By DAVE CRANSHAW

UNH Today

At a recent Carrie Underwood concert, a group of sport facility management majors got a firsthand look at what happens when the best-laid plans go awry. As the doors were ready to open, the arena’s staff realized that the hand-held scanners were not functioning properly. They quickly decided to go to Plan B, which involved ripping the ticket stubs of the concertgoers as they entered the arena.

This was just one experience that the students – Gianna Marciano ’14, Maite Mendizabal (MBA), Mark Scussel ’14 and Siobhan Whittemore (M.S.) – gained as they spent a Saturday last month shadowing Shane Beardsley, director of operations for Webster Bank Area, as he prepared for that night’s concert.

“Though the normal protocol did not work as planned, the management team was able to find a solution quickly enough in order to minimize the delay to open the doors,” the group wrote in a paper reflecting on their experiences.

The shadow experience was arranged by Gil Fried, professor and chair of the sports management department. Throughout the semester, groups of students will shadow the arena’s operations staff as they prepare for concerts, the circus, sporting events and other programs taking place at the arena.

Two days after the Carrie Underwood concert, another group of students was on hand to observe and assist in the preparations for WWE’s “Monday Night Raw.”

“Our students are learning firsthand what is involved in preparing a facility, what happens when equipment breaks down, how to handle security concerns and countless other ‘small’ details that add up to a successful event,” said Fried.