ERIE, Pa. – In an ongoing effort to enhance the student-athlete experience, the Gannon University Athletics Department is partnering with Teamworks to utilize the innovative Teamworks Elite system, Director of Athletics Lisa Goddard McGuirk announced today.
Foremost among the Teamworks Elite bundle of products will be Influencer, which Gannon Athletics will use to optimize Name Image & Likeness opportunities for student-athletes. Influencer will allow GU to launch and provide an NIL Exchange for student-athletes, and will streamline tracking and reporting. The custom-branded Exchange will make it easier for national and local businesses and collectives to join GU's NIL Marketplace and engage Gannon student-athletes.
The Influencer interface will also provide a library of educational tools that student-athletes and administrators may access to allow students-athletes to maximize Name Image & Likeness opportunities and allow Compliance personnel to track and approve NIL transactions in the Exchange. This will be done through the program's Influencer Core, NIL Management, Exchange, Teamworks Collectives, and Influencer Mobile for Athletes training modules.
"This is a tremendous opportunity to continue our pursuit of excellence by enhancing the student-athlete experience related to Name Image & Likeness and building their brand," Goddard McGuirk said. "It also elevates our department operations from recruiting, compliance, communication, and business processes, creating a seamless, efficient, and integrated experience. As we continue to develop our strategic plan to build on our accelerated forward momentum, this partnership was integral."
Teamworks Elite also will help Gannon Athletics more quickly reach and engage student-athletes and staff on an elite-level platform with an intuitive interface. The Teamworks product package will provide many other efficiencies, allowing Gannon to upgrade and transform communications, collaboration, compliance, recruiting, data sharing, workflows, and department efficiency.
Teamworks, founded in 2004, is a company based in Durham, North Carolina, that has empowered more than 5,000 clients worldwide to better connect and collaborate by simplifying their internal processes. Among the organizations that utilize Teamworks products are collegiate athletic departments from Division I, II, and III, professional teams in the Premier League, NFL, MLB, NBA, NHL, MLS, and more.
Gannon is one of five universities among 17 PSAC institutions and one of 23 teams among more than 300 Division II schools who will utilize Teamworks Elite.
"At Teamworks, we are thrilled to announce our Elite partnership with Gannon University and the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference," said Teamworks Senior Business Development Executive Miles Gallagher. "Gannon and the PSAC are making huge strides in the Division II landscape, setting a new standard of efficiency and student-athlete experience. This dedication to innovation is truly inspiring, and we are proud to work side by side with Gannon as they lead the way in shaping the future of collegiate athletics."
Gannon Athletics previously enhanced its ongoing push for greater efficiency by utilizing ARMS – now named Compliance + Recruiting – one of the Teamworks digital systems.
"Our collaboration with a great company like Teamworks will allow us to enhance the student-athlete experience in so many areas," said Shamika Kentish, Gannon Associate Director of Athletics for Compliance. "The Teamworks system will help the Gannon Athletic Department maximize our efficiency in communications, roster management, practices, meetings, compliance, recruiting, Name Image & Likeness, and much more. I'm so pleased that we are partnering with Teamworks to take our student-athlete experience to the next level."
"We are excited to partner with Teamworks so that our student-athletes and staff can utilize the many features and resources designed with the student-athlete experience at the forefront," said Gannon Associate Director of Athletics for Budget & Planning Meghan Morphy. "This collaboration reflects our commitment to student-athlete support in all areas, including Name Image & Likeness, from recruitment through graduation."
