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KEVIN MILLER
Internship Portfolio
Kevin Miller
Kjmille6@ncsu.edu
Winston-Salem Dash
Club Level Supervisor
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Contents
Internship Work Plan.................................................................................................................................2
Special Project.............................................................................................................................................2
Internship Artifacts ....................................................................................................................................3
Evaluations ..................................................................................................................................................5
Photos.........................................................................................................................................................14
Detailed Personal Evaluation/Critique ...................................................................................................19
Weekly Discussion Board Posts ...............................................................................................................19
Community Description ...........................................................................................................................26
SWOT Analysis.........................................................................................................................................27
Competitive Analysis ................................................................................................................................28
Target Markets......................................................................................................................................29
Marketing Goals....................................................................................................................................30
Strategies................................................................................................................................................30
Organizational Structure .........................................................................................................................32
Personnel Practices...............................................................................................................................33
Financial Management Summary ...........................................................................................................34
Economic Environment........................................................................................................................34
Revenue and Expenditure Summary/Budget Process .......................................................................34
Financial Accountability and Controls ...............................................................................................34
Facilities and Areas...................................................................................................................................35
Programs/Events.......................................................................................................................................36
Job Description..........................................................................................................................................36
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Internship Work Plan
This summer at BB&T Ballpark, my internship role was Club Level Supervisor where I,
along with two other managers, were in charge of all things occurring in the club/suite level of a
minor league baseball stadium in Winston-Salem, NC. We all worked as a team to get everything
accomplished upstairs, however my main focus was the indoor club area where the buffet is
located. On gamedays, we’d accommodate anywhere from 350-700 people depending on which
night of the week. All of these people have outdoor seats in the upstairs portion of the ballpark,
but they would mostly eat their dinner inside around the buffet area where it was an air
conditioned environment. Our workers that managed the food in the buffet area were typically
non-profit volunteers working to make money for their cause (whatever that may be). Overseeing
the efficiency of the buffet was one of my primary duties, so working with them and giving them
guidelines, I’d have to be very specific and tactful with them as they are not working for their
own benefit.
Having enough supplies for that many customers was not easy. We’d have to plan for
each night on how much food to have prepared, how much silverware to be ready, and how
much other supplies needed to be brought up from the warehouse to have maximum efficiency
for the night. The assigned seats for the customers were outside and each section would have a
server to take care of the customers. The server’s responsibility is to make the customer’s
experience as smooth as possible so they could enjoy the duration of the game. Servers also had
assigned side-work to take care each day in addition to their serving duties to make the restaurant
area run as efficiently as could be. I was to oversee the work of these servers on a daily basis. I
learned that having minimum wage workers comes with its drawbacks. Sometimes these workers
weren’t as motivated to the task at hand as much as we would like for them to be and it was my
job to hold them accountable for their job.
Special Project
As crazy and unprofessional as this sounds my special project was nurturing and
maintaining the two $40,000 ice cream machines. Taking care of an ice cream machine doesn’t
do a whole lot for my professional development but being responsible for a $40,000 asset is
definitely deemed worthy in my books as a special project. I’m not sure what everyone else in
the PRT program did for their project this summer, but I am willing to bet that mine is one the
most expensive projects to maintain. Before getting the machines, the General Manager who
ordered them told me that these machines would be my responsibility and to treat these machines
like they were my babies.
The company that makes the machine is Caprigini and they are an Italian company who
makes different types of ice cream. They have an office in Winston-Salem and upon the two
machine’s arrival, I was instructed how to take the machine apart and reconstruct it as well as
general guidelines for its maintenance. His name was Antonio and he was the stereotypical
Italian. His instructions were very bland and definitely didn’t teach me everything I needed to
know to get the machine cleaned and ready for use of 350-750 people a night. The machine
needed to be cleaned every 14 days which would take about 3.5 hours to clean and reassemble
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the two machines. I’d say about 15% of my time during the games is dedicated to making sure
everything is running okay. When that many people are constantly tugging on those levers
disregarding the messages the screen may display, there tends to be a lot of errors with the
machine. Any time that happens, I am summoned on my radio to come take a look and see what
is wrong with it and how to fix it.
Internship Artifacts
On a gameday, my typical day would have me show up around 2:30 to get the club level
“set up” for the night. The doors opened at 5:30 and the servers/suite attendants would show up
at 5:15. So, when they came in, they didn’t have much time to do the setting up. The kitchen
staff would be there before me and cook the food for the night. It was my job to make sure the
food made it out to the hot boxes in enough time to not have to scramble when the doors open at
5:30. From 2:30 to then, I am making trips to our warehouse to grab things that are needed for
the night. Whether it’s food or just something like cups, that’s where everything was stored. I am
looking at what the suites have ordered for the game and setting up the suites so that the suite
attendants come in and all they have to do is grab the food when the guests arrive. During the
game, I am to oversee the employees and their work as well as watch over the club level and
make sure everything is in place and all customers are happy. I did a lot of different things every
game. I’d basically just help in the areas that needed the most help that particular night. At the
end of the night, the servers would report to me once their section and assigned side work was
complete and I’d check them off and send them home. Us three managers would stay about
another hour or so after the game making sure everything went well and arranging suites for the
next day.
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Student Intern Special Project Evaluation
Intern: Kevin Miller Agency: Legends Hospitality
Internship Supervisor:Melissa McCormack Supervisor Title: Operations
Manager
Special Project Name or Title: Ice Cream Machine Maintenance & Upkeep
Rate the student intern’s special project by selecting the response that best describes the
student’s performance for each of the following criteria:
Strongly Disagree Disagree Agree Strongly Agree Not
Observed
1 2 3 4
N/O
1. Overall project objectives were achieved. 1 2
3 4 N/O
2. Worked cooperatively with others when necessary; sought help and/or information 1 2
3 4 N/O
when necessary.
3. Worked without closed supervision on the project. 1 2
3 4 N/O
4. Conducted necessary research or investigation for project. 1 2
3 4 N/O
5. This project was/will be valuable to our agency. 1 2
3 4 N/O
6. Explain how the agency will use the special project or how the special project will help
the agency:
We averaged roughly 450-800 people on the Club Level for every game (70 total) that had All-
You-Can-Eat access before and during the 70 games. Kevin was taught by the company that
loaned us the ice cream machines how to break them down, clean them, reassemble them
every other week and maintain them. It was a very intricate process and Kevin took this
important project very seriously and we truly appreciated it. Without the proper cleaning of the
machines and maintenance, the guests would not be able to use it and our client, the Dash,
would have been extremely disappointed. We can’t thank Kevin enough for taking on this
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challenge and making sure that it was taken care of so the management team could focus on
other important areas without having to worry about these machines. Kevin also kept up with
these machines during the games and satisfied both the guests needs and management’s
expectations.
