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SBD/Issue 141/Sports Industrialists
What I Like... With Immersion Media President Rick Perko
Published April 9, 2009
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| Perko Says Sports Innovations Often Lead The Way |
What I like in an insight: Ideas are common; execution is rare.
An influential person in my career: My dad.
An out-of-the-box idea: Federal Express.
A timeless idea: Always say "Thank you."
A business deal: I like the acquisitive nature of STATS to raise awareness of its global footprint.
A sports facility: Allen Fieldhouse.
A sports promo: NBA Cares.
An ad: Nike's MICHAEL JORDAN ad where he says the reason he is able to succeed is because he has failed so many times.
A business decision: The launching of the Golf Channel and the commitment to stay with it.
A marketing idea: U.S. Open Tennis series.
A TV ad campaign: Alltel Wireless that pokes fun at other providers.
A print ad campaign: I like the grittiness of the Under Armour print ads.
A strategy: COLONEL CHAMBERLAIN's charge at Little Round Top from a defensive position at the Battle of Gettysburg.
A hire: DAN BEEBE as Big XII Commissioner.
A brand: Nordstrom.
A trend: Giving back with time and talents.
An innovation: Gogo Inflight Internet.
A pro league or team business initiative: The PGA Tour's real-time scoring application.
A decision-maker: ABRAHAM LINCOLN.
A story that bears watching: NCAA/NBA youth basketball initiative.
An idea I wish I had thought of: The aglet.
A fantasy job: U.S. National Parks inspector.
What I like about my job: The flexibility of picking up my kids and eating lunch with them.
Sports: The raw competition.
Sports business: The ability to combine business with a personal passion.
Sports media: Its immediacy.
Sports technology: The innovations in sports often lead the way for other industries.
Pro sports: Players like KEN GRIFFEY JR. who seem to play for the joy of the game.
College sports: The drama and unpredictability.
Competing: When you do it right, there is no losing.
The direction of sports business: The continued globalization of sports and the related expanded markets.
Sports fans: Body paint.
What I would like to change: Make airline travel pleasant again.
Change in the industry: Get more manufacturing jobs back in the U.S.
See: The Northern Lights, which I have not seen in years.
See more of: My 401(k).
See less of: People talking on cell phones when driving.
See more of in sports: JACK NICKLAUS.
See more of in sports business: In-game sponsorships and fewer advertisements.
See less of in sports: The really long basketball game shorts.
See less of in sports business: Dirty stadium restrooms.
See different: Myself.
Refresh: The Jonny Quest cartoon series from the 1970s.
Reinvent: The post-season college football system.
Reintroduce: The glowing hockey puck.
Eliminate: Thin neckties.
Continue: Big-time, intersectional college football games.
What I don't like in general: Arrogance.
Pet peeve: Not returning phone calls or e-mails.
In sports: Out-of-control parents at youth sports events.
In tennis: That NADAL is keeping FEDERER from the slam record.
About pro sports: That my favorite NBA team I grew up with is no longer in Seattle.
About college sports: The cutting of sports programs at any level for either gender.
In business: People who behave as if the financials are the only variable to consider in making deals.
In sports business: The occasional foray of the media into more salacious stories.
About the direction of sports business: In this economy, some friends and colleagues may not survive.
In media: That some newspapers are going away.
In technology: It's too easy to communicate via e-mail or text.
In sports marketing: The lazy promotions that could be better with real activation.
In sports facilities: The stale pretzels I had at the 1996 Final Four in the Meadowlands.
In sports journalism: The notion that being smart and witty somehow qualifies some writers to pontificate about what it's like to step between the lines.
About sports fans: The ones who always stand in front of me for no reason when I want to sit.
What I like in people: Genuineness.
That would surprise those who know me: That I shoot at doves twice a year. It would not surprise them that I hit nothing.
About myself: That I am persistent.
Heroes: My parents.
Players: My high school and college basketball teammates.
Teams: The Wildcats and Panthers (my daughters' soccer teams).
City: Spokane.
Possession: Volcanic Ash from Mount St. Helens that fell in our yard.
Memento: A photo of my mother.
Time of year: Fall.
Music: Imperial Teen.
Books: "One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest," "The Power Broker."
Authors: ALEX WOLFF, JOHN GRISHAM, TOM CLANCY.
Magazines: My college and high school alumni magazines.
Web sites: Google, The Onion.
Blogs: I don't read many, but I like Fattlipp.
Ideas: Making a business out of selling memorable movie scenes.
Gadgets: The Leatherman tool.
Chores: Doing the laundry.
Hobbies: Coaching youth sports, reading.
Trips: The energy of New York City.
Movies: "Rocky," "My Cousin Vinny," "We Were Soldiers."
TV: "The Office," "ER," any program that shows medical procedures.
Concerts: GEORGE CARLIN, JIMMY BUFFETT, Stomp.
Artists: PICASSO and my talented mother-in-law.
Food: PowerBars and lasagna.
Dessert: Ben & Jerry's Chocolate Fudge Brownie frozen yogurt.
Drinks: Boulevard wheat and pale ale.
Scent: Evergreen trees that remind me of where I grew up.
Vacation spot: Banff.
Cars: Anything by Honda/Acura.
Singer: DIANA KRALL.
Quote: A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step.
Miscellaneous: A good joke or story.
