Corrections or additions?
These articles by Bart Jackson were prepared for the January 7,
2004 issue of U.S. 1 Newspaper. All rights reserved.
Sports Pages: The Ivy Way
We want a school our football team can be proud of,” money-desperate
university presidents sometimes seem to imply. Today’s college
athletes are headlined in the media as corrupt and coddled louts whose
muscular monofocus has them emerging from the halls of higher learning
even dumber than when they went in. And although many Americans have
become more leery of the “truth” touted on page one, many have yet to
transfer this discerning eye to the sports section.
To put college athletics into sharper focus, the Princeton Chamber of
Commerce presents “How to Really Read the Sports Page” on Thursday,
January 8, at 11:30 a.m. at the Doral Forrestal. Cost: $40. Call
609-520-1776 or visit www.PrincetonChamber.org. This luncheon meeting
features Jeff Orleans, executive director of the Council of Ivy Group
Presidents at 228 Alexander Street (ivyleaguesports.com). His talk
outlines both the goals and mechanics of various collegiate sports
systems.
In October, l933, New York Herald Tribune reporter Stanley Woodward
first used the term “Ivy Colleges.” In it he included the current
Ivies: Princeton, Harvard, Yale, Dartmouth, Brown, Penn, Cornell,
Columbia – and also Army. It wasn’t until 1945 that the schools, minus
Army, actually considered themselves a true league and formulated a
sports policy – originally concerning only football.
In l972 Title IX, a federal initiative, came crashing into the
collegiate sports arena, changing forever how schools funded,
selected, and regulated their sports. In essence, it said that no
federally funded institution could show gender discrimination in any
of its programs. For the sports world this did not mean that women
must participate on the wrestling team, but rather that men and women
must each receive equal athletic opportunities with appropriate
funding for each gender. Orleans was one of the primary authors of the
bill’s regulations. A Yale graduate, he holds a law degree from the
University of North Carolina.
In 1984 he was appointed the executive director of the Council of Ivy
Group Presidents and was given the power to hire staff to create an
“Ivy Office” to coordinate sports policies within the schools. He is,
as he puts it, “the League’s sports commissioner.”
It is his job to maintain the standards of the Ivy schools, which
include awarding only need-based financial aid, combining broad-based
participation with the opportunity for regional and national athletic
excellence for each Ivy institution, and assuring that athletic
accomplishments attest to the ability of Ivy League coaches and
administrators to meet these rigorous expectations.
Orleans considers himself a careful guardian of the student-athletes
and the programs in which they participate. He is a firm believer in
balancing the college experience.
Recruitment. “Here is where the media can frequentlymislead,” says Orleans. “The media continually highlights just theabuses of the recruiting system. But these do not represent mostathletes and most schools.”This can handicap them in recruiting the best athletes, especially,Orleans points out, as the cost of Ivy tuition rises. He is quoted inHarvard magazine as saying, “Thirty years ago, imagine a kid choosingbetween going to Harvard on need-based aid or attending Boston Collegewith a full athletic scholarship.”He might look at earning money at a summer job, plus term-timeemployment and say, ‘This is Harvard, I’m doing it.’ Today, even ifthe student got a $15,000 grant, and could add $5,000 per year throughwork and loans, there is still a significant out-of-pocket expensecompared to a ‘ free ride.’ It’s harder for middle class families,especially if there are siblings. Some people who recruit womenathletes say that families who are willing to sacrifice for their sonsare often less willing to sacrifice for daughters.”In basketball, 305 colleges now compete at the Division I level; inswimming, there are about 259 programs. Competition among themsometimes results in bidding wars for recruits, just the wayprofessional sports teams scramble for free agents. In a recentseason, for example, Harvard’s swimming team lost a recruit when NotreDame upped its scholarship offer by $10,000.Sports control. Orleans says that the Ivies’ unique positionon athletic scholarship funding has far-ranging ramifications. Notonly does it apply to obvious things like recruiting, but the IvyLeague is able to place tangible controls on the sports themselves.”We are able beneficially to limit the hours of practice, the numberof games, and