7. Student organized and planned the work in advances so that the project could be 1
2 3 4 N/O
worked on throughout the internship.
8. This project was completed on time. 1
2 3 4 N/O
9. Have you discussed this project evaluation with the intern?
Yes x No
Agency Supervisor’s Signature Melissa L. McCormack Date 09.05.16
Student Intern’s Signature Kevin Miller Date 9.6.16
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Final Student Intern Performance Appraisal
Intern: Kevin Miller Agency: Legends Hospitality
Internship Supervisor:Melissa McCormack Supervisor Title: Operations
Manager
Please evaluate the intern by giving an objective assessment of his/her performance on the job.
Discuss the evaluation with the intern before he/she leaves the internship location and send a
copy of the evaluation to the University supervisor.
Using the rating scale below, rate the intern on each applicable item to your agency’s internship
program and the assignments given to the intern. Ratings should be based on the overall
internship performance. Be as accurate and objective as possible since this completed form will
become part of the student’s permanent record.
Poor Fair Good Very Good
Not Observed
1 2 3 4
N/O
A. Personal Qualifications
9. Appearance: Grooming and dress are neat, clean and appropriate. 1
2 3 4 N/O
10. Enthusiasm and Energy: Ample energy for demands. Plenty of interest in the job. 1
2 3 4 N/O
11. Conversational Ability: Pleasing voice; easily understood; appropriate vocabulary. 1
2 3 4 N/O
12. Emotional Stability: Poised, calm, handles the unexpected with ease; can work 1
2 3 4 N/O
under stress.
13. Responsibility and Dependability: Reliable and on time; accepts responsibility. 1
2 3 4 N/O
14. Initiative and Resourcefulness: Seeks out opportunities to make a contribution. 1
2 3 4 N/O
15. Interpersonal Relations: Friendly, sincere and respectful; uses tact; liked by other 1
2 3 4 N/O
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employees; effective in social situations.
16. Attitude Towards Constructive Criticism: Welcomes suggestions; solicits help; 1
2 3 4 N/O
makes efforts to improve.
17. Desire to Learn: Shows interest in job assignments, demonstrating desire to learn 1
2 3 4 N/O
as much as possible about the operations and functions of the organizations.
18. Cooperativeness: Demonstrates willingness to help others get the job done; 1
2 3 4 N/O
adaptability to team efforts; promotes common interest.
19. Flexibility: Ability to juggle several projects/assignments simultaneously; copes with 1
2 3 4 N/O
diversity and complexity.
20. Creativeness/innovativeness: Ability to generate original ideas or solutions 1
2 3 4 N/O
or to borrow from and/or modify available resources in order to meet the
requirements of a given situation.
21. Judgment: Makes good, deliberate decisions after considering both 1
2 3 4 N/O
sides of an issue.
B. Professional Competencies
22. Ability to Analyze Problems: Anticipates problems; analyzes and selects 1
2 3 4 N/O
appropriate solutions.
23. Planning and Organizing: Plans and organizes assignments needing only 1
2 3 4 N/O
occasional direction.
24. Written Communication Skills: Ability to write memos, letters, and reports and 1
2 3 4 N/O
fill out forms clear, concise, manner using appropriate vocabulary, grammar and syntax.
25. Public Relations: Greets people in a friendly, courteous manner; creates a 1
2 3 4 N/O
favorable impression on the public.
26. Professional Preparation: Possesses the basic knowledge and technical skills 1
2 3 4 N/O
necessary to successfully to accomplish assignments and responsibilities; appears
sufficiently competent and adequately prepared.
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27. Leadership: Capable of planning, organizing, and directing the work or activities 1
2 3 4 N/O
of others in a manner to produce satisfactory results.
28. Precision and Detail: Pays attention to detail; follows through on assignments; 1
2 3 4 N/O
is thorough and accurate; demonstrates standards of excellence.
29. Professional Conduct: Observes organizational policies, procedures, rules 1
2 3 4 N/O
and regulations.
30. Has the intern made progress toward the goals established and agreed upon by
both of you at the beginning of the internship?”
x Yes No
31. What advice would you have for the intern for improving his/her performance?
As you may know, Kevin has worked at this venue for several years as an hourly
employee. He has had extensive knowledge about the building, the team, the people
(guests and staff) and games. However, he was part of the management team this
season (as an intern) and I’m sure his eyes were opened up to all the work that goes in
behind the scenes. Not knowing Kevin before this season, I wasn’t sure what to
expect, but I have to say that Kevin was a vital part of a very successful season! He
took his job seriously and every task that was asked of him, he finished in a timely
fashion and with a positive attitude.
As for any advice I could give him, I would say: continue to learn as much as you can,
even if it isn’t technically in your job description as you never know when it could come
in handy and make you the better candidate for the next position. Stay focused and
organized. You have proven to me/us that you can do anything you set out to and
people follow your lead, so continue to lead!
32. If your agency had a job vacancy for someone with this intern’s education, skills abilities,
would you and consider hiring him/her on a permanent basis?
x Yes No
25. Have you discussed this performance appraisal with the intern?
Yes x No
33. Addition Comments:
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I have truly enjoyed working with Kevin this season and I would be happy to work with
him again in the future. We had a 3 person management team on the Club/Suites level
and we all got along so well and truly enjoyed each others’ company while helping
each other with whatever was necessary. I can’t thank Kevin enough for showing me
the way (this was my first season with the team) and helping me with everything I threw
his way. I am a type A personality for sure and I always want to make things the best
they can be. Kevin embraced all my to-do lists and ran with them. Midway through the
season, I didn’t even need to make the lists for him, he just knew what needed to be
done. I don’t know if another team or season could match this one as we had fun while
we worked hard! Thank you Kevin! You are welcome (and wanted) back any
time/season!
Agency Supervisor’s Signature Melissa McCormack Date
09.05.16
Student Intern’s Signature Kevin Miller Date 9/6/16
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Detailed Personal Evaluation/Critique
This internship was great for me in regards of improving my leadership skills. Each day
was different in a in a sense that there were new customers to please every day and every game.
You have to go above and beyond to make sure their experience is enjoyed and that they will
want to come back and even bring some friends. I don’t think these customers realize how much
work goes into maintaining a baseball stadium just from the hospitality perspective - the three
managers for the hospitality portion would arrive around 9 AM and sometimes wouldn’t leave
until 2-3 AM. It was mind-opening to me to see the commitment my three managers had. If I
ever was feeling down on myself for working 40+ hours a week and not being able to have a
social life, I’d just look at them and see their commitment to keep me motivated.
Opposed to the ticket sales rep interns, my position isn’t typically run by an intern. The
sales reps had a set work plan, set number of hours, and a set duty for gamedays. My position
was a little more ‘freelancing’ to where I’d be performing different actions than them daily. Not
crediting the sales rep interns or de-crediting, but our positions built skills in different ways.
