Story by Dylan Kristy
When Trevor Georgie found himself in Ontario last month and in temporary possession of the Canadian Hockey League’s ultimate prize, the Memorial Cup, he knew exactly who to share it with, even if it meant a long drive down the 401.
Georgie, President and General Manager of the Saint John Sea Dogs (and UWindsor alum, MBA 2011 from the Odette School of Business) brought the historic trophy to the APEX MBA students who are currently paired with his Quebec Major Junior Hockey League team.
The students have completed the first phase of a season ticket marketing study in partnership with the franchise.
APEX is an exclusive and integrated offering to the Odette MBA, allowing students the opportunity to develop skills and acquire experience. The MBA student teams are paired with corporate partners to consult on challenges the partner is experiencing, providing students exposure to new industries, corporate contacts, and experiential learning. It is real work on real projects for real clients.
“This is the third team of students I’ve worked with since I’ve been with the Sea Dogs. I try to make it a priority to work with and hire Odette grads. Having gone through the program, I know the rigour, so it’s an easy sell for me.”
The Odette MBA APEX program provides the corporate partner with the invaluable resources of an MBA team dedicated to their business needs. Corporate partners are consistently engaged with their student teams and they assess, evaluate, and provide feedback on each student’s leadership talent, execution skills and other core competencies.
“Being alumni, I think it’s very important to be an ambassador of your program,” remarked Georgie. “I can remember the very day Richard Peddie came in to talk about his experience with Maple Leaf Sports. I decided that was my dream job, to run a sports franchise.”
Georgie joined the Sea Dogs in 2016.
The team claimed the 102nd Memorial Cup championship this past June while hosting the event in Saint John, N.B. by defeating the Hamilton Bulldogs 6-3. It’s the Sea Dogs’ second Memorial Cup, having also won the title in 2011.
APEX corporate partners can participate in classroom discussions, observe the students in action, and identify Odette MBA student talent for their organizations.
For Georgie, the opportunity to claim the trophy has been not only a source of pride, but reflection.
“Ten years later, to be able to come back having won our ultimate goal, the Memorial Cup, and to bring it here and see students take photos with it, it’s very special,” said Georgie.
“Maybe this will spur someone sitting in this class to return and share their success and their motivation with the next group.”
