The History of the MIT Sloan Sports Analytics Conference
From February 23-24, one of the biggest events in the sports industry and analytics returns for its 12th annual iteration when the MIT Sloan Sports Analytics Conference comes to the Boston Convention and Exhibition Center.
This year, the conference promises to continue to break attendance records, as former President (and everyone’s favorite pickup hoops opponent) Barack Obama is among the scheduled speakers. Joining him will be luminaries of the sports industry such as Maverick Carter and Rob Manfred, and famed egghead and numbers-cruncher Nate Silver will also be along for the ride.
The conference is so large and popular, it is difficult to remember that what Fast Company has ranked as the 3rd Most Innovative Sports Company began as a humble, small-potatoes conference that took place in classrooms on the MIT campus. Let’s look back at the history of the SSAC as its number of attendees grew by more than two thousand percent, and it became a force to be reckoned in an industry given a projected value of $73.5 billion by Forbes.
The MIT Sloan Sports Analytics Conference Early Years
From our January announcement about this year’s event, Matthew Korman writes:
Co-founded by MIT Sloan School of Management MBA graduate Daryl Morey, the current general manager of the Houston Rockets, and Kraft Analytics Group CEO Jessica Gelman in 2006, the annual conference has transformed into one of the most formative sports business events in the world. Since its inception, the event has spawned and popularized numerous movements in the industry, including basketball’s strategic revolution (they call it MoreyBall for a reason).
From its first year in 2007 until 2009, the SSAC took place on MIT’s campus, and while attendance more than doubled during that period, it was still a comparatively low-key affair. Though 2008 brought a keynote speech by Boston Celtics CEO and co-owner Wycliffe Grousbeck, and 2009 saw the beginning of the ‘Featured Panel’ format, the conference was not yet the industry-driving behemoth that it is today.
Houston Rockets owner Tilman Fertitta (left) and general manager Daryl Morey, MIT Sloan grad and co-founder of the MIT Sloan Sports Analytics Conference / Photo via USA Today
Growth Years
In 2010, the SSAC moved to larger digs (at its current home) due to interest and a surplus of programming. The conference’s main attraction was a panel on the limits of statistical analysis moderated by Moneyball author Michael Lewis, as well as the introduction of the research paper track to the conference’s programming. For this aspect, individuals and groups could submit original analysis of statistics-related issues to the organizing committee and vie for a cash prize.
But 2011 was the year that the conference really took aim for the heights of the sports industry: the research paper track was expanded, and a number of soon-to-be immensely popular segments were added to the traditional panel presentation structure. Firstly, Evolution of Sports (EOS) presentations were added, providing a sports industry analog to the ubiquitous TED Talks. In addition, it was the inaugural year for the First Pitch MBA Sports Business Case Competition, in which teams of MBA students from top-ranking programs were presented with a sports business situation and asked to provide a recommendation.
The event continued apace the next year, adding the Trade Show Business Competition, wherein start-ups explain their importance to the sports industry and the most convincing is awarded a cash prize, as well as the Alpha Awards, which recognize those that have altered the field of sports by utilizing analytics to defy conventional wisdom. The next few years of the SSAC saw unprecedented attendance at the conference as it became ever more notorious as a place where the heavy hitters of the sports industry, academia, and statistical analysis come together. The conference has even garnered some nicknames—“The Super Bowl of Analytics” and “Dork-A-Palooza.”
Then And Now
In 2016, conference chair Jessica Gelman noted in her opening remarks that “we had 175 folks at that first conference … this year we have more speakers than we had attendees [at that first conference].” Indeed, the most recent iterations of the SSAC have seen all segments of the conference grow, with an additional broadening of the scope of the conference. For example, in 2017, there were drone races, a live stream that reached an audience of 650,000 people, and a dedicated esports room. 2018 marks the first time that the conference is officially sponsored by ESPN. In final analysis, it seems the only place for the SSAC to go is up.
You can find more details about this year’s event here.
Barack Obama to Speak at 12th Annual MIT Sloan Sports Analytics Conference
It was announced earlier this week that former U.S. President Barack Obama will be among the honorary speakers at this year’s MIT Sloan Sports Analytics Conference.