From a personal growth standpoint, this internship definitely provided that. I came in
very timid and not sure of what my actual role was. Through hard work and help from my
managers, I was able to gain great skills that will 100% help me in future endeavors in just about
any position. This being my 6th year around the ballpark, I thought I knew just about everything
there was to know about it. However, when I took this position, I witnessed first hand what goes
on ‘behind the scenes’ as well as the blood, sweat and tears that are put forth. In addition to that I
was able to realize how unconventional of a job it is from an hours standpoint; it was definitely
not the typical ‘9-5 job’. If I am being 100% honest, I must say that I don’t think this is the job
for me, which is fascinating to me because I thought for sure that I would want to accept a full
time position if offered upon graduation. Now, this is not necessarily the case; if I’m offered a
position it would take some extra consideration. Regardless of my appreciation of the hospitality
spectrum of a ballpark, I am extremely grateful for the experience/skills I gained this summer. I
now know that I am capable of a leadership position and I think I have the right tools to take
another leadership role, no matter what the service is, and thrive in it. My core belief is if you
work hard and lead by example, you will gain the respect from your subordinates and they will
follow your lead. I witnessed this from my work this summer.
Weekly Discussion Board Posts
Week 1
Agency - Legends Hospitality of Winston-Salem Dash
Location - Winston-Salem, NC
Population - 60 staff members of this sector
My first day on the job was hectic as it was Opening Day, one of the most crowded games of the
season, and I had to skip school on Thursday to drive home and begin. It was a seven game
homestand, but I only worked from the 14-17 because I had to return to school to prep for finals.
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My job is to supervise the club level servers and suite attendants as well as making sure
everything is running to standard in the Flow Auto Club seating
During the 44 hours I worked in the four days I worked that weekend, I learned how much time
and effort goes in to maintaining a ballpark so it can host its team and please fans every day.
During my next two weeks, I anticipate managing the workers to be easier because they have
learned what to expect and have had practice doing their job. I also expect to learn the computer
side of the job, like taking suite orders via email and relaying the orders to the kitchen staff and
then being able to collect the money from the orderers. Orientation I have received has come
from an initial meeting on the day of the first game where the general manager explained to us
what he expects of everyone night in and night out. I also receive orientation all the time on-the-
fly.
Week 2
My second week on the job was very annoying. It was a four game homestand and it rained
every one of those days. The first game was the only one to get postponed, however. Great right?
I get to go home early and have a night to myself. False. Since the game was called at 6:30,
many of the guests were there still eating their meals and whatnot, and we didn't want to kick
them out. Everyone was gone by around 7:30. In that timespan we cleared all of our pre-stocked
items in the suites and had to adjust it to the next game's orders. I feel bad for the people who
paid for that suite. Their only refund was a general admission ticket for a future game.
I remember as I was very busy with cleaning, I had my notebook with orders on it so I could
adjust the suites. In that time, my paper flew off the balcony and I had to run downstairs and get
it. With it in his hand, the General Manager gave it back to me and said he needed a bulky item
from the kitchen upstairs, so I had to go get it for him. Moral of that story is don't lose stuff off
the balcony because I never would have had to do that, haha.
Those rainouts/delays are no fun because you never know what time you're gonna get out. The
next day was a double header with a 30 minute rain delay in there. Needless to say that was a
long day for me.
Week 3
We have an organizational policy that infuriates me: No eating for the non-supervisor
employees. The company I work for, Legends, has no problem with it. However, the leaders of
the baseball team and stadium itself, have a rule that states no eating for the servers, suite
attendants, and bartenders. We throw away pounds of food every night and it makes me sick that
we have hungry workers going home on an empty stomach. Much less, we "aren't allowed" to
give it to a homeless shelter either. There are too many starving people in this world for there to
be rules like that. That is my 2 cents.
It's great to see how my good interpersonal skills have paid off now that I an in a higher position.
People who have been coming for years will come up to me and congratulate me on my
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advanced position from previous years. I have been told that hard work pays off and that my
personality has given me the chance to move up in the field. Hearing stuff like that is refreshing
and also motivating to keep doing what I have been doing to see similar results.
Right now, I am just a little guy in the grand scheme of things. Yes, I am titled a supervisor, but
it's not as glorious as it sounds. Not that I am complaining, but I am doing the things the other
managers don't necessarily want to do. For example, my first duties when I come in are to put
water in the buffet warmers for them to be hot for the customers. Not a tough task, but obtaining
~30 liters of water takes some time. I also, have to fill up the suites drink troughs with ice and
even bring up a keg (on a cart with wheels, of course) if need be. I want to start learning some
things that go on behind the scenes, like sales numbers, processing sales, etc. I imagine I will
soon
Week 4
That picture was taken by the general manager as my boss was teaching the office manager,
Kristi and me, how to insert sales numbers onto our excel sheet. He took the picture because
Kristi and I are both Wolfpack members and Melissa, my boss is a Demon Deacon.
I have finally started moving forward and learned some more things. As the picture shows, this is
me in the office on a non-gameday learning how to insert sales numbers from each item we sell.
The excel sheet was already set up in the preseason with the formulas, so lucky for me I just had
to track down the numbers and insert them in their rightful places.
Doing this reminded me of my Sport Finance and Economic budget assignment. Using numbers
is something I have always been good at and enjoy doing.
As funny as this sounds, my special project will be the maintaining of the two ice cream
machines, $40,000 dollar investments.It meets the reqs of the Special Project. I have to make
sure those pains are up and running and clean for every game. It may sound like it's easy, but you
don't know how much nurturing goes into those things.
The first policy I'll discuss is the dress code. The reason I say this is because I have to enforce it
for my servers and suite attendants. Also, I have to stay clean shaven which is a difference for
me. We are in the food industry and I agree that people should be neat looking for that reason.
We just now started allowing shorts in the workplace and now that brings about the problem of
people wearing flamboyant socks. We require people to wear black socks, so I hate having to call
someone on the code for something so little, but it is a part of my duties and I must do it.
The second policy is the one that infuriates me. No eating for the servers and suite attendants.
We throw away so much food every night and most of our employees are not very well-off. I see
no reason why we can't feed them. But rules are rules and I have to obey them. I feel guilty when
I make my nightly plate and eat it (sometimes in front of their faces) but supervisors are allowed
to eat and I am starving after 8 hours of work.
We don't do enough to commemorate high performing staff and discipline poor performers. We
have begun to call people and tell them not to bother coming in if they are late. Us 3 managers
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feel like are servers have been babied in the past and they are taking advantage of us. Night in
and night out there are a few side work tasks that go incomplete and that means one of us have to
take care of them. When the games are over we have a lot of stuff to do for the next day's game
and doing a servers side work is not something that should be one of them. We need to start
enforcing people's duties better and part of that comes down on me.