the length of season, all to regulate the role ofathletics in a student’s overall college experience,” says Orleans.On this point not everyone is so enthusiastic. Recently, the IvyCouncil proposed a controversial “Seven-Week Rule.” This rulebasically provides a cooling-off period, preventing any single sportfrom going on year round. During this seven weeks, interaction betweenplayers and coaches is forbidden “to free student athletes forparticipation in academic and other extracurricular activities.”Sasha Suda, 2003 captain of the Princeton women’s open crew says, “Iam a student first, but also a student-athlete. I feel I have donewell in both aspects of my life, and I feel that athletes are beingtargeted and discriminated against.”Goals of the school. It’s no secret that many of the largeruniversities construct their athletics departments as primarymoney-makers for the school. Others, like Stanford, seek to make theprograms self-supporting, with the big sports paying for the minorones. “Here, we are nowhere near self-supporting,” says Orleans. “Wedon’t run a show for the benefit of the alumni. The win-loss record issecond to personal development.”For Orleans, athletics exist on campus purely because they enhance theoverall college experience. Funding reflects this philosophy. “We fundour athletic programs for the same reason we buy new chemistrysupplies,” he says, “because they are useful.”Pre-college problems. Without a doubt, college athletes havechanged over the two decades of Orleans’ tenure. He notes that theyare definitely more proficient, bigger, and stronger. “We have IvyLeague football linebackers who average 290 pounds,” he says. “Butalong with this has come an amazingly increased intensity – a beliefthat they have to specialize on one activity.” He questions whetherthis busier, more strictly-focused experience is entirely beneficial.Additionally, Orleans says that there are major problems at either endof the socio-economic scale. He sees a tragic decrease in athleticopportunities in poor communities. Contrastingly, in the wealthierareas, he is alarmed to observe what he calls “theover-professionalism of the sports system.” Is a New Jerseyeight-year-old truly enriched by driving out six hours to Ohio to playan hour of soccer? “In short, I see our kids as both over-served andunder-served by the pre-collegiate sports systems,” says Orleans.Top Of PageMars and Venus Close the DealMen are Hunters. “This is what we have. It’s great. You’ve gotta haveit; how many do you want?” As salesmen, men see the quarry, move inswiftly, and take aim to close the deal. Women are Gatherers. “Now,there’s this one, then we have the larger version, and of course theblue. Don’t let me rush you. You can just make up your mind, come backtomorrow, and choose the one you like.” The problem is that neither ofthese gender-instinctive selling techniques is going to entice anybuyer into purchasing anything.Veteran sales trainer Isabel Kersen knows how to nudge both genderstoward a more effective middle ground. Her talk, “Knowing YourBusiness Is Not Enough: You Also Have to Know How to Sell” isscheduled for the Middlesex chapter of the New Jersey Association ofWomen Business Owners on Monday, January 12, at 6 p.m., at the RaritanCenter Sheraton in Edison. Cost: $43. Call 732-287-4111(www.NJAWBO.com).Kersen is the founder of the Secaucus-based training and developmentfirm, the Power Edge (www.poweredge.com, 201-864-8515). Her talk isdesigned to help not only sales professionals, but small businessowners as well.Kersen’s admittedly “checkered career” has placed her in both salesand managerial camps, affording her a rounded business expertise. Atrue New York girl, Kersen was born and raised in the Bronx. Daughterof a police officer father and bank treasurer mother, Kersen becamethe first member of her family to obtain a higher education. Sheattended Manhattan’s City College where she earned a BA in English andeducation, a master’s degree in English education, and a PhD inmanagerial development.After working as a training and development executive for six yearsfor the very masculine Hertz truck rentals and 14 years for theexquisitely feminine L’Oreal cosmetics, Kersen decided she was readyfor any client. She formed the Power Edge, which has since enhancedthe performance of sales and managerial personnel for Swiss Bank,Xerox, the Miss America Organization, and others.”The concept of selling is actually simplicity itself,” says Kersen.”You merely find out what the customer wants, and you give it to him.”Yet even for most sales managers, the selling instinct does not comenaturally. It demands difficult behavior changes: shedding the