Russ Yurk's Overview

Current Director of Events at USA Football Past Assistant Director of Championships at NCAA Assistant Director of Brand Strategies and Events at NCAA Independent contractor at Independent contractor in the field of event management
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Education Robert Morris University University of Michigan-Flint Connections 500+ connections Websites Company Website

Russ Yurk's Summary

MBA graduate with 18 years of progressively responsible involvement in the sports management industry on the international, national, state and local levels. Creative problem-solver with experience developing, planning, managing and operating project components including competition management, logistics, facilities, broadcasting, transportation, accreditation, finance, food and beverage, marketing, media, security.

Russ Yurk's Experience

Director of Events
USA Football
Nonprofit; 51-200 employees; Sports industry

June 2012 Present (1 year 11 months) Indianapolis, Indiana Area

Assistant Director of Championships

NCAA
Nonprofit; 501-1000 employees; Higher Education industry

August 2006 June 2012 (5 years 11 months) Indianapolis, Indiana Area

Serve as liaison to four annual championship sport committees, coaches associations, national governing bodies, and game officials organizations providing guidance and support in policy development. Provide leadership in identifying and monitoring issues, attending and facilitating meetings, developing agendas and follow-up actions, and administering disciplinary actions at championship events. Serve as an integral member of the Tournament Operations Group leadership team. Effectively manage all facets of four championships annually, including: - Selecting/bracketing teams/individuals, preliminary and final-round competition sites, and officials; - Providing oversight of game management, media, ticketing, housing, transportation and security; - Coordinating media presence including broadcast partners, print and internet media; - Supervising relationship with merchandise provider to maximize on-site sales; - Supervising relationship with all equipment suppliers; and - Administering annual budgets totaling $4.7 million. Provide leadership in implementation of Critical Incident Response Plan to prepare and train NCAA Championship staff for crisis management; developed and executed training exercises to educate staff. Lead hiring team in development of job descriptions, identification of suitable candidates and interview process. Serve as a mentor in NCAA peer mentoring program geared toward staff an d leadership development. Have served as championship manager for the following sports: - Division I Womens Ice Hockey - Division I Mens Volleyball

- Division I Mens Gymnastics - Division II Baseball - Division II Womens Soccer - Division II Mens Soccer - Division III Mens Tennis

Assistant Director of Brand Strategies and Events

NCAA
Nonprofit; 501-1000 employees; Higher Education industry

August 2004 August 2006 (2 years 1 month) Indianapolis, Indiana Area

Managed annual NCAA Convention and Women of the Year award program; developed and managed supporting events at NCAA Championships. Mens Frozen Four Skills Challenge. - Created and executed event showcasing male and female hockey student-athletes in skills challenge format. - Managed first two events including event development, broadcast coordination for live coverage on ESPNU; onice technology coordination and student-athlete preparation. - Womens Gymnastics Championship and Womens College World Series. - Coordinated all events including opening ceremonies and promotional activities. - Supervised components including attendance-builders fan interactive promotions and sponsor fulfillment. - Administered combined annual budget of $225,000. Hoop City Womens Final Four. - Managed all components of event including site layout, vendor presence, venue set-up and quality control. NCAA Convention. - Planned and managed overall event for 2,000 + delegates. - Administered annual budget of over $800,000. - Supervised set-up and layout of all meetings, hotel room blocks in multiple properties, food and beverage, trade show and post-event billing. Increased efficiencies in billing reconciliation process.

Independent contractor
Independent contractor in the field of event management
2002 2004 (2 years) Indianapolis, Indiana Area

Provided superior event management and execution to variety of organizing committees, professional sport leagues and service contractors in numerous capacities. Highlights include: - 2004 NHL Entry Draft, Raleigh, NC - 2004 NBA All-Star Weekend, Los Angeles - 2004 NHL Stanley Cup Finals, Tampa, FL - 2003 FIFA Womens World Cup, Boston/Foxborough, MA - 2002 ESPN X-Games VIII, Philadelphia - 2002 FIFA World Cup Korea/Japan, Saitama, Japan

Regional Logistics Manager

Salt Lake Olympic Organizing Committee, 2002 Winter Olympics
September 2000 May 2002 (1 year 9 months) Greater Salt Lake City Area

Responsible for all event logistics at one of five Olympic venue regions. Supported 24 Olympic skiing, snowboarding and sliding sports in the Park City region. Coordinated presence of sport, media, vendors, information technology, medical, security (U.S. Secret Service, Department of Defense, state and local law enforcement) Recruited, hired and managed staff of 45. Administered $1.2 million dollar budget.

Director of Operations
Gerogia State Games
February 1998 August 2000 (2 years 7 months) Greater Atlanta Area

Responsible for all operations components for this 55-sport annual Olympic-style event. Conducted site surveys and negotiated contracts with 60 + venue authorities (private and public parks, colleges and universities, high schools, etc.). Developed and executed operations plans in conjunction with sport committees for logistics, medical, communications, information technology, security, etc. Served as liaison to 55 sport committees to ensure all aspects of competition were in order, including equipment, officials, courses, budgets, promotions, etc.

Venue Logisitcs Manager - Inaugural Beach Volleyball Competition

Atlanta Committee for the Olympic Games
Nonprofit; 201-500 employees; Sports industry

August 1995 November 1996 (1 year 4 months)

Managed all event logistics operations for beach volleyball venue, including asset management, venue purchasing ($350,000 budget), distribution of materials and equipment, and asset recovery. Assisted with oversight of construction and installation of championship and practice courts. Recruited, hired and supervised staff of 14. Other events supported include 1996 Paralympic Games and 1995 Pre -Olympic test events.