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RAWLS COLLEGE OF BUSINESS – CHIEF EXECUTIVES

ROUNDTABLE
Speech By Greg Brown
11:30 AM; Thursday, October 29
Scottish Rite Facility, Lubbock Texas

Dean-Allen McInnes, thank you very much for that kind and warm introduction.

Honorable Faculty Members, Distinguished CEO’s and Business Leaders, Guests and
Friends…Thank you very much for allowing me to join and address this esteemed group
of leaders today. It’s great to be in the West Texas Capitol of Lubbock and home of the
beloved Texas Tech-Red Raiders.

Perhaps it’s coincidental that I’d be speaking to you on this Halloween week, but
perhaps not. The tradition of dressing in costume for Halloween has both European
and Celtic roots. I’ve spared you the site of me being in a costume today however. But,
thousands of years ago, The Celts celebrated their new year to mark the end of summer
and harvest and the beginning of winter, which was an uncertain and frightening time.
As these immigrants came to America, they brought their varied Halloween customs
and superstitions with them. Today's Halloween ghosts are often depicted as more
fearsome, and our customs and superstitions are scarier too. We avoid crossing paths
with black cats, afraid that they might bring us bad luck. We try not to walk under
ladders for the same reason or we try to avoid breaking mirrors, stepping on cracks in
the road or spilling salt.

And I know, similar superstitions and beliefs from sports personalities and people
connected to sports certainly aren’t anything new either.

Some…as I’m sure you’ve heard even revere pirates! I’m guessing everyone is
familiar with such preferences or practices…particularly here in West Texas! Of course
I’m only lovingly referring to Coach Leach’s affinity with Pirates of course! Haha

In all fairness to him and those other historical superstitions, my wife and kids consider
me a pretty frightening and goofy site at times too…

But I can assure you what we do as a company is in fact a real business with real
people carrying out real missions and objectives for their clients and our University
partners, whom we serve. I would add however that we are a company and collection
of people that tries hard to not take itself too seriously. We know we aren’t building
rocket ships, or performing tricky life or death type medical procedures, but we are in
fact a Sports Media and Marketing company that strives hard to serve its clients and
partners at the highest possible level as well as create and sustain an economic model
that works for the employees and owners and have fun along the way.

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Speaking of having fun, that word is even prominently featured in our company’s
mission statement. Our mission statement may be the most minimalist of any business
you’ve ever seen or heard. It’s also written to fit on a cocktail napkin. Our mission
statement is simply this: Build the Team, Grow the Company and Have Fun! That’s it,
simply- Build the Team, Grow the Company, and Have fun…And We Do Have Fun!

Before I go much further on today’s discussion, I’d like to share with you this brief video
about our company. I’m hopeful after watching this you’ll have a little better
understanding of collegiate sports marketing.

With perhaps a little better understanding of collegiate sports marketing, I’d like to
spend a few minutes with you today sharing in my words the following things:

1) A little more about who Learfield Sports is and what we do.

2) Then, I’ll give you some frame of reference for what sports-marketing is in
general and how our company fits into that bigger picture,

3) Share with you where and how Learfield Sports operates on a local and
national level.

4) Then I’d like to share a thought or two about our company’s culture and my
view on leadership and the role that many of us play as CEO’s, or leaders.

5) And, lastly I’d like to share a cautionary message with you. Specifically a
message about people whose identity is connected to such “lofty roles” and
titles as mine and many of yours…such as CEO or President, or similar
typically used professional position references.

First, Who we are?

We are Learfield Sports.

1) Learfield Sports is an operating unit of Learfield Communications.

2) Learfield Sports is primarily led and directed out of our Plano, Texas office where
I currently work along with a talented group of other senior leaders in our
company.

3) However a substantial part of our backbone, support and all the technical
broadcast service for Learfield Sports comes from the company’s original
headquarters in Jefferson City, Missouri.

4) Learfield was founded in 1972, by Clyde Lear who is still our Chairman to this
day.

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5) Clyde founded the company at the age of 27 after writing his masters’ thesis on
the subject of the development of state radio news networks.

6) At that time in 1972, there was not really any thought about being in the sports
broadcast or sports marketing business.

7) In the early days of the company the business was principally about delivering
agriculture and news radio broadcasts to radio stations throughout the heartland
of the country.

8) The company made its money by selling the advertising time within that radio
programming it delivered to the radio stations.

Along about 1975, the University of Missouri was searching for a means by which to
deliver its Football game broadcasts to radio stations throughout the state of Missouri.