tricksand baggage, and placing the customer at the center of eachtransaction:Prove your value. Launch the client encounter by assembling alist of his needs. Then make a quick assessment: Do I really have whathe wants or not? “Nobody sells everybody,” insists Kersen. “You don’tcreate a sale – you just fulfill needs.”If you do have the right product, walk your client through itscapabilities. For example, if you are selling a machine, establishthat it has enough power for the customer’s use; that it seems to fallwithin his price range; that its size allows it to fit within hisplant. You are not pushing your product’s magnificent attributes here.You are simply discussing how it meets his requirements, which youboth have been talking about.”Finally, you reach the point where you have nothing more to say,”explains Kersen. “All the customer’s needs have been met. Enough said.The only logical conclusion is that he make the purchase.” To thoseveterans of the hard sell who claim this approach is unrealistic,Kersen responds that it is merely shifting the focus to the customer.Building trust. Perhaps the oldest cliche in business is thatthe sales person’s primary product is his trust. While Kersen agreesthat building trust is vital, it is not something you can sell acustomer, or build speedily. Of course, the first impression can imbueyou with horns or a halo. An automatic barrier will almost definitelyseparate the conservatively-suited seller from a potential client intorn jeans.Yet what invariably overcomes such obstacles and gradually forges thetrusting link, in Kersen’s experience, is the interest in the clientdemonstrated by the sales person. This involves more than just askingand listening. A good sales person will help hone and sharply definethe customer’s desire, without obviously steering. Gradually, therelation develops, the trust builds.References. The ability to present trustworthy references ofpast satisfied customers and service recipients goes a long way towarddismantling sales resistance. Having your references pre-printed in aseparate notebook gives your presentation the feel of solidity.Of course, the people providing references should be asked beforehandif they are willing to be mentioned. Finally, resist the temptation tobuild a referral relationship at closing. Allow your new customer sometime to be impressed with your product and your company’s service.Follow-up. Closings should be painless for both parties.Gut-wrenching hysteria comes only when the sales person hasaggressively battered down the wall of customer skepticism. Odds areexcellent that winning a sale this way will crush the slightest hopeof repeat business.Yet, if both buyer and seller walk away from the trade feeling betterthan when they met, a potential relationship has sparked. A timelynote thanking this new customer for his business is essential.”Definitely, make it a pen-on-paper note,” says Kersen. “There aremillions of E-mail thank you letters that are about as effective as anonline refinancing ad.” Beyond the first note, not overly frequentletters can be sent asking how he likes the current product andinforming him of updates.”I am well aware that sales men are task oriented – they can’t wait toshow you their bag of tricks,” says Kersen. “Conversely, sales womentend to be more people oriented – never wanting to offend anyone.” Ifyou can make sales the customer’s show, you may be amazed at theresults.Top Of PageSelling an EventBeginning Sunday, March 7, the Philadelphia Flower Show will againinvade the Philadelphia Convention Center from Sunday to Sunday,foreshadowing the glorious dawn of spring. The air will fill with thecolors and scents of blossoms. Three-hundred thousand people, gentlyawed, will wander through its 10 acres. Then on Sunday, March 14th,the orchids and landscaped gardens will miraculously disappear, andnot a petal will be left on the hard stone floors. Wonderful. Grand.Now how do you get the folks to come back next year?Steve Mauer, whose job it is to see that this happens, speaks on”Selling the Show, Marketing the Event: A Non-Stop Approach toYear-Long Special Events Promotion” on Tuesday, January 13, at 11:30a.m. at the Doral Forestal Hotel. Cost: $40. Call 609-799-4900 orvisit www.NJCAMA.com. The event is sponsored by the New JerseyCommunications Advertising and Marketing Association (NJ CAMA).Mauer grew up in the heart of the city of brotherly love, just a fewblocks from where he lives and works today. He traveled to SyracuseUniversity to get a B.A. in American literature, but returned home toDrexel University to obtain a masters in publications management. “Ilearned a lot about publishing, but I also had to