After graduating from GIS' MSc Football Communications & Digital Marketing programme, Thomas Mallams secured his dream role as a Sponsorship Executive for Papa Johns, working within football and sport.
Here, he shares precisely how his Master's ensured he landed the role and why he's so passionate about what he does...
Tell us about your role as Sponsorship Executive at Papa Johns and what you get up to on a daily basis.
As a Sponsorship Executive at Papa Johns I look after the marketing of the sports partnerships both within Rugby and Football. The partners I directly work with are: England Rugby, Scotland Rugby, Wales Rugby, Leicester Tigers, SPFL, Leyton Orient FC and MK Dons FC. My day-to-day varies a lot but generally I; create and organise engaging marketing campaigns to engage rugby and football fans across the UK, work with the social media team to produce engaging sports content and work alongside our local stores to optimise our partnerships on a local level.
What have been some of the highlights of the role so far?
A key highlight in the role was organising the launch campaign and eventual launch shoot for the Papa Johns x England Rugby partnership in mid-August. Having only been in the role for less than a month, there were a few hiccups along the way however, the proudest moment was seeing the positive sentiment and range of media coverage from across the UK press.
What have you taken into the role from your MSc Football Communications & Digital Marketing programme?
I think the question would be what haven’t I taken into my role? Having constructed documents such as: PR analysis report, marketing strategy presentation and fan engagement analysis (with all the bits in between), I have directly created similar documents on a professional level to be presented internally and externally. To pick some core examples, we work to produce social media assets which specifically target rugby and football fans in order to drive brand awareness, brand affiliation and brand preference.
How important do you think your Master’s degree was in securing your current role at Papa Johns?
Having an extensive knowledge of sports communications and marketing it definitely helped in having a specific perspective to my role at Papa Johns. Working directly with large sporting organisations, I attained the knowledge in how these sporting organisations operate and could provide an in depth knowledge on how we at Papa Johns can work in sync with their plans to achieve our partnership goals.
What was your favourite module within your course and why?
My favourite was Multimedia Football Journalism. The module provided in depth knowledge of the basics of many aspects of football journalism which set the stage for a high level of freedom in choosing topics what to produce feature length articles and podcasts about for the assessments. There was a lot of support from the lecturers in finding an interesting and new angle on your chosen topic as well as assisting in how to present the pieces online in an engaging fashion.
How did you find being a student in London?
For myself, I commuted into Wembley once a week for a day of in person lectures and seminars. However, this did not stop me from visiting London on a regular basis with my trainline being direct into the capital.
What inspired you to pursue a Master’s in sport?
I have always loved sport as I am sure all students at UCFB share the same feeling. I believe it was a natural progression into the industry to grow a specific set of skills which will set one above the competition when attempting to grab a role in such a competitive industry.
What advice would you give to anyone thinking of studying at GIS?
Take every opportunity there is available. Volunteer and network with professional organisations, ask for advice from industry leaders and do not be afraid to fail.
