiences.

5) How has your involvement with NAADD influenced your career?
This is really hard to quantify since I feel that most (if not all) of my professional relationships have been developed through my affiliation with NAADD and NACDA. There is not a day that goes by where my education and professional growth has not been influenced by NAADD and the great network of outstanding professionals.

 6) What is the most important trait to possess for young professionals in athletics development?
Hard work is the most important element. If you are not willing to work hard at every single opportunity, then this profession will pass you by. From there you have to have the right personality and the ability to ask for money. But without hard work nothing can be accomplished.

7) What is the best piece of advice you have ever received?
Two things come to mind: Being told to pursue athletic development as the path to become a Director of Athletics and having the chance to listen to Coach John Wooden teach life lessons when I first arrived at UCLA. He told me to have patience, make each day my masterpiece and that the true meaning of success is defined by doing your best at all times.

8) What advice would you give to someone looking to enter the field of intercollegiate athletics development?
Get tangible experience working in a development or special event office and showcase this experience on their resume as a student, intern, or volunteer. This business is more competitive than ever so people must demonstrate the ability to run special events, generate revenue and ask for money. Then make sure to list the tangible results on their resume.

9) Will you please explain a professional failure/mistake and how you learned from it?
A common mistake in athletic development is not having enough research or information on a donor and therefore asking for the wrong amount. I have asked people for a gift and they said yes right away, meaning we did not ask for enough. On the flip side, I have asked for too much and realized the person was not close to being capable. I learned from these mistakes by doing more research and building a stronger relationship in order to truly know the donor and understand their giving capacity. Also, always make sure your bosses know what you are doing at all times.

10) How do you adjust your strategies in a pro sports market?
What I have learned from Miami and Los Angeles is not to get lost or caught up in the clutter of a big market with numerous entertainment options. We have focused our approaches on the University community and alumni who live in the areas closer to campus and our sporting venues. We highlight our product as a family entertainment option and the student-athlete component of collegiate athletics. The bottom line from a development perspective is to cultivate relationships, spend meaningful time with donors, ask for money, and then provide great stewardship. That strategy works in all markets.

11) What is the best example of great stewardship that you have witnessed at your institution?
Donors love spending time with our student-athletes so any event where donors interact with our students is the best form of stewardship. Also providing access to places where people can not typically go is a special benefit. We take our key donors on the sideline of the Rose Bowl for pregame and people love it.

12) What percentage of your work-week is spent in your office?
Overseeing multiple areas other than development keeps me in the office more than I would like to. I probably spend 65% of my time at the office or other campus meetings and 35% working with donors and the community.

13) How do you maintain balance between your professional and personal life?
In our business there are very few "days off" so all of us must love our work. My family is my #1 priority so keeping a balance is hard to achieve. My wife Sonya is fantastic and carries the load in taking care of our family in many ways. We try and weave together UCLA athletic events and our personal time as much as possible. I also take my son to as many games or practices so he can experience the great opportunities of collegiate athletics. Otherwise you just have to judge when to say yes and when to say no.

14) In your opinion, where is collegiate athletics development headed in the future?
Athletic development has become more important over the past 10 years and is more crucial than ever given our current economic conditions. The future for our profession is very strong. I think you will see more of an investment into revenue producing areas in collegiate athletics in order to maintain and grow annual operating budgets and cover scholarship expenses. If departments are not actively pursuing private gifts they will soon fall behind their competition and donors will decide to give elsewhere.

15) What are you most looking forward to at the upcoming Convention in Orlando?
Seeing all my good friends and continuing to learn more about collegiate athletic fund raising and athletic administration. As John Wooden says, "if you are through learning, then you are through" so for me the convention is all about learning best practices and connecting with colleagues around the country.