wade through a lotof sophisticated printing graphics which I’m not too good at,” helaughs. Armed with this education, Mauer returned to his neighborhoodand opened up the How To Do It Bookshop.”I couldn’t afford advertising,” he recalls, “so I had to try everyconceivable method of promotion.” Several times, the president of theUnited States would announce a visit to Philadelphia. Just prior toeach visit, Mauer would mail a letter to the White House sayingsomething like: “Dear President Clinton, I have in my shop three bookswhich, if read, would allow you to rebuild civilization. I invite youto stop by and accept them as complimentary copies.” No president evercame. But the press and wire services got wind of this scheme andMauer’s reputation as a creative promoter was made.At the same time, Mauer had become increasingly involved in communitygardening and the Philadelphia Horticultural Society’s pet project,”Urban Greening.” Starting as a volunteer, he helped publicize events.Today he handles the publicity for the society’s biggest annual event.”A year gives you time,” says Mauer. “You have time to buildrelationships of trust with the media and work back and forth withthem.” Mauer has several methods of keeping a continual stream offlower show articles planted throughout the media. And each of them isbased on the maxim that all business is personal:Marketing vs. PR. One of Mauer’s cardinal rules is to nevermix marketing efforts with public relations. “Sure we send outnumerous press releases,” he says, “but we never push an individualproduct in them. I want to be sincere – not beholden.” Instead, flowershow releases tell of trends, popular buying habits, or industryimprovements. To an editor, that’s solid news.Reporter respect. “I try to respect what the reporter does,”says Mauer. If the sponsoring association of your annual convention isplanning to host some other event, look at the schedules. When are theprint media deadlines? Is there enough lead for the local televisioncrew to set up, tape it, and get it back and edited by air time?Often, an individual product is indeed news. But it is the publicrelation person’s job to act as primary filter. You must know yourreporters and their publications well enough to know if this pieceholds any desirability for them. If not, don’t let anyone push you.Presenting an unwanted piece only shatters a slowly-built trust.Further, the promoter must act as a quality control for the sake ofhis own event. “One year we had a wildly popular company at the show,which totally failed on the fulfillment end of product delivery,”Mauer recalls. “I not only refused to mention their product, wewouldn’t let them back again. Our reputation depended on it.”New vs. Old. The Philadelphia Flower Show and its societyboast 176 years of tradition. Such enviable heritage might seem apromoter’s dream. Yet, Mauer responds, “Face it. Gardening isbasically poking a hole in the ground, dropping in a seed, and lettingGod take over. This is not the easiest concept to keep fresh and new.”Every year Mauer must convince last year’s visitors that they have notseen it all before.Actually new editions of an annual show do have an advantage, becausethe event itself is newsworthy. The trick here is to play up toexactly what trend your convention is responding – what new chord inthe human psyche is being struck. Newsworthy articles focusing on thisnew trend, which incidentally mentions your event as an example, canbring in press coverage.New media. Gulp! It is always scary for the promoter to breakinto a new medium or even talk to a strange newspaper or a strangereporter. Nothing quells the jitters like preparation. A little studyallows you to open the phone call with “I read your article on urbanopen spaces in the issue of the 15th. I liked it. You have really madethis a crusade over the last year.”Instantly, the reporter sees a long-term fan, not another pushy PRperson. Many reporters get little or no feedback, as few people evennotice the bylines on the articles that they enjoy and even quote tofriends. There is no greater praise than to let a reporter know thatyou actually read his or her stuff.Top Of PageFocus: EnvironmentDon Richardson, director of remediation services for BEM Systems Inc.,moderates an Environmental Update Seminar on Wednesday, January 14 at8 a.m. at the Law Center in New Brunswick, sponsored by the statechapter of the National Association of Industrial and OfficeProperties. Cost: $70. Call 201-998-1421 or log on to www.njnaiop.org.Now that New Jersey voters have approved Public Question No. 2,providing for a permanent and stable source of funding for the cleanupof contaminated sites, environmental