The 12th annual event arrives at the Boston Convention and Exhibition Center February 23 and 24. Alongside Obama, the highly publicized conference will feature some of the biggest names in the sports industry, including: former Microsoft CEO and Los Angeles Clippers owner Steve Ballmer, Major League Baseball commissioner Rob Manfred, National Hockey League commissioner Gary Bettman, National Basketball League commissioner Adam Silver, former professional athletes like Steve Nash and Alex Rodriguez, and Seattle Storm point guard and U.S. Olympian Sue Bird, among others.
Co-founded by MIT Sloan School of Management MBA graduate Daryl Morey, the current general manager of the Houston Rockets, and Kraft Analytics Group CEO Jessica Gelman in 2006, the annual conference has transformed into one of the most formative sports business events in the world. Since its inception, the event has spawned and popularized numerous movements in the industry, including basketball’s strategic revolution (they call it MoreyBall for a reason).
During his tenure in the White House, Obama’s sports fandom became a much-publicized part of his public persona, appearing on ESPN throughout his two terms to discuss the NCAA tournament, college football playoffs, and more.
.@BarackObama, the 44th President of the United States, will speak at @SloanSportsConf February 23. We are pleased to welcome President Barack Obama, a well-known sports fan. Visit https://t.co/2E9wO8Qo5K for more details #SSAC18 #analyzethis
— Sloan Sports Conf. (@SloanSportsConf) January 6, 2018
Obama will be speaking on the first day of the conference, Friday, February 23. Alongside the notable speakers, the conference features career help seminars, a case competition, an in-depth multi-day look into esports, a hackathon, and much more.
The MIT Sloan Analytics Conference website reads:
“At our roots, we are about education and our goal is to provide more opportunities for sharing industry successes, to create forums to discuss the most challenging topics of the day, and to continue identifying new ideas. As a conference we are firmly committed to innovation. Each year, we have added new elements to push the larger analytics conversation forward. Recent years have seen advances from the Research Paper competition started in 2010 to the popular and successful Hack-A-Thon, the introduction of an esports room, doubling the number of Competitive Advantage talks, expansion of the Startup Tradeshow competition, and introduction of industry-specific workshops. Despite our past successes, we firmly believe that the best is yet to come.”
Find out more information about the event and register today.
Howard University Hosting Mandela Washington Fellowship Students
For the fourth consecutive year, the Howard University School of Business has partnered the Mandela Washington Fellowship for Young African Leaders, hosting 25 up-and-coming African leaders for a six-week intensive beginning this week.
REGISTER: McDonough’s Georgetown on the Hill Series
In his most recent State of the Union Address, President Obama endorsed passage of Trade Promotion Authority– Congress’ authority to negotiate trade agreements and consider their results. The move could impact the progress of three major trade negotiations: The Trans Pacific Partnership, a deal pending among 12 countries of the Asia-Pacific rim; the Trans-Atlantic Trade and Investment Partnership, which would engage all of Europe; and the Trade In Services Agreement, which would update rules and remove barriers to services trade among 23 countries.
In the wake of this, the McDonough School of Business’ Center for Business and Public Policy will host the event “Trade Promotion Authority: Now, If Ever” on Jan. 27 at the Rayburn House Office Building. The event is the latest part of the school’s regular Georgetown on the Hill series. Continue reading…
President Obama Addresses Kellogg Students
This article was originally sourced from “Obama to Kellogg: Business is the Future,” a news piece on Kellogg’s news & events page.
President Barack Obama addressed an assembly of Kellogg School of Management students, telling the students that they, the business leaders of tomorrow, are the key to a strong economy and encouraged them to pursue mindful growth. “There is a reason why I came to a business school instead of a school of government,” Obama said. “I actually believe capitalism is the greatest force for prosperity and opportunity that the world has ever known.” Continue reading…
McDonough Professors Design Curriculum For Presidential Leadership Scholars
Two Georgetown McDonough professors, Paul Almeida and Michael O’Leary, will collaborate with four presidential centers to design the curriculum for the Presidential Leadership Scholars program. This leadership development program that was announced by President Bill Clinton and President George W. Bush at the Newseum earlier this month Continue reading…
