Industry Partnership with the Honda Center/Anaheim Ducks

Industry partners that share our goals and vision are a key to our success. Collaborations with businesses are a core component of an Argyros School education and are a winning experience for our students, as well as our industry partners.

The Argyros School of Business and Economics is thrilled to announce its recent partnership with the Honda Center/Anaheim Ducks organization. This partnership is an extension of the business theories being taught in the classroom. Four Argyros School seniors are receiving an experiential education opportunity working first-hand with business leaders at the Honda Center/Ducks.

The Honda Center is one of the premier entertainment and sports venues in the country. Opened in 1993, the venue is owned by the City of Anaheim and managed by Anaheim Arena Management, LLC. The 15,000-square-foot facility hosts a variety of sporting events, as well as concerts, and it is home to 2007 Stanley Cup champions — the Anaheim Ducks.

This partnership is an opportunity for the student team to provide analytical insight on an important piece of the company’s revenue stream: the box suites.

These suites provide a luxurious experience for guests attending one of the many sporting or concert events hosted by the Honda Center. The four-person student team has been given access to more than 10 years of historical data (no company or individual names are identified) on the suites that the Honda Center/Anaheim Ducks offer for lease and for rental. The team is analyzing the data, using a variety of analytic tools, and developing recommendations for how to maximize revenue for the suites.  The recommendations will include strategic insights (e.g., how many suites to lease versus rent) and more tactical, in-season suggestions (e.g., what drives higher rental pricing).

The information gathered by the students will be used firsthand by the Honda Center/Ducks.

The student team regularly meets both at Chapman University and onsite at the Honda Center. The team has access to key senior executives within the company, including the chief revenue officer and the director of premium sales and servicing. The team is being advised by Assistant Dean and Associate Professor Ken Murphy and Dean Reggie Gilyard. Both advisors provide an extensive background in operations and consulting to the student team. Dr. Murphy teaches business analytics, operations management, statistics, and information systems courses in the executive, graduate, and undergraduate programs.

Prior to coming to Chapman, Dean Gilyard served as a partner and managing director with Boston Consulting Group — a $4B+ global management consulting firm. The Argyros School of Business and Economics is grateful for this experiential opportunity that is allowing students to apply the skills learned in the classroom to real-world business needs.