Competitor Group Stops By

By Rebecca Cathcart (SMBA '11)

Today was a fun day in Professor DeNoble's Entrepreneurship class, as we welcomed Scott Dickey, Dana Allen, and Ben Corbett of the Competitor Group. Scott Dickey, the President of CGI, gave us a truly insightful lesson on corporate entrepreneurship as it is applied to the rapidly growing sports company. Dana Allen and Ben Corbett joined us as they represent the business development department at Competitor.

The Competitor Group provides a great platform for the discussion of corporate entrepreneurship, due to its unique composition. CGI was formed in 2008 when the Falconhead Capital, LLC acquired several smaller companies, with the goal of becoming the premier media and event company in the endurance sports industry. Competitor is best known for the Rock 'n' Roll Marathon Series and Competitor Magazine, but they hold several other media and event properties as well.

It was really interesting to hear about some of the challenges faced while trying to unify the many pieces under one roof. As someone who has spent a fair amount of time working at Competitor, even as an intern, I can now appreciate the effectiveness of the consolidation process.

Several of us will have the opportunity to perform some research and present a case study to the Competitor Group's business development department, and will hopefully help them gain some insight into new corporate entrepreneurial opportunities.