Week 5
Meeting with my supervisor and being critiqued went great. She really values having me around
and how much I do and take pride in my area of work. She did nitpick at my poor organizational
skills and how I need to improve that, but overall it went well. I'm probably biased but I think the
meeting was well-done. She began to tell me all the things she appreciated about me. She
included some examples, and praised me for those. Then she told me the downfall, the
organization. She wasn't rude about it at all, but just bluntly told me it's where I do struggle a
little. She concluded by telling me to keep up the good work and to stay motivated for the
duration of the season. It was a nice locker room halftime speech.
________________________________
1. I feel like I have become a much better leader in delegating tasks and managing my servers. It
began with me doing a lot of their work but now I have the confidence to walk up to them and
ask them to do a task. For this, I think they have grown to respect me as a leader and they come
to me and tell me scenarios and ask for advice.
2. The first is more of e bragging. CP3 threw out the first pitch and sat up in our club level in a
suite. I went in there to talk to him and the first thing I showed him was my work shoes (CP3's).
He laughed and said "my man" and gave me a high five. I told him I had went to every game of
his when he was at Wake and how he was my favorite player. He seemed thankful to be
appreciated and was truly a good guy.
My second isn't really one instance. It is multiple occasions that I have been told by regulars
from years past and having them congratulate me on sticking with this job and the advancement I
have received. I've been told hard work doesn't go unnoticed, congratulations and keep your
aspirations high, and many other sayings like hard work pays off and what not.
3. Our main expenses are staff salaries and food. We have to feed 350-600 guests with a high
standard nightly, so we obviously spend a lot of money on quality food. Our staff is obviously
another one of the bigger expenses. we have recently been told we need to try and trim some
hours so we have staff coming in 15 mins later than normal. This puts more pressure on us
managers to have the stadium ready but it's nothing we can't manage. We also are encouraged to
send some people home early to reduce some hours. It's tough to do this because there is
normally work to be done at the end of games.
Main streams for revenue are ticket sales and food sales. Suites pre-order food packages and club
guests order their tickets with the buffet included.
_________________________________
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I enjoy interacting with the customers because a lot of them have been coming for years and I
have been able to form relationships with quite a few of them. I have met a lot of good people up
there and also many successful people. I may be able to use some of them as a connection one
day.
I enjoy working with the staff because we all have a common goal of completing the job the right
way. We are efficient in working together and we have never gotten in arguments. It is important
to like your co-workers when you are with them for countless hours daily.
I have stayed with a level head throughout this internship. I know the ball park well and I know I
am a resource of information for our club servers and even some guests. If I have a tough task to
do I am not scared to ask for help or advice because my coworkers are so understanding. The
only time I have been down on myself is when I couldn't repair the ice cream machine in time for
the biggest game of the season (4th of July) but everyone acknowledged how hard I was working
on that thing and the efforts involved.
For my physical health, it has definitely taken a shot. I do stay on my feet for 8 hours or so and a
constantly walking around, but I haven't been able to go to the gym and actually work out. I also
have tough times resisting eating doughnuts, ice cream and sodas, which are always there for the
taking for me.
Week 6
my funny story came with me taking apart one of our $20,000 ice cream machines and me
cleaning. Cleaning an ice cream machine is not fun. You have to drain it, sanitize it, take all the
individual gears and pistons off, hand wash those, and then put it all together and refill it. This
was my second time doing this process alone, so I was really nervous doing all the steps in the
correct order - I have done everything correctly so far (but I am not full aware at the time) and all
I had to do was put the levers for dispensing back on - the easiest step. Somehow I didn't put
them in at the right angle and the ice cream would dispense, but extremely slowly. Slowly
enough to where we had to close it down for the night's game.
The next day I come in, bound to fix it. Myself and another supervisor looked and fiddled with it
for about two hours and about 15 minutes before the gate opens, I say: are we sure the lever is on
the right way? Zach, who is with me says "I don't think it is." We start unscrewing them and
putting them back on as if we were digging for treasure and the ice cream machine works as
good as new. We told our boss that the gear wasn't installed properly instead of telling the truth
and him thinking we were dumb asses.
Program Skills - I have come in on non game days and installed sales for all departments and
adjusted it with our budget.
I have entered tips and hours for the workers and submitted payroll with my boss
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Pressure - 4th of July is our busiest day. The stadium was packed and we knew it would be. That
night was hectic and we operated one of the smoothest 4th of July's I have been a part of in my 6
years there.
We use Square which is an already poplar and growing method of storing credit card payments.
This is where I gather a lot of my numbers that are entered in our spreadsheets for monitoring
sales.
Preferences: all the employees to show up prepared and on time to work and not complain about
sections, lack of tips, heat, whatever.
I also like for our kitchen staff to be prepared when it's packed. It looks bad on us when the
buffet area is depleted of food.
Strengths: I am good at talking with people. If there is a disgruntled customer, I can usually point
him/her in the right direction and make them at ease.
I have become a better leader and outlet for information for my workers. They aren't scared to
tell me about an issue or ask a question
Two things I need to work on: Responsibility. I am always losing my walkie talkie, clip board,
all that.
Accountability - If I see something out of line, it is tough for me to go to the employee and hold
them accountable for their actions.
Week 7
Every night when I finish having the club area in order and ready for the next day, I help out the
other supervisors with getting the suites ready for the next day. That could mean going to the
warehouse and rolling up a keg or a number of things.
I helped tremendously when the health department came. Last year, we got toasted with an 85
which is a B. I saved us from losing a lot of cheap points by removing any item we use from the
floor, disposing cups that employees had stashed in our serving area, and labeling a lot of items and
dating them. A lot of stuff that you wouldn't think would harm anything but the health inspector
does. We received a 96, much better than last year's performance.
They still aren't great, but my organizational skills are growing. My supervisor makes me a
clipboard prepared with each suite's orders, what group is in there, how many people are in there,
and everything I might need to know for the game each day. It has helped me stay organized and
on top of things should an issue arise.
My manager has helped create change in me by giving me this clipboard of info because I have
always been poorly organized and this is helping me keep everything in line.
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Week 8
One of our best employees "Angie" came and asked me if I could get a wrist band for her boyfriend
to come up to the club level so he cold sit with her and eat dinner at the game. "Angie" is always
doing the right thing at work, helping others out, anything to make the game go by smoother. I
could easily take a wrist band and have given it to her without anyone knowing but I knew it wasn't
the ethical decision to make even though I'd like to reward her for being one of our most
trustworthy employees.
I asked our boss if it would be okay to let the boyfriend come up and naturally, he said no, not
without paying. We can't play favorites at the ball park and if I let her come up, the word would
have gotten out and then everyone would be asking for a wrist band. I explained this to "Angie"
and she understood completely
_____________________________________
- An intern needs to be ready for anything and everything thrown his/her way. You have to
understand that your superiors are there to help you even if they are bossy and seem crazy. My
internship is very fast paced and I don't have time to second guess what I am instructed to do - I
just go and do it.
