Profit itself isn't important.
As you can see on the aesthetically pleasing graphs on that link, the various revenue streams have increased, which has given us the ability to extend spending on football operations (which has famously been thrifty in the past).
It's all a bit simplistic, understandably I suppose, but that's the ultimate goal on that side. Make more money so we can spend more money.
Predominantly due to "other income", which is donations and grants.
These are pretty common within Australian sporting clubs (at least AFL and NRL) aren't they?
Either way, I'm not defending Pascoe (far from it), but just pointing out that 'profit' isn't a realistic proposition for a professional sporting organisation.
The point I’m making is that the reason we are ‘commercially sound’ off the field is due to grants and donations, not great management.
Corporate partnerships have also grown..
Has it? According to the chart the revenue in sponsorships, hospitality and events has stayed more or less stagnant from 2017-2019, whilst margins have improved.
Who improves the margins? Who attracts the donations and grants.
It's a funny thing I think - if Madge is only measured by on-field success (or lack of it), why do you guys drill down into the nitty-gritty of what the CEO is delivering? Either he makes the club self-reliant / financial or he does not. The mechanisms by which he achieves that are far far secondary of concern.
The question is - will a new CEO deliver better on-field performance, and if so, by what mechanisms does that CEO achieve a direct influence on team output?
I drill down onto the nitty gritty of what he's delivering because the more you dig the more you find out that it's all smoke and mirrors.
Let's talk margins, it appears on face value that they've increased but given he conveniently lumps sponsorships, hospitality and events together, the lower margin in 2018 is possibly (and probably) due to a higher proportion of events being held (which is obviously going to have a higher element of cost than pure sponsorship).
Onto the mechanisms, it absolutely does matter how and where the money comes from because **donations can't be considered recurring revenue.** You can broadly forecast out merchandise sales and ticket sales etc, but how can you with any surety rely on donations to get you through? What happens if they stop donating? That means a huge revenue stream dries up and we're screwed. It is the antithesis of self reliance. As CEO it's important for him to create recurring revenue streams, not donations that can be turned off at any point. That is business 101.
Last week you asked me what my experience is dealing with CEO's, to which I responded I deal with them every day due to my work. What's your experience dealing with them?
Absolutely donations can be considered as reoccurring revenue and the revenue stream from donations can be predicted and budged for. A donation is just a different type of product you can sell.
Donations are non-contractual in nature and can be cancelled at any time. They cannot be relied upon as future income. Handouts shouldn't form part of your long term commercial plan.
Sorry but that just isn’t true. They are not handouts they are a unique commercial advantage that only a few types of organisations can rely upon, just in the same way any sales predictions can be relied upon. Donations are a viable revenue stream for sporting clubs and should definitely be in your long term commercial plans.
As we discussed yesterday Mike, I don't agree with you. Donations are something that's nice to have as the cherry on top, **but that tap can very easily be turned off.**
Let's say Harry T is one of our main contributors and we rely on him to keep the lights on. He calls Pascoe and says, i'm not contributing any more money. What's the contingency?
Nonesense. You don’t have just one donator, you build a large group of people who donate regularly.
It isn't nonsense. You can't rely on it.
Then how can any business rely on sales?
Because it's tangible. You're selling a product or a service.
But why should they buy your product or service and not someone elses?
Every year i'll buy tickets, i'll buy endless beers at the game and i'll buy the supporter gear. They are things you can more or less count on from a revenue perspective (outside of Covid). It's something I want and am happy to pay for, as I get something in return.
What are you getting in return for your donation to the foundation?
People donate because they want to support the club in that way. Supporting their club is what they are buying. The club surviving into the future is their return.
Exactly...I made a small donation to the Foundation 12 + months ago.
Your a champion @MAGPIES1963