Aug
06

Should You Require Your Employees/Interns To Relocate?

By | Internships, Sports Business

9 Comments

When I am talking to potential employees (Dynasty hires Independent Contractors if you want me to use the correct terminology) or future interns, I often get asked if and when they will have to re-locate to South Florida.  Many are shocked to hear me respond by saying that it is completely unnecessary to move.  I have a variety of reasons for not requiring employees/interns to move to SoFla.

  1. Dynasty does not have an official office.  In fact, Dynasty’s office is listed as my home address in Hollywood, Florida.  I have not yet decided if the company will ever rent or buy official office space.  I believe that in today’s day-and-age, offices are overrated. We live in a digital world where everything can be done from the comfort of your home.
  2. Productivity may actually be enhanced without a true office. No need to spend time driving to a location, no reason to have to drive home for an emergency, etc.  By not having an official office, one can work at any time of the day and not feel pinned by the old 9-5 workday.  Personally, I get my best work done in the morning.  Instead of spending that time getting ready, preparing a breakfast that will fill me up for plenty of hours, etc., I can flip open my laptop and begin work.
  3. If we were to require employees/interns to move to a centralized location, we would lose out on many recruiting advantages that we retain by being spread out. There is more than enough talent for an agency to recruit in South Florida alone, but by spreading out in different areas across the country, our potential to find diverse and exceptional talent is increased tremendously.
  4. I am going into my second year of law school. Thus, I am actually based in Gainesville for a majority of the year.  Why would I tell someone to relocate to Gainesville?
  5. I find that people work well in settings that they feel comfortable. How are you going to feel any more comfortable than you do at home?  If I require you to move to South Florida, what am I achieving?

In the past, it would have been vital for a sports agency to buy office space and demand that its employees and interns relocate.  Today, I believe that it is no longer the case.  Why do it just because it was routine in the past?

Related posts:

  1. Dynasty’s First Internship Class
  2. Dynasty’s Fall 2008 Internship Class
  3. Dynasty’s Second Internship Class
  • Cruz
  • http://www.sportsagentblog.com Darren Heitner

    But is it necessary or worth the price? I’d rather save the money and give it back to my employees or a charity.

  • Jason

    He took food out to the press? Nice guy!

  • Jon

    Perhaps I’m not thinking this through completely… but wouldn’t that lack of unity prove detrimental to a business? I think it’s important to have a mutuality of objective, and having a mutual location or workplace plays a big role; at the very least, teleconferencing should be done daily (depending on work flow).

    I just realized that I asked you a ton of questions on SBEN.org about how things would work if I interned for you from NY. I guess this method is fine for interning, but if you have actual agents working with clients, what woudl be the incentive for them to associate themselves (and their clients) with Dynasty? Do you guys split revenue as in an LLP? Maybe my ignorance is stemmed from my lack of business knowledge.

    Speaking of business, I was wondering what your stance is on obtaining a JD vs. an MBA, as it applies to working in the agent business. The question may be broad, but I’m a senior undergrad student contemplating both. I have no real desire to work in law outside of the legal aspects of representing athletes, so that kind of ruled out the JD for me. The MBA would probably prove more versatile for me, but I was wondering what the knowledge gained from each program can do to start or advance one’s career as an agent.

    I was going to make a thread on SBEN, but there seems to be little traffic to the forum section there.

    Any info would be greatly appreciated.

  • http://www.sportsagentblog.com Darren Heitner

    Sorry for the slow response, but I am in the middle of moving into a new house, which has no internet as of right now. Thus, it may be a little before the next post/Friday Wrap-Up. Anyway, to address your comment…

    Lack of unity is terrible, but the way I have set up Dynasty, with multiple divisions, makes it so that most indep. contractors can do their own thing without the need of other directors’ help. I am in touch with each director daily and each director has access to the interns. The system seems to be working just fine.

    Actual agents get a strong backing with Dynasty. They can use our pre-existing marketing materials, our pre-existing track record with clients, the fact that they do not have to go through the formation of their own company (quite a pain/process), our fantastic leads system (they will procure their own clients, but I also provide a very strong pipeline), our high commissions granted, etc.

    Look at previous posts for my analysis of J.D. vs. MBA. Too long for a comment.

  • Pingback: SportsAgentBlog.com | Sports Agent News» Accessories Sports Business » What Is Your Telepresence?

  • Tyler Kourajian

    what is the title of your JD vs MBA article i cannot seem to find it. Thanks

  • Steve N.

    Hey Guys,
    I just stumbled into this blog and I gotta say I love the conversations. It’s great to hear you alls passion for the buisness side. I have a question I am very much interested in getting into the industry myself, and I am considering getting a Masters in Business, but some have told me if I am going to go into Sports Business and Mgmt, I should go to Law School instead. What are your thoughts and what advice could you give?

    • http://www.sportsagentblog.com Darren Heitner

      Been discussed many times on the blog and in the forum.

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