- I''ve learned that you have to put your ego aside and take instruction whether it seems ridiculous
or not. Customers have some far fetched expectations/questions and you need to be able to answer
them regardless of what they may be asking
- My special project is my worst nightmare. When it's 100 degrees out, people want their ice cream.
The ice cream machine is pretty much occupied from start to finish of the game and it requires a
ton of maintenance and nurturing. It may seem like a weird special project, but I am the only one in
the ball park who knows how to clean the machine. It takes 3 hours to fully clean/re-assemble the
two machines every 14 days. My bosses joke with me and call that my little girl because of how
much TLC I owe to it. I was basically assigned this special project from the get-go. My boss said
he had ordered $40,000 worth in the two machines and told me I need to treat that as if it were my
own investment.
Week 9
My supervisors have been very helpful to me. They expect a lot from me in return. I genuinely
think that I have been an asset to the management staff. Having someone who used to be a server
is nice because I know what the workers can and cannot handle. My supervisors are aware of that
and let me make some decisions regarding sidework, sections, etc.
I have been giving and getting feedback on the spot all year. We haven't had many sit down
meetings to discuss performance because it is such a fast paced job. We spend a lot of time
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together prep-ing for future games and that is when Melissa and I talk about performance. We
both rely on one another to complete the game and it's nice that we can both trust each other as
well as hold each other accountable.
What I appreciated the most was one of the volunteer workers who restocks the buffet line
mentioned how he noticed how hard I worked and how I never stop moving. He always says
"son, you are the man around here. Keep doing the same thing and results will show." Chuck is a
very successful family man and a nice guy. It means a lot hearing that appreciation coming from
someone like that
Week 10
Positive aspects - great leadership/organizational skills gained. Can be improved if gameday
orders had a systematic approach. Now, they are all done over phone/email. This led to multiple
occasions of us having the wrong order or no order. It would benefit us and the customers
Beneficial - leadership and accountability. These skills are not skills you gain in a class. You
gain them from going out and doing the work and that's why i am grateful for this as part of our
program
Advise - yes I would. It may have had its downfalls but I am sure all internships did. But the
experience and knowledge I gained during this have really helped me gain more of an outline of
what I want in life
Expectations - I'd say they were met. I didn't learn as much with processing orders and revenues
and expenses as much as I'd like but I still came out a much stronger employee than I went in
Curriculum- I witnessed second-hand all the marketing promotions the ballpark presents to fill
the stadium. It is a minor league team who isn't the most talented ever. They had to do special
promotional nights to get ''butts in seats" and some were successful, some weren't. This is the
part of work I think I'd like to get into as opposed to what I did.
Improvements- Nothing really sticks out. I don't think I have taken an irrelevant course in the
program and I think I used some traits gained from all classes to help me in my knowledge of the
work
Community Description
The Winston-Salem Dash are an Advanced-A baseball affiliate of the Chicago White
Sox. The organization began in 2009 in a brand new stadium in Winston-Salem, BB&T
Ballpark. The Dash were formerly the Warthogs of Winston-Salem and played in a stadium
shared with the Wake Forest Demon Deacons before re-branding itself in 2009. The stadium
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began being built in early 2007 with expectations to be finished before the 2009 season, however
it was not completed until the beginning of the 2010 season. The whole construction project
costed $48.7 million. The bulk of the costs were covered by city tax dollars and Primo water
founder, Billy Primm who is now the owner of the organization.
BB&T Ballpark is located in downtown Winston-Salem directly off Business I-40, Highway 421
on Peters Creek Parkway (a road that sees lots of traffic commuting downtown every day). The
stadium was built in a lower income, higher crime rate location with intentions of making the
area more safe and welcoming to local and traveling baseball fans. It has excelled in cleaning up
the area by knocking down old houses and replacing them with luxury apartments. In future
years, there will be a hotel outside of the stadium in left field and office buildings attached to the
stadium in right field.
The stadium seats approximately 5,500 people with standing/grass hill sections able to
accommodate another 2,000 or so people. The most people ever recorded at a Dash game was
July 4, 2015, where just under 8,100 tickets were sold. That is not taking into consideration the
hundreds of people outside of the gates waiting to see the post-game firework show.
The tickets at the gate are sold in four different locations and price ranges. The tickets
vary in price but are still consistent in that the lawn in left field is cheapest, the “homerun deck”
in right field second cheapest, the sides of either first or third base, and behind home plate being
the most expensive. All are typically less than $15. There is also club level seating located on the
second level of the ballpark. Called the Womble & Carlisle club, it is ran by Legends Hospitality
which was co-founded by Jerry Jones and George Steinbrenner. At this ballpark, there are 16
suites, 100 tables behind home plate with four seats attached to each table, and another 200 seats
along the first and third baselines. These tickets are not available for one game; the lowest
package starts at seven games ranging to eighty games.
The nickname Dash comes from the fact that Winston-Salem is the only city in the world
whose name features a hyphen. The organization is committed to making the ballgame enjoyable
throughout the course of the game. In between each half inning, there will be some sort of
entertainment put on by the “Dash Pack” and they do various activities such as giveaways,
games incorporating selected fans, lead dances, and a multitude of other things to keep the fans
incorporated. Typically, the Dash Pack are assisted by mascot Bolt. Before the team began, fans
were given multiple names and themes to choose for a mascot and Bolt won the majority vote.
