New Director of Commercial and Marketing

[Lloyd 10,756]

Rangers can today confirm that James Bisgrove will join the club as Director of Commercial and Marketing.

Following a rigorous recruitment process, James will join Rangers in June from his current position as Head of Sponsor Partnership Management at TEAM Marketing AG, the exclusive marketing agency for UEFA Club Competitions.

Prior to that, James held leading Commercial and Marketing roles at UEFA, Emirates Airline and Betfair.

Managing Director Stewart Robertson said: “We look forward to welcoming James to the team as our new Director of Commercial and Marketing.

“He has a wealth of experience in building and maintaining commercial partnerships within football, which will help us to maximise revenues next season and beyond”

James Bisgrove commented ‘’It’s an exciting time to be joining Rangers. I look forward to using my commercial and broader marketing experience from UEFA Champions League, UEFA Europa League and other global properties to help enhance the clubs commercial proposition.

“Rangers has an iconic brand which can further thrive domestically, and, importantly, across key international markets.”

[RFC55 109,147]

Good stuff 

[King Jela 20,371]

So...good or bad?  the commercial side of things is a bit out of my wheelhouse 

[wully 47,579]

This the guy that never turned up for an interview @The Godfather?

[chris182 6,310]

Good CV, hopefully has a profound impact in a area we need to strengthen massively to catch up with other clubs 

[RFC55 109,147]

5 minutes ago, wully said:

This the guy that never turned up for an interview @The Godfather?

The very one

 

[Davy Vandenbroucke 26,193]

11 minutes ago, wully said:

This the guy that never turned up for an interview @The Godfather?

Nah it's the guy that listed his primary school achievements

"I think I would be good at commercial things because I sold loads of lemon bonbons at my tuck shop" 

[Bears r us 30,812]

We certainly need someone for that department so hopefully he is good, he can maybe sort out the retail deal as well. 

[Courtyard Bear 41,357]

Going by his work history he looks like a good addition, in an area where we badly need it because we are a shambles at the moment. 

[cascadeshrimp 1,459]

Long overdue to have aa experienced hand on our commercial dealings

Hope it all works out for him

[Malvern 11,329]

Don't need to turn up for an interview when you have Skype.

[Gman36 3,456]

As with all these types of announcements, sounds vaguely positive but the end results don't ever tend to change much. 

[Cedrick 8,048]

There’s another 2 away tickets per game taking away from CCCS 😩😂😂

[gj923 1,457]

seems a decent CV lets hope he is up to the task as we have'nt had a decent commercial guy since Imran.

[BlueKnight87 17,305]

Our commercial side has been a mess for a long time. 

Fingers crossed this guy can fix that. 

[CoopsLaud 4,186]

Well qualified. Sounds good.

[TheKingObv 10,647]

No doubt another dud Gerrard signing 

[Reformation Bear 6,453]

According to the statement on the Rangers website Bisgrove has held leading commercial and marketing appointments at UEFA, Emirates and Betfair before his current job as a Head of Sponsor Partnership Management at Team Marketing AG.

I hope this job appointment works well for Rangers and of for Bisgrove himself.  Would be interesting to know in due course what the measures for success for the job will be.

From the jobs listed he does not appear to have worked at Director level before so this looks like a step up for him.  A big step up.   Nothing inherently wrong with that but although the Club gets commercial / marketing experience relevant to the football industry its experience at a 'head of' level and he does not seem to be bringing with him experience and know-how already achieved at Director level.  It's a bet in other words.  A bet that he's ready for that step-up and - more than that - a bet that he can deliver big improvements and generate loadsa dosh for the Club reasonably quickly.   

My guess would be that if the Club wanted to buy commercial / marketing experience already earned at Director level with reputations of people who are already demonstrably high achievers then the recruitment costs of that sort of experience would, imo, be likely to be way above recruiting somebody with ambition and where this is his first big, important, 'in the football public eye' Director appointment.

The appointment is a bit like the quality of player we can afford.  We are buying in the market we can afford.  And you generally get what you pay for.     I hope he can make a tangible success of the job.  

It doesn't seem to me he inherits a commercial and marketing landscape that is well nigh perfected and all he has to do is squeeze more out of it and make it work better.  Seems to me like he inherits a commercial landscape which needs top-order galvanising to start to generate far more income.   I hope he is a doer and prepared to get his sleeves rolled up and his boots dusty in getting out there to generate much needed commercial revenue.  

[Bigsasasfloppyhair 13,310]

What school did he go to? 

[SeparateEntityMyArse 53,778]

Professionalism. Long may it continue.

[plumbGER 24,518]

Don't even give it a year and there will be threads on here asking what it is he actually does.

[The Dude 20,026]

42 minutes ago, Reformation Bear said:

According to the statement on the Rangers website Bisgrove has held leading commercial and marketing appointments at UEFA, Emirates and Betfair before his current job as a Head of Sponsor Partnership Management at Team Marketing AG.