1) So Clyde seized the chance to help the school where he’d earlier received his
journalism degree, by using the broadcast lines the company had in place for the
purpose of delivering the news and farm reports, and did the same for Mizzou
Football.

2) And get this; the school paid the company instead of the other way around.

3) Of course back in those days before satellite transmission was available, radio
stations received remote broadcast content exclusively over phone lines and that
distribution was very costly.

4) But, since Learfield already had those lines in place for its agriculture and news
radio networks there was no incremental cost to the company.

5) So, instead of paying schools a big rights fee (as we do now), the school was
paying the company.

6) Oh, those were the days. It’s hard to even imagine now.

The University of Missouri soon got tired of paying the freight for these radio distribution
fees, so Clyde approached the Athletic Director at Missouri, and asked him if he’d
consider letting Learfield take some of the commercial advertising time to sell rather
than pay Learfield a broadcast distribution fee. The Athletic Director jumped all over the
chance to rid the school of the costly radio distribution expense and said “yes”. And the
company had quietly and almost unintentionally, launched itself into the sports media
sales business. Clyde was and is a classic entrepreneur; always considering
opportunities that may lie beneath the surface and not be so obvious to others…and
was willing to take a chance!
At the time, it wasn’t a classic outsource model for the Athletic Media Rights as we
know and have today, but it was a toe in the water in outsourcing, for what would
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become a substantial business and significant industry a couple decades later. There
were certainly all kinds of major steps and evolutions for the company and the sports
marketing and media business at large along the way as we evolved and the sports
marketing business grew, but now if you don’t mind, let me jump ahead to 2009 and
what the business and the sports marketing industry looks like today.

The sports marketing industry; as it is widely referenced, is a multi-billion dollar industry.

There are all kinds of descriptions out there for what sports marketing is:

1) But largely sports marketing is the means by which sports teams, programs,
media companies and the like connect brands and products with people or
audiences.

2) Essentially, what this means, is that companies use “sports experiences” if you
will, to connect with fans who are their customers or potential customers.

3) The means (or those “experiences”) by which the people connect with the teams
are widely varied.

4) It could be by purchasing a ticket and attending the events, buying a team’s

merchandise or products at the stadiums and arenas, following the team over the
internet or twitter, or chat rooms or web sites, or following the teams on TV or
radio.

5) Frankly there are a myriad of different ways that the connections or experiences
can be made between fans and their favorite teams and those products.

6) The “marketing”… if you will, comes in when the team or entity tries to connect
their brand to the populous in some fashion and then monetizes that relationship.

7) Money has to exchange hands along the way for it to be a business. Otherwise
it’s all fun and games…right?

So, you might ask, “how does Learfield Sports fit into that framework or definition today
and how does that translate at a local level”?

Our company today operates by purchasing what we call multi-media rights from major
college athletic programs around America. The multi-media rights definition continues
to evolve, but it’s basically this: These major Universities play athletic contests and tons
of people care…deeply….even if they don’t attend the games. So Learfield Sports pays
the schools a rights fee for all the sponsorship, advertising and media rights that the

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school controls and creates sponsorships that are sold to companies who want to reach
a particular team’s loyal following.

They might use stadium presence, game programs ads, radio or TV commercials, an
internet promotion, or some combination of things to connect with this loyal fan base.

To take that description a step further and bring it down to a local level, let’s consider
what we do here at Texas Tech; we produce and distribute the radio broadcasts of the
games for the Athletic Program and send them via satellite to stations around the state
of Texas. Locally you listen to the Red Raiders on Raymar’s station, 104.3 KTTU, and
that is the content that we create.

We also print the game programs, handle the coaches’ radio and TV shows, sell all the
signage in and around the stadium, arenas and sports venues, as well as handle
corporate hospitality, manage the sponsorship sales of the athletic web site, create
promotions for clients on the court and on the field of play and the like.

Virtually everything that carries a corporate brand that connects to Texas Tech
Athletics, we are responsible for handling, producing, creating and selling. Now
certainly the way that fans connect with their favorite teams and brands is constantly
changing with the evolution of technology and we’re evolving as well in the ways we
help sponsors reach those fans, but that’s a topic for a different day.

To be clear, we are not in the business of raising money or gifts (that’s the job of the
development office). We are also not in the business of selling tickets though, many of
our sponsor packages that we sell contain tickets since most sponsors want to attend
the games and entertain their clients and friends or families.