firms can expect to get some goodcontracts, which this seminar will address. It will focus on theredevelopment of brownfields and contaminated sites and the impact ofother environmental policies, such as Natural Resources Damages, on acorporation’s liability and operations.Other topics: recent changes to New Jersey’s brownfields program,legislative initiatives, financial incentives including monetarylimits of grant and loan programs, ways to access funding,complications to these transactions, deed notices, engineeringcontrols, status of the Cleanup Star programs and updates on the otherrelated legal and regulatory changes.Panelists include Caren Franzini, executive director of the New JerseyEconomic Development Authority; Thomas Cozzi, acting assistantcommissioner for site remediation and waste management at NJDEP,Norman Spindel of Lowenstein Sandler, and Anthony DiLodovico, vicepresident with Schoor DePalma.Top Of PageMCRCC’s New ManIn l992, had you decided to do your Christmas shopping in Flemington,you could have hopped aboard a shiny new piece of nostalgia, whichwould have whisked you among the many outlet stores. The FlemingtonTrolley was the brainchild of Chris Phelan, who seemed to have anatural knack for publicity. Quickly seizing its potential forweddings and as a limo substitute, he made the trolley a profitablepart of the local color and in l993 was voted Hunterdon County’sEntrepreneur of the Year.Today Phelan has taken the reins of a wilder and more sprawlingvehicle: the Middlesex County Regional Chamber of Commerce (MCRCC).Donning the president’s mantle as of November 3, 2003, Phelan and hisseven-person staff oversee 318 square miles of incredible diversity.The 2,500 county businesses include substantial groupings of globalmanufacturers, huge service corporations, retail chains and privateshops of all sizes.The 757,000 population of the county has a higher than averagehousehold income of $61,446, a figure that hides both large pockets ofresidents struggling well below the poverty line and several of thewealthiest neighborhoods in the nation. Even the land use is inconstant flux.But the primary number keeping president Phelan awake this past monthis 700. “That membership enrollment is far too small for this county,”he insists. Shifting to a trolley metaphor he notes, “I’ve always saidthat the chamber of commerce is a great vehicle if you bother to sitin the driver’s seat. Getting a better representation is our toppriority.” Of the MCRCC’s membership, most are small and mid-sizebusiness-to-business companies, with a high percentage ofnot-for-profits. Few are straight retail firms. And herein may liePhelan’s membership dilemma.The Middlesex Chamber boasts a proud history of activity dating backto its founding in 1910. At that time, not too surprisingly, it wascalled the New Brunswick Chamber, and encompassed roughly thetown-area businesses. But times change. Currently the county is packedtight with highly-populated towns and all size businesses workingwithin their local economies. Many argue that the county chamber isirrelevant in an area with such strong commercial communities asWoodbridge, Edison, and Piscataway. Some say that the local chambersmake the county’s chamber at best redundant, at worst a conflictingcompetitor.Phelan has heard all these arguments before. For the last four years,he has served as president of the Warren County Regional Chamber ofCommerce – one of last in the state to develop a county chamber. Priorto that he worked locally in Hackettstown, helping the chamber obtainthe business-boosting Main Street New Jersey Community Designation. Hehas experienced both sides of the fence.He also brings to the issues a full lifetime in the Garden State.Growing up in Flemington, Phelan graduated from Seton Hall earning,degrees in both sociology and philosophy. During his off-study hours,he drove a local bus, a job which he laughingly credits for launchinghim on his five-year trolley career. He and his wife, Antonietta, livein South Orange.”Definitely the local chambers have their place – a non-conflictingplace – in our business community,” Phelan says. During his brieftenure in office, he has let no snow melt under his feet getting toknow the needs of his community counterparts. He has met andinterviewed all Middlesex’s local chamber executives and visitedPrinceton’s chamber.He says that much of the process of training, publicity, andeducational programs are best done as a local/county collaborativeeffort. But he sees the county chamber as offering definiteadvantages:Regional financial forecasts. Exactly because so many of theMiddlesex townships are cheek by jowl, most retail shops