Groningen Management Games

As part of the Sports and Event Management department at Coventry University, I have had the opportunity to travel with classmates to two different management games. Management games are week-long competitions of various sports and event management related tasks among groups of students. My first management games was at Center Parcs in England with third year students. During these games, I was part of the faculty for my internship helping with the organization and grading.

This last week I attended the Groningen Management Games in The Netherlands. These games involved students from over 12 countries, mainly from Coventry University, Groningen University and Cologne University. The tasks at this event involved the Bupa Great North Run. We wrote job descriptions, organized new side-events, presented strategic plans, recorded promotional videos, debated, and much more. Along with the various tasks each day, every team joined in on a volleyball tournament. Instead of being on the faculty side, I joined a student team to execute the tasks. All of the other students at these games were receiving credit for their time. There was very little motivation for myself to work hard because I wasn't receiving any credit for my work or participation there. Yet, many of the tasks were very interesting to me and it reminded me of Deca/BPA in a way. My team was made up of four students from Groningen and myself. It was so great to work with them and discuss the differences among our cultures. They taught me some Dutch phrases and suggested many things to do and things to eat during my time in Groningen. They spoke very good English, but I ended up having to write a lot of our work due to my English background. Although we didn't win any prizes, we passed the week with flying colors and it was great to apply what I have been learning at university!!

Group 14: Anouk, Hessel, myself, Judith and Iris 

Beyond the hard work that we put in throughout the week, we also had free time to explore the town and meet other international students. Groningen was absolutely beautiful!! There weren't any major attractions, but every where you went it was just stunning! We ventured to the football stadium, one of the red light districts, the main square of Groningen, many markets, and just throughout the streets. We met so many lovely people!

Joey, myself, Bailey, Adam and Zane out to dinner

When we were getting ready to leave, everywhere throughout the Netherlands was preparing for King's Night and King's Day, a national celebration. I wish we could have stayed the weekend to enjoy the festivities!! It reminded me of America's Fourth of July a bit. There were concerts and festivals being set up everywhere and everyone was wearing orange. I would love to attend this event someday! Amsterdam is also on my to do list for the future!