SWOT Analysis
Strengths:
1. New ballpark in a convenient location that overlooks downtown and named ballpark of
the year in its first season
2. Only sports team in Winston-Salem that is in season during the summer season
3. Able to offer families a cheap, safe, and entertaining way to spend an evening
4. Have 40 home games so people have multiple opportunities to come to a game
5. Fans have the chance to see future MLB stars that come through the organization as well
as opponents
6. According to SBRnet.com, the southern states make up 10% more than any other region
in regards to attendance of Minor League Baseball
7. Great coverage in the local paper, Winston-Salem Journal
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Weaknesses:
1. Team changes every year, so fans are unable to form long term attachment to a player
2. Weather is out of the team’s control and people do not come want to come to games
when it’s too hot or potentially raining
3. Attendance for games is unpredictable. Management may have too many or not enough
employees to work a given game
4. Stadium is starting to lose its “newness” and some people are not coming because they
are not so curious about the ballpark anymore
Opportunities:
1. Many little league teams in the Winston-Salem area. Younger children typically look up to
professional players so getting children and their parents to come to games is a proficient way to
gain long term customers
2. Wake Forest baseball is gaining more success. They play at the former minor league stadium
and having their bigger games at BB&T ballpark gives them a chance at more revenues
3. The White Sox are struggling so they may trade their proven MLB talent for high potential
players who will work their way up through the organization
4. Injured professional players will do a rehab assignment before returning back to the MLB and
it draws a lot of attention if it is a notable player
5. Surrounding towns Clemmons and Advance are growing extremely fast. A brand new hospital
owned by Wake Forest opened in Advance. Residents of these two towns can be potential
consumers
Threats:
1. Team performance is not something that can be controlled. If the team is having a bad
year, people will not want to come see the team as much as they would during a successful
season
2. Management has been the same since the team began in 2010 and they have not made
many different changes. Fans may lose interest if they know it is going to be the same thing
every night
3. Team can be having a great season and its best players may be called up to AA
4. The in between inning games have been almost the same every season. They are
becoming predictable and redundant
Competitive Analysis
During the bulk of the summer, the Dash are the only sports team in the city that are in
season. Wake Forest and Winston-Salem State only play during the first two weeks of the Dash’s
season (which is only about 5% of their games). However, there are other minor league teams in
the state. North Carolina actually has the fifth most minor league teams in the country with the
Asheville Tourists, Burlington Royals, Carolina Mudcats, Charlotte Knights, Durham Bulls,
Greensboro Grasshoppers, Hickory Crawdads, and Kannapolis Intimidators. However, the
Grasshoppers are the closest team to the Dash distancing 29.2 miles from each other. The
Burlington Royals are the next closest at 51.2 miles, however both of these teams do not have the
ballpark that the Winston-Salem Dash possess. The Charlotte Knights and the Durham Bulls are
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both AAA and have stadiums that can rival the Dash’s ballpark. These two are 80.2 and 80.4
miles away from the Dash, respectively. With these two, you are probably not going to lose any
regular customers because of the distance, but maybe a small portion of one-time goers.
Winston-Salem, the fourth most populated city in the state, has lots of alternative
activities to spend an evening rather than spectating a baseball game. Downtown features many
nice restaurants and bars as well as the Stephens Performing Arts Center, A/perture Theatre
which shows Independent films and other lower budget films. Ziggy’s is a night club/bar
downtown that also features live music on selected nights. Also for music, Lawrence Joel
Veterans Memorial Coliseum, where Wake Forest plays their basketball games, hosts many
concerts in the summer. It can accommodate about 14,000 people for a concert. Outside of the
city center, there are lots of other various activities you can use to spend an evening. Hanes Mall
is a nearby competitor along with multiple movie theatres and a bowling alley. There is also a
Putt-Putt facility, Adevnture Landing, across from the mall. The bowling alley and movie
theatres have a leg over the Dash because they are able to offer discounted prices to college
students, children, and seniors. A little more outside of Winston features state of the art golf
courses (Tanglewood, Oak Valley, and Bermuda Run), Pilot Mountain State Park, and Salem
Lake.
All of these venues are direct or indirect competition to the Dash and they need to
find effective ways to differentiate themselves from these other locations. Even though the Dash
is newer than these venues, they are still losing their “new car smell” and need to market
themselves as a consistent place to spend an evening.
Target Markets
The main customer base for the Dash is residents of Forsyth County or other surrounding
counties such as Davidson, Davie, Yadkin, and some from western Guilford (county of
Greensboro and Greensboro Grasshoppers). The stadium tries to cater to as many different age
groups as possible by offering a variety of different things throughout the game (i.e. craft beers,
giveaways, ballerina acts between innings, wide variety of music ranging from 60s hits to
today’s hits, good food, and many others).
However, the stereotypical fan who wants to come spectate a minor league baseball game
is normally a Caucasian male, which makes up 51.2% of the city’s population and comes from
the 18-34 age range and/or the $50,000-$90,000 pay range. This is beneficial to Winston-Salem
as it has the two universities in Wake Forest and Winston-Salem State as well as seven different
public high schools in the county where current students and even high school alumni will come
if home for summer break with nothing else to do. It is unbeneficial to Winston-Salem in that
53% of the population are women. That does not mean women do not come to Dash games, it
just does not correlate with who is the average fan. As stated earlier in the paragraph, the fans are
typically ranging from 18-34, therefore they are somewhat savvy when it comes to technology.
That is why it’s smart to have trivia and other interactive games for them to play.
As stated earlier, the Dash have a positive reputation when it comes to providing a safe,
cheap, and entertaining time. Therefore, you will see a lot of families in attendance. Especially
with the amount of little league baseball in the area, there are a lot of aspiring baseball playing
children who want to come out and see talented players playing the sport.
It is apparent that fans will come out when there is something more than a baseball game
that will be offered. Fans are smart and want more bang for their buck, so you are more likely to
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have higher turnouts on nights that feature fireworks, giveaways, and other various promotional
nights such as $1 hot dogs or $2 beers.
In manipulating who the average fan of the Dash is, it gives you the chance to better
understand your target market and what promotional activities you can do to effectively market
to the local community. Throughout this plan you will see some proposed ways to do so.
Marketing Goals
1. Win a Carolina League Championship which will spread awareness to the
community and increase attendance.
2. Become the most attended team in the Carolina League by using effective
marketing strategies
3. Increase overall revenue from past years. Will be easy if we can meet Goal #2
4. Gain new sponsorships by proving to be an on the rise product
Strategies
The Dash’s attendance has gone down every year since it opened in 2010 starting with about
312,000 its first year down to approximately 289,000 last year. Last year’s average attendance
per game was 4,456. Minus being first in the Carolina League in attendance for the first year, the
Dash still have finished second in all the seceding years behind the Fredrick Keys. With the
proposed marketing tactics below, we hope we can reach the attainable goal of first in Carolina
League. These tactics are not targeted to one set of people, but will be diverse in hopes to gather
multiple types of people. Gathering this data will be extremely easy, thanks to the MiLB website
keeping tabs on all the attendance for all of the teams. These tactics below were expressed by
me in Sports Marketing Class. Some of these were done by the Dash this year
Pups In the Park
The date of this still undecided, however it will be on a weeknight in order to bolster attendance
in the nights where the ballpark is not as well-attended. The idea is to sell locals with dogs
tickets to the game and give them the opportunity to walk their dog around the perimeter of the
field before approximately an hour before the game kicks off. The pet owners and pets will be
allowed to sit on the lawn seating in left field and we will provide plenty of water for the dogs.
This can attract people that know nothing about baseball to bring their beloved dog to a game in
hopes they will enjoy their experience and tell friends and/or come back to more games.
Revamp Team App
Currently the app that the Dash have is very basic: it contains scores, roster and transactions, and
team news. What we would like to do is make an app where you can do just about anything you
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need. We would like to partner with a ticket company so you can buy tickets within the app. This
will make ticket buying much easier for people as well as thin out the crowds you my face by
waiting in line at the ticket booth in centerfield. Also, we would like to include the radio feed on
the app so fans that are not in the area or even parents of players can follow the team should they
not be around. We do not see that as reducing our ticket sales because most people will not listen
to a baseball radio broadcast. Also within the app, you can see the concessions menu as well as
order your food and have it brought to you by a server. This will reduce traffic in the concourse
and also let fans focus on all the action being brought to them. Also on the app, it will provide
you with the day’s starting pitchers and lineups as well as tell you what promotional night there
will be if there is one that evening.