claim acustomer base far beyond their own municipality. They, along with thewholesalers and most mid-size businesses, dwell in at least acounty-wide economy. Keeping abreast of this area may prove moreimportant than knowing all the national fluctuations.Networking. “MCRCC provides a unique crossroads where thetruly major corporate players rub elbows with startup entrepreneurs.”You are much less likely at local chambers to see Johnson & Johnsonrepresentatives, chatting with mom and pop shop owners,” says Phelan.This is particularly important for business suppliers and thenot-for-profit organizations.Legislative voice. The broader reach of county chambers givesthem a stronger legislative presence. The full weight of a county’sbusiness community bears heavier on state decision makers. Phelan hasworked this weight most recently on New Jersey’s Family Leave Act.”There are several good parts and several parts of this bill which areruinous to the small business person,” he says, “and as a group wehave been able to negotiate changes.”Commerce runs never without competition. In Middlesex, the municipalversus county chamber allegiance is heightened by the downtown versusstrip mall competition for the consumer’s dollar. When asked how hesees the squeezing of the local shops by the out-of-town highwaychains, Phelan replies, “I call it free enterprise. There is room forgrowth at all levels and it is our job to help each of our businessesexpand.”Top Of PageNew Aviation CourseHelicopter pilots seeking to add “fixed wing airplane pilot” to theirresume can now do so in a new one-semester course starting this monthat Mercer County Community College. According to Joseph Blasenstein,coordinator of Mercer’s Aviation Program, “Flight V” offers acost-effective, well-supervised training course for pilots who alreadyhave expertise in helicopter piloting, but seek the additionalcertification required to fly single engine planes. It is the onlycourse of its kind in the northeast United States.Mercer’s spring semester begins Tuesday, January 20. For information,call 609-586-4800, ext. 3487, or E-mail: blasensj@mccc.edu.Blasenstein notes that “Flight V” gives certified helicopter pilots acommercial airplane instrument rating in 70 flight hours and 30ground/classroom hours. Two years in development, the course wasconceived in response to a request by a group of helicopter pilotsfrom the New Jersey National Guard.”They approached me wanting to add a fixed wing (airplane), singleengine commercial flight rating to their rotary wing (helicopter)certification,” said Blasenstein in a prepared statement. Courses thatare currently available offer the training in 155 hours. Mercer’scourse offers the demanding curriculum, but draws on pilots’ previousexpertise to shorten the credentialing process. The syllabus includesadvanced topics in aircraft performance, preflight procedures,operating procedures, maneuvers, aircraft systems, federal aviationregulations, radio navigation, physiology of flight, environmentalsystems, and air traffic systems and procedures.”Flight V” enables pilots to fly planes for commercial and privatepurposes and to easily add a multi-engine rating and move intocivilian commercial operations, observes Blasenstein. “It is anexcellent career move for these pilots, making them more versatile intheir current positions and more attractive to future employers,” hesays, comparing the certification process to driving. “If you are alicensed driver of a car and wish to start driving a tractor-trailer,you must pursue additional licensing.””We expect to see the cream of the crop seeking this certification,”says Blasenstein.According to Blasenstein, “Flight V” takes the MCCC Aviation Programto a higher level. Part of the ground training will be conducted on astate-of-the-art Advanced Simulation Training device (AST), which waspurchased last fall through a grant from the New Jersey Division ofAeronautics, Department of Transportation. A highly sophisticatedflight simulator, AST has both single and multi-engine trainingcapabilities, and will also be utilized by Mercer’s other aviationstudents.Blasenstein is gratified to finally be offering “Flight V” at Mercer.”The last time we added a course was in 1989,” he said. “It was agreat deal of work getting this highly detailed curriculum approved bythe Federal Aviation Administration.” In addition to the NJ NationalGuard, this class will be open to helicopter pilots from policedepartments in New Jersey and Pennsylvania and personnel fromcommercial operations.Next StoryCorrections or additions?This page is published by PrincetonInfo.com— the web site for U.S. 1 Newspaper in Princeton, New Jersey.
