John began the Canisius MSA program in January of 1996 and graduated from the program in May of 1997. While attending grad school, Penhollow worked as the assistant sport information director for John Maddock, Associate Athletic Director for External Affairs.
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Immediately following graduation, John took an internship with the International Management Group (IMG) in Cleveland, Ohio. Six weeks into his internship, the LPGA developed under IMG, and Penhollow was offered a job as the LPGA Classic Tournament Coordinator. Realizing that media was essential to the growth of sports, John decided to take his next job with CBS Television in Chicago, Illinois. From 1999 to 2000, John was a Sales and Marketing Account Executive with CBS and was responsible for advertising and promotional sales for the station.
In 2000, John became a National Sales Director with Octagon Marketing in Stamford, Connecticut. At Octagon, John was responsible for close to $1 million in sponsorship for Octagon Events & Properties and he also designed, coordinated, sold and negotiated sport-related sponsorships for Octagon.
John made his next career move to the National Basketball Association (NBA) in 2001. This move allowed John to gain a background in servicing partnerships, in addition to his previous experience with sales and marketing. Penhollow identified, created and presented consumer-driven retail opportunities to further develop the relationship between the NBA and WNBA marketing partners and their respective target audiences.
In 2003, John made his most current move to Miami, Florida to work with the Miami Dolphins & Dolphins Stadium (NFL) as the Manager of Marketing Partnerships.
John’s words of wisdom to current MSA students: “Don’t be afraid to take new jobs and make the move to different cities. You have the ability to try new career opportunities and move while you’re young and able. The best jobs in life do not necessarily have the best labels attached to them.”