The Los Angeles Rams Pathways to Success mentees finally joined their mentors for a unique job shadowing opportunity at the Rams game against the Jacksonville Jaguars on Dec. 5. To expose upcoming professionals to the inner workings of professional sports, ten Los Angeles area high school juniors and seniors had the opportunity to spend the day at SoFi Stadium and see firsthand how "Rams Gameday" comes to life.
"First, when I think of the LA Rams, I think of the players," a mentee shared. "I didn't really think about how much work goes into making the Rams."
The job shadowing experience kicked off with the students having breakfast at YouTube Theater and sitting down with Rams Chief Operating Officer Kevin Demoff for a 30-minute chat. The light and fun conversation focused on the evolution of the Rams and Demoff's career journey.
"Nobody knows when they go to college what they want to do in life," said Demoff. "I graduated college and I went to work for an internet company. I had no plans to work in sports and magically found my way into this business and I loved it. I got hooked on it. There is no one certain path that goes to sports. You can go to college and be a history major, a Latin major… ecology, forestry or business, it doesn't matter."
During the eye-opening conversation, mentees asked Demoff about building leadership skills, personal development, reaching their full potential and decision making.
"Think of every decision as a big decision because you never know what's going to be the catalyst for change," Demoff encouraged. "What's the group that you're going to work with that will change your mindset? What's the little opportunity to make a big opportunity?"
Following a wagered game of rock-paper-scissors with Demoff, mentees shadowed their mentors, Rams front office staff members, for the first half of the game. Each mentor exposed their mentee to the working elements that make up a gameday ranging from football and business administrative responsibilities, partnership activations, marketing operations, media production, broadcasting, ticketing and communications. The mentees ended their day in the stands cheering on the Rams to a win.
The Rams Pathways to Success mentorship program began in August. Each participating student was paired with a Rams front office staff member. During the four-month program, mentors and mentees met monthly for virtual workshops focused on personal and professional development. The workshops featured breakout sessions designed to discuss goal setting, self-discovery, social etiquette, interview preparation, financial literacy, as well as how to leverage technology and build a personal brand.
"What's surprised me the most is that they've had to work hard to get to the positions they have. If they didn't get the job right away, they had to work to get to whatever career path they wanted," said another mentee.
The program also featured in-person activities. The students had the opportunity to participate in the Rams Community Blitz Day of Service and tour the University of Southern California's campus and athletic department.
To learn more about the Rams' community efforts, please visit www.therams.com/community.
