BHP Sophomores Talk Sports Industry and More With Michael Cramer

cramerBusiness Honors students in BA 151 had a great opportunity to watch an interview between BHP Faculty Director, Robert Prentice, and the executive director of the Texas Program in Sports and Media, Michael Cramer. This session was especially exciting for students interested in the sports industry as Cramer is a former president of the Texas Rangers and the Dallas Stars and, more recently, a professor in sports management at New York University.

Cramer completed his undergraduate degree in Political Science and History as well as his Master’s of Urban Planning and Public Administration at the State University of New York – Albany. He then went on to attend law school at Marquette University Law School. Cramer knew going into law school that criminal law was not the right fit for him when he clerked for a small law firm and worked on civil law cases where he was introduced to corporate law.

After working at the small firm for seven years, Cramer started his own firm with friends that reached 17 attorneys in just one year. During that time, he sold a business to Dean Metropoulos who then invited Cramer to assist him in buying and selling businesses. The two continue to work together today.

Cramer and Metropoulos have purchased 78 companies over the past 27 years. When they buy companies, they go in and operate them, expand on them and implement add-ons. “We do a lot of merger and acquisition work, but the beauty of what we do is that we’re very hands on,” explained Cramer. “We call ourselves the plumbers. You’ll see us under the sink trying to figure out what’s going wrong.”

Cramer has been involved in various capacities with countless, large brand names such as Aunt Jemima, Chef Boyardee, Ghirardelli Chocolate, Lonestar, Pabst Blue Ribbon, Vlasic Pickles and many more. The lecture hall broke out in applause when Cramer listed Hostess as one of his companies stating, “We brought the Twinkie back.”

Still interested in sports, Cramer also worked with Tom Hicks to create what is now known as Hicks Sports Group, LLC, which owns and operates baseball and hockey teams such as the Texas Rangers and Dallas Stars.

Cramer kept the students engaged with his relatable humor and vivid accounts of his experiences throughout his successful career as an entrepreneur in the consumer products and sports industries. BHP students in the sophomore lyceum course will hear from 10 executives this semester, all of whom will offer great insight into their industries and valuable advice on leadership. Many thanks to Michael for taking time out of his busy schedule to speak with our students!

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