However we are in the business of delivering value to our sponsors and advertisers by
connecting them to their customers within the context of the college sports experience
using the assets and inventory we obtain through our rights agreements. Said
differently, our business exists in large measure by our ability to sell our customers
products for them and raise brand awareness for them by using the tools or assets at
our disposal that are granted to us through the rights agreements. We want to help
Dodge sell trucks, and State Farm sell insurance, and McDonald’s sell hamburgers…
the mechanisms we use to do that are the assets, inventory and experiences we
purchase from our university partners. And, we do this for nearly 50 schools around the
country, including of course Texas Tech.

Now, how we actually perform or execute most of what I’ve described, is by creating
what I characterize as an imbedded property management and sales staff…or team of
people to manage those activities and rights locally on a daily basis. I say imbedded
because our staffs are very much a part of the athletic department staff even though
they are paid by Learfield and are technically our employees. Many times our property

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staffs are actually physically housed inside the athletic department offices. Our staffs
have to stay in constant contact with the athletic department on a variety of issues
because the functions we are performing really impacts how people view and
experience the school’s brand. And we need the relationship with the Athletic
Department to be solid in order to execute what we sell. These property staff folks are
hired, trained and compensated by our company to perform the functions I’ve described.
They do get substantial support and guidance from our corporate offices, but the
property staff is the local face for our company.

Speaking of the local faces; our local business is called Red Raiders Sports Properties.
Let me take this opportunity to introduce to you our Red Raiders Sports Properties staff
members that are in attendance today. Would you all stand as I introduce you? They
are Tyler Norman who is an sales account executive here in Lubbock, Earle Fisher a
major-market account executive for Tech who works out of our Dallas office, but has
joined us here today, former and longtime athletic department employee and current
Associate General Manager of the business Rick Leach, and our General Manager for
the property, David Hubbard. David is a 10 year Learfield veteran and a great friend of
mine. We’ve worked together a long time and he’s one of the real stars in our company.

Further we have several talented young student interns who help support what we do at
Tech. They are all great members of the Texas Tech and Lubbock community and I
hope you will introduce yourself and get to know them.

Lastly you might be wondering…what do the schools get from us and more specifically
in the local case, what does Texas Tech get?

They get a nice big fat check from our company for the rights that we’ve purchased and
I’ve described. Generally those checks are in the millions of dollars a year for major
programs like Texas Tech. Those rights fees often can represent 10-15% of the overall
athletic department’s budget. So you can well imagine each of the university
relationships is significantly important for both the schools and for our company.

Now, I refer to it as “purchasing” these rights, but we are essentially leasing the rights
for a defined period of time. Tech trusts us with these rights and we take that trust very
seriously. When we go into the market, our goal is balanced by the desire to create
revenue and trust. We want high revenues for the Tech partnership balanced with trust
of doing the right thing for our sponsors and protecting the good name of the University
and our company. You see we never really own the rights so much, we are just granted
the access to them and have the right to go monetize them in ways that we can create.
We are like proprietors or care-takers of a specific segment of the University’s brand.
The time-frame for these rights contracts is usually 7-15 years, but they often get
extended along the way.

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In addition, as I mentioned we are producing all that content, so it takes the school off
the hook for paying for that to be done. The things like the radio production and talent
expenses, the TV show production and the cost of printing of programs as well as all the
training and head-count costs for staffing get shifted to our company. And, regardless
of the economy and what we sell, the school still gets their rights fee check from us.

These multi-media rights deals are a huge benefit to the schools because not only do
they get the security of the guarantee money and can shift some costs out of the
department, but they can also go focus on what they do best, provide the student
athletes the opportunity to perform at the highest level and be their best on and off the
field of play.

As I mentioned we do this very thing at about 50 schools around the country in over 60
offices with about 350 people. Places like The University of North Carolina, The
University of Alabama, Indiana University, Wisconsin, Stanford, Penn State, The
University of Oklahoma…to name a few. No program any more important or fun to
follow of course than our beloved Texas Tech Red Raiders.

Make sense?

Now that I’ve shared a little about our company, the sports marketing industry in
general, and the service we perform as it relates to Tech;

I’d like to share with you a little bit about the culture of our company and the principles
we try and reflect. As well I’d like to share with you few leadership thoughts and some
of what I think is important for you to consider as leaders of your companies, your
industry, your community, your classes or departments.

Our culture is one we are very proud of at Learfield. It’s a culture that some think is
unique and has been fostered over these nearly 4 decades in our business as a way to
demonstrate an ongoing care and compassion for the people with whom we work, &
serve and the clients & partners we serve. Remember our mission statement; Build the
Team, Grow the Company, Have Fun?

