Martin, M., Week 3

Hello again,

I am once excited again to reflect on all the amazing things we did as a class this past week. Every week is another enticing learning experience, but this past week was most definitely my favorite so far, and I think it will be hard to top it moving forward. We started off the week with a Celebrate Your Knowledge Day and two book club presentations that were very well done. On Tuesday we were able to go to Tipping Point Communications in Rochester and then the KeyBank Center in Buffalo. At Tipping Point, we were greeted by their wonderful team of people and one of their owners and executives gave us an impressive presentation on what it takes to start and maintain a successful marketing firm. I was very impressed with how the owner put such a huge emphasis on the firm's core foundation of values and ethics. Every person in Tipping Point was personable and seemed like they loved what they do and that was very impressive to see.

Being a hockey player, our trip to the KeyBank Center was extremely special for me because we were able to meet with Buffalo Sabres executives and operation managers. It was a surreal experience for me seeing every aspect of an NHL rink as I just stepped away from the game of hockey for good, and so it was a wide range of emotions that I was trying to control. It was a trip that I will never forget. The Sabres personnel were extremely generous with their time and information that they provided us. Every aspect of what the marketing director and manager do on an every day basis is very similar to what I want to end up doing for a living when I move out to California. 

We ended our week with a trip to Watkins Glen International, and this trip was by far a close second to the KeyBank Center. The people there were extraordinary. They have all the amenities to show off and impress people, but it is the personnel there that make the race track what it is. The Watkins Glen team was enriched with work ethic, likability, and passion. These are qualities that I try to live by each day and I saw that in their team and I kept thinking to myself how much I would like to work in an environment like that. Their presentation was very impressive, showing data and all their ideology behind how they market the race track.

Looking forward to another exciting week!

Best,

Michael