Members of the Saints business group the True Believers held the presentation at Linen House Centre on Tuesday night.
St Kilda Player Development and Welfare Manager Danny Ryan outlined the club’s increased focus on player education.
“At St Kilda we have a holistic approach to player development and welfare, and its important our players engage in some form of ongoing external study or work experience,” Mr Ryan said.
“This evening provided a unique opportunity for the players to hear firsthand about career pathways in the property and construction industries, what qualifications or experience is required, remuneration and hours of work, and what skills or traits are best suited to these sectors.”
The True Believers is a group of around 100 influential business executives, mainly from the building and property industries, which became the official partner of the Saints’ Player Academy earlier this year.
“The True Believers are passionate about the Saints, and tonight was an example of the non-financial assistance and support this group of professionals can provide the playing group,” explained Peri Macdonald, the General Manager of Retail at Australand.
The careers evening formed part of the group’s support of the Saints player development program providing an invaluable insight into property developing, building, real estate, project management and investment funds.
Rookie defender Jackson Ferguson was among a group of 25 members of the Saints playing group who attended the event, and said the forum was helpful, especially for the younger players.
“It was really good of them to come out and showcase that they (the True Believers) are here to support us,” Jackson Ferguson said.
“It’s great that they are focusing on the Academy group, because we are the young guys that don’t actually know what we want to do in the future.”??
“I found it interesting to hear about the options there are and the different pathways available to get into the property and construction industry,” Ferguson concluded.
True Believers key note speakers:
James Weaver, Director, Killila Property Group
Andrew Briggs, Managing Director, Buxton Construction
Neil Besanko, Director, Gallagher Jeffs Pty Ltd
Peri Macdonald, General Manager, Retail at Australand
Ian Robertson, Principal, NAI Harcourts