I hope this job appointment works well for Rangers and of for Bisgrove himself.  Would be interesting to know in due course what the measures for success for the job will be.

From the jobs listed he does not appear to have worked at Director level before so this looks like a step up for him.  A big step up.   Nothing inherently wrong with that but although the Club gets commercial / marketing experience relevant to the football industry its experience at a 'head of' level and he does not seem to be bringing with him experience and know-how already achieved at Director level.  It's a bet in other words.  A bet that he's ready for that step-up and - more than that - a bet that he can deliver big improvements and generate loadsa dosh for the Club reasonably quickly.   

My guess would be that if the Club wanted to buy commercial / marketing experience already earned at Director level with reputations of people who are already demonstrably high achievers then the recruitment costs of that sort of experience would, imo, be likely to be way above recruiting somebody with ambition and where this is his first big, important, 'in the football public eye' Director appointment.

The appointment is a bit like the quality of player we can afford.  We are buying in the market we can afford.  And you generally get what you pay for.     I hope he can make a tangible success of the job.  

It doesn't seem to me he inherits a commercial and marketing landscape that is well nigh perfected and all he has to do is squeeze more out of it and make it work better.  Seems to me like he inherits a commercial landscape which needs top-order galvanising to start to generate far more income.   I hope he is a doer and prepared to get his sleeves rolled up and his boots dusty in getting out there to generate much needed commercial revenue.  

Here's a few of his previous roles:

Head of Sponsor Partnership Mangement -TEAM Marketing AG

Heads the Sponsor Partnership Management department responsible for managing partner relations for 15 brands across UEFA Champions League and UEFA Europa League club competitions; ensuring continuous improvement and best in class industry standards are delivered for all sponsor contractual rights.

Sponsorship Manager - UEFA Champions League

Member of the management team, with accountability for driving the strategy and execution of the UEFA Champions League sponsorship programme and supporting positive partner relations with UCL competition sponsors; Heineken, PepsiCo, MasterCard, PlayStation, Sony Xperia, Nissan, UniCredit, and Gazprom. Supported partnership sales activities and managed the relationship with TEAM Marketing (UEFA’s exclusive sponsorship agency) to engage and increase sponsorship revenues. Played a key role in the delivery of UEFA’s broader marketing and brand objectives, working closely with partners to grow the strength of the UCL competition brand.

Sponsorship Controller - Emirates Airline

Managed an extensive global sponsorship portfolio, including major partnerships with Arsenal FC, Real Madrid, Arsenal FC, Formula 1, AFC, NBA, 34th America’s Cup (Emirates Team New Zealand), Collingwood FC and numerous European & Asian Tour golf events. Successfully managed more than 65 major sponsored events spanning 5 continents, travelling extensively to ensure consistent delivery of the Emirates brand and sponsorship standards across the globe. Established positive relationships with rights holders and regional markets of the airline, developing marcomm strategies to maximise all partnerships for commercial gain and to continually enhance Emirates global brand value

International Marketing Manager - Betfair

Reporting to the Head of Global Brand and Marketing, as International Account Manager I was charged with delivering impactful and on brand creative solutions for multi-channel (Online Acquisition, Print, TV, Sponsorship, Social Media and CRM Email comms) campaigns across 15 countries including Italy, Spain, Germany, Canada, Nordic regions and Eastern Europe.

Leveraging key sponsorships such as Manchester United, FC Barcelona, AJ Olimpia Milano and various Ambassador (Andy Gray, Paul Nicholls) and utilising the assets to maximise advertising impact. Management of multiple agencies relationships across Europe. Major campaigns executed include the FIFA World Cup 2010, UEFA Champions League 2010/2011, El Clásico & the re-launch of the Betfair Poker product.

[KeyserSoze 14,580]

46 minutes ago, The Dude said:

Here's a few of his previous roles:

Head of Sponsor Partnership Mangement -TEAM Marketing AG

Heads the Sponsor Partnership Management department responsible for managing partner relations for 15 brands across UEFA Champions League and UEFA Europa League club competitions; ensuring continuous improvement and best in class industry standards are delivered for all sponsor contractual rights.

Sponsorship Manager - UEFA Champions League

Member of the management team, with accountability for driving the strategy and execution of the UEFA Champions League sponsorship programme and supporting positive partner relations with UCL competition sponsors; Heineken, PepsiCo, MasterCard, PlayStation, Sony Xperia, Nissan, UniCredit, and Gazprom. Supported partnership sales activities and managed the relationship with TEAM Marketing (UEFA’s exclusive sponsorship agency) to engage and increase sponsorship revenues. Played a key role in the delivery of UEFA’s broader marketing and brand objectives, working closely with partners to grow the strength of the UCL competition brand.

