What is your role here at Flinders?
I am an Associate Professor in Sports Management in the Flinders Business School. My role involves research, industry engagement and teaching across the sport business discipline. I work closely with industry, government and community organisations on projects relating to sport innovation, marketing, governance and strategy, while also helping develop the future direction and growth of sport management at Flinders.
What initially drew you to studying sports management?
Sport has always been an important part of my life. I grew up watching Magic Johnson’s VCR on repeat every afternoon and wanted to play basketball for Australia. It became clear pretty early on that my future was going to be off the court rather than on it!
From an early age I saw sport as a place of connection and belonging. As I got older, I became increasingly aware of not only the value of sport but also the challenges and inequities that exist within the industry. I’m passionate about equity and inclusion, and sport really does represent both extremes. That tension is what drove me towards studying sport and what continues to drive my work today.
Tell us a bit about how your work intersects with the current issues facing the sports industry.
A lot of my work focuses on major challenges and opportunities facing the industry, including diversity and inclusion, ethical governance and organisational leadership. Sport continues to grapple with significant governance and power issues, and increasingly we are seeing the impacts of climate change on sport globally. At the same time, Australian sport continues to face issues relating to racism, homophobia and access to safe and inclusive environments. My work explores how sport organisations respond to these social and organisational challenges, including looking for opportunities for sport to create positive social impact.
What has been your career highlight to date?
A couple of years ago I attended the United Nations’ Summit on Sport and Human Rights in Switzerland. I met some amazing, inspiring people and it was really powerful to be part of global conversations on inclusion and ethical leadership. It reinforced to me the important role sport can play in society, and also where we as an industry must do better.
What do you enjoy about working at Flinders?
I’m still pretty fresh, started about 8 weeks ago but I am loving it here! I really enjoy the strong focus on positive social impact and making a meaningful contribution to society. I’m passionate about the role education can play in creating opportunity and driving change, so I strongly align with the university’s values and vision.
Tell us about your ideal weekend.
My ideal weekend would involve good coffee, hanging out with family and friends, and watching some form of sport (usually way too many hours of this!). Being new to Adelaide, I am enjoying exploring the food and wine scene and love getting lost at the Adelaide Central Markets. Or leave me in the Barossa and I will be incredibly happy all weekend! 😊