Concert
Two seasons ago, we held a concert in the concourse before the game. The concert was
not very well advertised and did not have a good turnout for that reason. We would like to hold a
concert in the outfield and let fans stand in the outfield grass, homerun porch, lawn, and right
field seats. The players may not fully appreciate it, but they will still be able to do their infield
routines before the game begins per usual. Yes, they will not be able to do batting practice for
safety reasons, but batting practice is not as vital as it seems to be. Who will perform the concert
is still undecided and a fee also depends on the magnitude of which group or person performs.
We will advertise it in the paper as well as on our monitor that is exposed to passing traffic
Geofilter
In the past year, Snapchat has been the fastest growing form of social media. They have been so
successful by having daily stories from corporations like ESPN, CNN, National Geographic,
Food Network, and many others. In addition to that, Snapchat features a story from a different
city every day, internationally or domestically, and it shows the local attractions and other events
going on in the city on the selected day. What else they have implemented in the past year is
geofilters. Geofilters are specific graphics relating to the location they are in. For example, if you
were at Citi Field, and took a picture and swiped to the left a geofilter would display and say “Go
Mets!” with the Mets logo next to it. The process of obtaining a geofilter is about two weeks and
it is considered by Snapchat employees. The process and filter cost no money. The reason we see
this can be effective is because today’s younger generation are social media fiends and love to
advertise what they are doing. People who come will take pictures and post them to their feed for
friends to see. The friends will see it and more than likely see the person at the game is having an
enjoyable experience.
Zoo Day
This idea was stolen by Cubs manager, Joe Maddon – except a little different. Maddon had
various animals you would see at a zoo on the field for the players to take pictures, visit, and
cuddle with to ease their mind from the end of the season stress. What we would like to do is a
similar method, but incorporate the fans to this. About ninety minutes before the game, have the
zoo animals in the outfield and let the fans who show up early enough onto the field and be able
to visit with the zoo animals and take pictures with the animals and players. This will be an
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exciting way to attract different demographics to come see a Dash game. All that would need to
be done is for the participants sign a waiver after purchasing their ticket.
College Night
As stated above, college students, whether they are home for summer or attending summer
sessions are very prevalent in the Winston-Salem area. What should be implemented is a college
night where students can show their student ID and be granted a ticket to the outfield lawn, and
sell $2 12 ounce beers. This could be held on Wednesday nights where attendance is typically
below the ballpark’s average. Advertising this will get college students in the door by offering a
fun and inexpensive experience. Typically, these consumers will bring their friends with them as
well.
Organizational Structure
Legends, the hospitality entity of the Dash are a national company co-founded by Jerry
Jones and George Steinbrenner. They operate many stadiums around the country and will be
taking on the LA Rams and Atlanta Braves new stadiums once the construction is finished. They
are also taking on other minor league stadiums around the country, Legends is an up and coming
entity and it is great I have my foot in the door despite not completely enjoying my previous role.
Legends of Winston-Salem Dash is operated within the stadium in an office that hosts the four
managers and their cubicles. Kit Edwards is the General Manager, Melissa McCormick is the
Operations Manager, Zachary Mounce is the Concessions Manager, and Beverly Becker the
Catering Manager.
Our Legends employees work alongside the Dash. We takeover their hospitality needs for
the stadium and they handle the rest. The budget is controlled and given by the Dash. The two
sides would also meet at noon of every gameday and discuss everything that needed to be known
for the night. I was invited to sit in on a couple of those just to see what actually goes on. The
meetings are pretty informal and are just a means to make sure everyone is on the same page for
the night. My only problem with these were that sometimes the Sales Reps would promise a
customer something after the meeting has been conducted and the communication from us to
them isn’t what it could be. Many times, a couple hours before game time, we’d be told we’d be
taking on another suite. Meaning, we would have to stock their fridge, prepare the food, and
make sure everything needed was in the suite. That isn’t easy to keep track of when you are
already worried about the other day to day duties.
Legends Mission Statement – Built on a system of people, process and execution, The
Legends Way has helped to define our culture company-wide. It is woven throughout our DNA
and sets the stage to help us provide standard-setting results for our partners
I’ve only worked for one of Legends entities, but the culture is the type I like: everyone works as
a team to achieve the goals of the organization. We have had our General Manager upstairs
cooking food when our chef was out sick. Melissa, the Operations Manager is in charge of the
club level during game days, but I have seen her downstairs on busy nights because she is needed
more down there and puts her trust in myself and Urcia, our suites supervisor in handling the
upstairs duties. I imagine if I were to get on with another team Legends sponsored, it’d be the
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same way. These aren’t deliberate set-in-stone ways, but more so a basic understanding each
team member has for each other.
Personnel Practices
Staff are hired by an Open House we have in February, a couple of months before the
season’s start. The staff come to the stadium and interview at the club level (which is the area
where I work) and are interviewed by the four managers stated above. It is a pretty generic
interview and about 12-18 staff are hired by Legends as either kitchen workers, club servers, or
suite attendants. If they are selected, they will come in another day for a drug test and then will
have a background check. After that Legends has an event at a nearby convention center where
you’ll see some of the staff from the headquarters in New Jersey talking about the expectations
for the workers.
The opportunities provided by Legends are present. I consider myself a prime example; I
started as bus boy, went to club server, then to a suite attendant, after that a bartender, and now
this year I was given a leadership position as Club Supervisor. I have been told there are jobs
around the country I can apply for and have a good word put in my favor. This happened with
one of my first supervisors. He is now the Operations Manager for the Yankees AAA affiliate in
Tampa.
The main personnel policy comes from the acronym LEGENDS.
Look the Part
Everyone Works Together as a Team
Guest Service is the #1 Policy
Empathetic & Educated Employees
No Limit on Excellence
Do Your Part
Safety & Standards
We hope our workers are able to abide by these policies. More specifically, we’d expect our
employees to arrive on time, which wasn’t as common as it should have been. It got bad around
the midseason point with people coming in late so we started calling them and telling them to
just stay at home if they were late. This helped people get in on time. We also had another rule
that stated no cell phone use was allowed. If they were caught on their cellphone, they’d be
issued a write-up and three of those equals termination from the job. I issued only three write-ups
throughout the year. That is an area that I could use some improvement. Often times, I was too
lenient and too much of a friend to the employees. In return, I feel as if I did get better effort
from them out of respect to me as a fair manager.