For today I’m going to take just one piece of that statement “Build the Team” and
expand on it by telling you what it means to me in terms of the obligation we have to our
employees and our clients in order to carry out that portion of our mission. I’m hopeful
by sharing these thoughts; you might find in them some application for your daily
journey!

Building the team requires most importantly…as Jim Collins wrote in his book…Good to
Great…that first and foremost you get the very best people on the bus or on the team.
That is to say, hire and recruit the best and the brightest. In our case that means we
need to get the very best people into the company at every level of the operation, locally
and nationally.
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And when I say “best” people I’m not only referring to the people’s skill level, but the
ones with the highest integrity and character as well.

In coaching or athletic jargon, it’s like getting the best athletes on the team, and then
building your offense or schemes around those athletes to take best advantage of their
gifts. It doesn’t mean you change the game you are playing, but it does in fact mean
that you have to pursue the best people first and foremost, then do everything you can
to understand your people and their ”gifting” or skill set so you can put them in the best
place to use those gifts in order…to excel!!!

Why is that?

What happens when people excel?

1) When people excel…they work with enthusiasm

2) When people excel…they have an interest in sharpening their skills

3) People who excel…keep their word

4) People who excel…tend to maintain a positive attitude towards their co-workers,

clients and families

5) People who excel…do more than is expected

6) And, people who excel…will more likely demonstrate a caring and serving spirit
and have empathy for those around them, because they know and understand
that the people in the organization and the organization’s success are
interdependent

So, when I think about “Building the Team” as our mission statement indicates, I think
about getting the best people on the “Learfield Sports Bus” and then playing to their
“gifts” so They and We can excel.

The Broadway lyricist Oscar Hammerstein once told the story of seeing the top of the
Statue of Liberty from a helicopter. He was extraordinarily impressed because of the
incredibly meticulous detail the artist had sculpted on an area that no one was expected
to see. In fact, think about it…

1) The Statue of Liberty was completed at a time in our world’s history when there
was no idea that any man would ever be able to fly over the statue.

2) Imagine that…the detail existed not because it would be seen, but because
someone or several people excelled greatly at what they did!

3) People that excel don’t cut corners, even when nobody is looking or nobody will
notice!
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4) So my encouragement to you as leaders is get the best people on the bus, then
find ways to best use their gifts and play to their strengths so they will excel…
even when nobody is looking.

Make sense?

In a real world example of this; just 4 weeks ago we went through a substantial
reorganization at the top of our company. Not because we had to, but we chose to and
frankly needed to. We are not a public company so we can basically do whatever the
small group of owners choose to do and don’t have to deal with the pressure of being a
public company and making short terms decisions to satisfy Wall Street or a multitude of
shareholders. So this was our choice exclusively.

Our chairman and CEO, at his own choosing elected to step down as CEO. He’s only
65, in great health, and could have easily stayed in his role as CEO for perhaps another
decade. So why would he give up daily control of the very company he founded?

Why?

Because he wanted to make sure he had the most energy and focus in each position
and his contribution could be better given as chairman of the board. But, he had the
confidence that along the way, he’d gotten the “best” people on the bus, so he didn’t
worry about playing a little musical chairs with his top team of lieutenants.

That move takes tremendous courage and faith, but if you believe in what you’ve built
and who you’ve recruited and mentored along the way, you can move in ways that for
much of the world may look a unconventional. And candidly, we’ve never been afraid of
being a little unconventional at Learfield. I like that about our culture.

Why do you suppose then that many CEO’s, or civic and business leaders who see the
opportunity to strengthen their companies or organizations by stepping aside, elect not
to do so? I’d offer these two principal reasons: Because either

1.) They lack the confidence to give up control in part because they haven’t built
a strong enough organization and gotten the best people on the bus

Or

2.) Many CEO’s or business leaders have their identity too wrapped up in the
title and role they play and simply can’t give it up irrespective of whether it
would be the best thing for the business or organization.

I’ve already addressed the first reason and the advantages of having the right people on
the bus, so let me take a moment now and talk about the second point and provide a
cautionary message to some of you as CEO’s: That point and related question is this...

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How is our human perspective tied up in our concept of identity in particular in our
careers?

You might be asking “what the heck does that mean”? Let me explain using a story that
I think helps.

I recently read some writings from a friend named Rich McClure and thought he
summed up very well a message about this idea of our identities being wrapped up in
how the world sees us. I’d like to share his writings for you today.

Rich is the President of a major company called UniGroup. UniGroup is a several billion
dollar holding company that owns Mayflower Moving and United Moving, two of the
largest moving companies in the world.

