We spoke to our Australian born and bred Chief Operating Officer, Corey Kirby to find out more about his professional background and why he joined PTI.
What was it that made you want to join PTI?
I joined PTI to help build something special and be part of a company that is involved in the Sports and Entertainment industry. Personally, I was having difficulties breaking into the sports industry in Australia, I’d become too expensive for a junior type role and didn’t have the industry experience for a senior position. I knew I didn’t want to be an accountant anymore, wanted to work in sport and had previously lived and worked in the UK, so when the opportunity presented itself I jumped at it and moved the family across the globe.
What sports industry experience do you have?
I have been involved in plenty of community sport, from playing to coaching across AFL and cricket. I am an avid follower of sports administration, how things are done and best practice across the various leagues around the world. It has always been a passion and interest of mine. My career background is being a Chartered Accountant for nine years, advising a range of businesses across various industries, therefore I am able to connect industry and business approaches to sports clubs / leagues and venues who are essentially high–profile SME’s. They have the same challenges as private companies, they just have matches, fans, sponsors and media added to the mix!
What do you love most about sports and entertainment?
The ups and downs. I am a rather passionate follower of Collingwood (AFL), Arsenal (EPL) and New Orleans Pelicans (NBA) and the capacity for sport to generate those extreme feelings is the draw for me. Nothing beats a close win in a big game, but there is nothing worse than a harrowing defeat and I love being able to experience that with thousands of strangers. It’s also the hope that sport can bring, it’s a metaphor for life and business that there is always the next game (opportunity) to focus on and to not dwell on the defeats too much. I’m not usually a very expressive or emotional person, but I am when it comes to my teams.
What has been your favourite moment with PTI so far?
I have had a few moments since joining PTI that I feel lucky to experience. The first was the Cricket World-Cup Semi-Final at Edgbaston between Australia and England. While we were very disappointing on the day, being able to “work” at an occasion such as that was something I won’t forget. Being able to sit back and review where the business was even just as I joined and what we have transitioned into, with exciting plans for the future and being part of the journey is something I reflect on proudly.
What are you most looking forward to achieving with PTI?
As a company, we are on an exciting journey and there is still much for us to achieve. Personally, being able to setup operations shortly in Australia is something I am really looking forward to. I want to be able help and assist the clubs, leagues and venues back home because I know the value we can bring, and I want to be able to share that with them. I am proud of what we are capable of doing and how we approach difficult problems for our clients – taking that approach to my home country and making people’s lives within the clubs / leagues and venues slightly easier is what I am most looking forward to.
Here’s to many more years!
If you’d like to speak to Corey about our launch into Australia, you can reach him at corey.kirby@ptidigitalgroup.com.
