Tech Exposure & Access through Mentoring (TEAM)

Round
Fall-Winter 2020
Project Type
Fast track
Project Focus
Business Plans,
Marketing & Communications
Organization Type
Education

Organization

Founded in 2016, TEAM’s mission is to create a racially diverse technology workforce by engaging young learners with STEM subjects, connecting youth with sports technology, and creating social change by providing access, opportunity, and mentorship for underserved youth in the sports tech industry. Combining STEM education and sports technology, TEAM introduces students to coding and design, data collection and video analytics with hands-on training, successfully building a pipeline for underrepresented youth in the sports industry and beyond. Since 2017, TEAM has served 67 students through its Core Program and 80% have earned industry certifications in the SportsCode platform. TEAM has placed 30 students with 12 NBA teams through its NBA Summer League Internship Program.

Situation

COVID-19 has indefinitely suspended TEAM’s in person Core Program and internship program with the NBA summer league. In April 2020, TEAM launched an Online Boot Camp, and has since served 237 students. It has also quickly pivoted to an Online Core Program to serve students remotely which offers TEAM the opportunity to expand its reach in the Bay Area, nationally and internationally. Career opportunities are broad in scope, market (professional, college, high school) and geography (US, Europe, Australia). TEAM is looking to grow national and international programs in partnership with the NBA, MLB, NFL and MLS, all of whom have reached out to TEAM in recognition of the need for racial equity.

Project Objectives

The ACT team helped develop a targeted pitch and engagement template for partnerships with the NBA (and to be used with other professional leagues in the future).

Project Overview

The project consisted of two phases.  During the first phase, the ACT team conducted their due diligence, developing an understanding of TEAM’s organization, programs and customers.  This effort included interviewing various partners from NBA teams to community organizations to better understand their needs, challenges and how they worked with TEAM in the past.  During the second phase, the ACT team developed a positioning platform and a pitch process, which included templates and examples.

Key Recommendations

The ACT team delivered a pitch process that included 4 key documents:

  • Positioning Platform: internal guide used in the creation of all marketing material (defined brand promise and target audience, and substantiatedTarget Partner
  • Template: internal guide to help steer what is pitched, in addition to how TEAM is positioned and what strengths are emphasize
  • Target Partner Pitch: brief and to the point, with enough detail so it is clear how TEAM is unique and how the opportunity is intruiging
  • Engagement Template: details all components of the partnership for clarity and to ensure all parties are aligned