I’m taking some liberties with what he wrote and I have applied it to me. It’s essentially
this:

I am the son of Henry and Roberta Brown

I am the husband to my wife Geri

And I am the father of my children Gavin and Gabriella.

Those are family identities that I greatly cherish. You often see in the Bible, men and
women frequently identified through a listing of their ancestors don’t you?

And, now I’m also identified by my current role as CEO of Learfield. The danger in
some identities, particularly mine as a business leader, is that I can become, or perhaps
in a larger sense we all can become defined by our titles at work. When I became CEO,
I got all kinds of calls, letters and personal well wishes. People now go out of their way
to make sure I see them and they see me. They laugh more at my less than funny
jokes and my decisions are now treated and honored with acclaim. However, what’s
wrong with that?

What’s wrong is that there is nothing about me that has really changed. Oh sure I’m
working hard on some new tasks and goals, and really digging in to be the best CEO I
can be for our company. But, I have the same flaws I had before the title was given to
me.

Business leaders like me as well as civic, administrative and faculty leaders live in an
environment where deference is often too prevalent. And, if we are not careful, the
impact on our identity inflates our egos and ties our self image even more to the titles
we hold temporarily.

If my identity becomes defined by my title as CEO, when that title goes away, my
identity goes with it. You see the danger don’t you? And, for many of us that issue can
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be a human train wreck waiting to happen if it’s not addressed and wrestled to the
ground.

I hope you’ll allow me to incorporate a brief biblical reference, but it has meaning to me.
Rich McClure also used this in his writings. Perhaps it will also have meaning and value
to many of you as well. In the Bible Paul admonished us…”if anyone thinks he is
something when he is nothing, he deceives himself; do nothing out of selfish ambition or
vain conceit, but in humility consider others better than yourselves.” The message while
nearly 2000 years old, is still to this day great advice and warning to all of us as
leaders…don’t you think?

Titles fade away, don’t they….and at the end of it all, we are who we are! So that
singular focus of “self” is a dangerous thing.

Now a few final thoughts about this wonderful institution: The Rawls College of
Business I think strives for some of these very same principles that I’ve discussed with
you today.

While worded differently than my comments, the school expresses plainly in its
statement of vision; “that every student admitted will graduate and start a career, every
employer will hire valued employees who develop into leaders and every faculty
member will teach and publish with distinction”. That to me sounds like a school that
desires to get the “best people on the bus” doesn’t it to you?

And to me it sounds like a school that employs great leaders that are willing to serve
others and consider others better than themselves?

Further, this school displays and embraces proudly a creedo with the words:-“From
here, it’s possible”…An institution that publicly states such a bold mission must I believe
have a vision and desire to serve its public with humility and honor and great boldness.

The great baseball legend Jackie Robinson once said “a life is not important except for
the impact it has on other people’s lives”.

Clearly…now more than ever in these tumultuous economic times and in a time with
such great uncertainty, this school and you as university community, civic and business
leaders have the greatest opportunity of your lifetimes to “greatly impact other people’s
lives”.

In closing, I’d like to share with you a few often used and heard words from one of, if not
the greatest coach of all time…the great John Wooden. When John Wooden was 12
years old and graduated from elementary school, his father Joshua gave him a seven-
point creed written on a 3 by 5 note card. The creed shaped his life.

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He still carries a copy of the creed in his wallet to this day. And so do I. I love what it
says and it’s simply this

1) Be true to yourself

2) Make each day your masterpiece

3) Help others

4) Drink deeply from good books, including the Good Book

5) Make friendship a fine art

6) Build a shelter against a rainy day

7) Pray for guidance and give thanks for your blessings every day

When John Wooden was inducted into the National Collegiate Basketball Hall of Fame,
he ended his acceptance speech with no note cards like I have used today, but recited
a favorite poem of his entitled “God’s Hall of Fame”.

And, as leaders of business, education and industry, I think it serves as a great

reminder to help us stay grounded.

It goes like this:

The crowd on Earth, they soon forget, the heroes of the past.

They cheer like mad, until you fall and that’s how long you last.

But God, He never does forget, and in his Hall of Fame, inscribed up there beyond the
stars, engraved you’ll find your name.

I tell you friends I wouldn’t trade, my name however small- inscribed up there beyond
the stars in the celestial hall.

For any famous name on earth or glory that they share-I’d rather be an unkown here
and have my name up there.

Thank you again for allowing me to address you today. It’s been a great pleasure. May
God Bless each of you in your respective callings!

Guns Up!!!!!

Can I answer any questions for you at this time?

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