We did not have the greatest way of performing our best employees, other than employee of
the month nominations. Employee of the Month would be introduced on the field before a game
and given a $200 gift card from the Team President. The servers and suite attendants thought the
better employees were rewarded by being given better sections, however, that was not true. We
tried to be as liberal as possible when it came to distributing sections, regardless of what anyone
else thought.
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Financial Management Summary
Economic Environment
The Dash are located in Winston-Salem, a city with a population just shy of a quarter-
million. BB&T Ballpark is located nicely in the city’s downtown with an outfield view
overlooking the city. Its nearest direct competition is the Greensboro Grasshoppers, about 40
miles away from Winston-Salem. In terms of indirect competition, the ballpark is challenged by
Hanes Mall, Old Salem, multiple recreational activities, and downtown’s restaurants, art
galleries, and bars. Being so close to downtown, however, can also help ticket sales because it is
so close and maybe people will come over to a game after having dinner downtown. There is a
shuttle bus that runs on weekend nights to take fans from downtown to the game and back.
Revenue and Expenditure Summary/Budget Process
Legends is a partnership with the Dash, so they give us a set budget every year for our
concessionary expenses. The way it works is that the team takes a percentage of our sales. Our
main expense, food, is bought strategically. We have large vendors from whom our food is
purchased. The General Manager, Kit, is responsible for tactically playing the market to see
which foods he can get for the best value. If there is a current deal on, say, chicken, we will buy
multiple pallets worth and store it in our walk-in freezer until it is all consumed. We try to feed
people as cheaply as possible without having terrible quality food so they will keep coming back.
Our other main expenses are, of course, salaries payable. There are about 100 Legends
employees working each night. Most are working for minimum wage, but the concession stand
leaders and Club Level Supervisors are making more.
Our key revenues come from ticket sales and sponsorships. The Dash are fully dependent
on Legends to take care of the food sales. However, since the Dash are paying a set fee for food,
they use tactics to minimize food costs, such as partnering with local restaurants and having them
serve their food with the opportunity to advertise their business. We do other partnerships like
promotions with various businesses to minimize food costs. Also, the majority of the season
ticket sales are packaged with all-you-can-eat food options, so the Dash do have a relative idea
of how much food they will be going through for the season. Last year the expenses on food
were around $750,000. Legends success is dependent on how many people the Dash can bring
in. If there aren’t many ticket sales, the losses reflect on the Dash’s behalf. It is an interesting
misaligned relationship these two entities have, but they both share the benefits.
Financial Accountability and Controls
The man in charge of allocating and distributing Legends budget is the CFO Kurt
Gehsmann. He is the one that I got the information for this financial section from. I was told that
all of the specifics were only to be shared between upper-level management and the City of
Winston-Salem. Therefore, I was unable to get specific information, however, I was given just
the broad gist of what goes on with Legends sector. Kurt puts the allocation in the hands of
Legends General Manager, Kit Edwards. Kit is the one in charge of ‘bargain shopping’ for our
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foods to be consumed during the games. The way the budget is allocated is from looking at years
past. Attendance is typically lower toward the beginning of the season because it is still cold and
people are still in school. During this time, there were more day games and the Dash did
promotional events to schools to bring their children on a field trip and package a ticket, hot dog,
bag of chips, and an apple for them. Once the weather warms and people are getting out of
school, the attendance typically increases. Thursday, Friday, and Saturday games are typically
the higher earning nights, because attendance is higher; with higher attendance comes more food
and labor to be prepared.
Each game, track the sales and divide it into four categories: ticket sales, alcohol, food &
beverage, and taxes. At the end of the night, we take those numbers and put them into a
spreadsheet. Typically, the Operations Manager was the one in charge of this, but she had me do
some games just to see what was going on. The spreadsheets are organized by homestands.
Homestands were typically 3,4, or 7 game increments. Those numbers would be compared to
previous years’ homestands. I was told by Kurt in our phone interview that the more years’
worth of homestands he has to track, the better it is for the forecasting of the expenses.
Most of the sales were paid for with credit card. For those sales we used the application
Square to keep track. For the cash sales, each stand would have its own bank and turn it in
nightly for someone to count and track. Another method of payment we received was Bolt
Bucks. These are prepaid tickets that people can win, purchase ahead of time, or be given as a
consolation for something. Bolt Bucks weren’t as common, but they still needed to be in a
category of their own to make nightly tracking as organized as can be.
Facilities and Areas
In regards to just the Winston-Salem Dash, Legends operates the concession stands and
club level of BB&T Ballpark. The ballpark is fairly new (2009) and has won Single A Ballpark
of the Year twice since its existence by Stadium Digest. Their headquarters is in Bloomfield,
New Jersey and they have now opened a second one in Los Angeles. Legends operates many
stadiums around the country: AT&T Stadium, Rose Bowl, Yankee Stadium, Manchester City’s
stadium, Oklahoma Sooners, Dallas Mavericks just to name a few. They will be taking on the
Rams new stadium come 2017 as well as Atlanta Braves new stadium. Legends has three
separate entities; Planning, Hospitality, and Global Sales. For some stadiums, they operate all
three sections. Others they may just operate one or maybe two sections. For all of these stadiums,
they are contracted by the stadium owners and will take over whichever sector they are hired to
work under the team’s budget.
For maintenance, I will stick with the Dash and their plans. It is hard to gauge which
teams and stadiums they will takeover in upcoming years. At BB&T Ballpark in Winston-Salem,
there are plans to install office buildings in right field in upcoming years. There is a vacant lot in
the area, so the infrastructure is already in place. Along with this, there are plans to put a luxury
hotel in left field, which will get rid of a lot of parking spaces. In doing so, they will have to put
a parking deck in the center field location.
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From a sustainability standpoint, the stadium can use a huge makeover. From Legends
perspective, we are the worst about it. We use a couple thousand plastic plates, countless
amounts of plastic cups, and many glass bottles. In my six years of being there, I have been
asked by customers multiple times about our recycling practices. I have always told them we
collect bottles in suites and we do recycle our cardboard but we could definitely use some work.
Although, it is difficult to clean plates and clean cups when you are serving 300-600 people in
such a fast-paced setting. Our dishwasher and kitchen are just not big enough to accommodate
that much glass.
Programs/Events
Legends of BB&T Ballpark, their main focus is the 70 home games the Dash have. Aside
from that, they host hundreds of catering events when the team is on the road as well as during
the offseason. The catered events have been a slew of different things; proms, weddings,
reunions, etc. Beverly, our Catering Manager is great about booking events when the stadium
isn’t being used for games. She is booked through the end of the calendar year at this point.
There is no specific target market for the catered events because it is such a broad spectrum.
Job Description
The Club Supervisor is responsible for overseeing and leading the guests and
servers of the Flow Club as well as working alongside the Suite Supervisor in assisting with any
areas that need help on gamedays for the Flow Level Club at the Winston-Salem Dash.