Sponsorship Controller - Emirates Airline

Managed an extensive global sponsorship portfolio, including major partnerships with Arsenal FC, Real Madrid, Arsenal FC, Formula 1, AFC, NBA, 34th America’s Cup (Emirates Team New Zealand), Collingwood FC and numerous European & Asian Tour golf events. Successfully managed more than 65 major sponsored events spanning 5 continents, travelling extensively to ensure consistent delivery of the Emirates brand and sponsorship standards across the globe. Established positive relationships with rights holders and regional markets of the airline, developing marcomm strategies to maximise all partnerships for commercial gain and to continually enhance Emirates global brand value

International Marketing Manager - Betfair

Reporting to the Head of Global Brand and Marketing, as International Account Manager I was charged with delivering impactful and on brand creative solutions for multi-channel (Online Acquisition, Print, TV, Sponsorship, Social Media and CRM Email comms) campaigns across 15 countries including Italy, Spain, Germany, Canada, Nordic regions and Eastern Europe.

Leveraging key sponsorships such as Manchester United, FC Barcelona, AJ Olimpia Milano and various Ambassador (Andy Gray, Paul Nicholls) and utilising the assets to maximise advertising impact. Management of multiple agencies relationships across Europe. Major campaigns executed include the FIFA World Cup 2010, UEFA Champions League 2010/2011, El Clásico & the re-launch of the Betfair Poker product.

Oaft 

If our brand is to be polished then Jim Traynor has to go as marketing and communications are very closely entwined 

looks like a very good appointment indeed

[Reformation Bear 6,453]

2 hours ago, The Dude said:

Here's a few of his previous roles:

Head of Sponsor Partnership Mangement -TEAM Marketing AG

Heads the Sponsor Partnership Management department responsible for managing partner relations for 15 brands across UEFA Champions League and UEFA Europa League club competitions; ensuring continuous improvement and best in class industry standards are delivered for all sponsor contractual rights.

Sponsorship Manager - UEFA Champions League

Member of the management team, with accountability for driving the strategy and execution of the UEFA Champions League sponsorship programme and supporting positive partner relations with UCL competition sponsors; Heineken, PepsiCo, MasterCard, PlayStation, Sony Xperia, Nissan, UniCredit, and Gazprom. Supported partnership sales activities and managed the relationship with TEAM Marketing (UEFA’s exclusive sponsorship agency) to engage and increase sponsorship revenues. Played a key role in the delivery of UEFA’s broader marketing and brand objectives, working closely with partners to grow the strength of the UCL competition brand.

Sponsorship Controller - Emirates Airline

Managed an extensive global sponsorship portfolio, including major partnerships with Arsenal FC, Real Madrid, Arsenal FC, Formula 1, AFC, NBA, 34th America’s Cup (Emirates Team New Zealand), Collingwood FC and numerous European & Asian Tour golf events. Successfully managed more than 65 major sponsored events spanning 5 continents, travelling extensively to ensure consistent delivery of the Emirates brand and sponsorship standards across the globe. Established positive relationships with rights holders and regional markets of the airline, developing marcomm strategies to maximise all partnerships for commercial gain and to continually enhance Emirates global brand value

International Marketing Manager - Betfair

Reporting to the Head of Global Brand and Marketing, as International Account Manager I was charged with delivering impactful and on brand creative solutions for multi-channel (Online Acquisition, Print, TV, Sponsorship, Social Media and CRM Email comms) campaigns across 15 countries including Italy, Spain, Germany, Canada, Nordic regions and Eastern Europe.

Leveraging key sponsorships such as Manchester United, FC Barcelona, AJ Olimpia Milano and various Ambassador (Andy Gray, Paul Nicholls) and utilising the assets to maximise advertising impact. Management of multiple agencies relationships across Europe. Major campaigns executed include the FIFA World Cup 2010, UEFA Champions League 2010/2011, El Clásico & the re-launch of the Betfair Poker product.

Thanks for these details.  Very interesting.   As far as I can discern they are all roles at manager / senior manager level.  Which is fair enough as everyone has to start somewhere and its more often than not a journey to earn the credits and spurs to make the leap to becoming a effective Commercial Director who hits the ground running (as the saying goes).  Some make that leap readily as their personal leadership and management qualities; technical / commercial know-how and experience provide the platform for that leap to be comfortably made.....and they go on to thrive.   Lets hope he is ready and able to deliver a major and sustainable financial boost to the Club's finances, and quickly.    

Quite how long he elects to stay at Rangers will - I suppose - depend on how successful he is in delivering a step change improvement in commercial revenues for the Club and is rewarded accordingly, vs being tempted into a different role elsewhere after a while.  He does seem to have been through a number of jobs for what looks to be a youngish person so he's clearly ambitious and has worked out at what point in time in a career its best to move on.      Let's hope he can make a big impact in generating commercial wealth and value for the Club.

[Blumhoilann 6,712]

6 hours ago, Courtyard Bear said:

Going by his work history he looks like a good addition, in an area where we badly need it because we are a shambles at the moment. 

He can start by getting us our own independent TV deal 😉