Hello, welcome to The Ultimate Guide to Jobs in Sport! 👋 

Here you’ll find interviews with (almost) every job in the sports industry.
We ask people living the dream:

“How did you get your job?” and “What does it actually involve?”
So that you can land a dream job in sports too.

Enjoy!

#344: How the Hidden Job Market took this Grad to the Cricket Australia Commercial team in an Ashes summer with Tia Schwalger

Meet Tia Schwalger, the Partnerships Coordinator at Cricket Australia.

In this episode, we follow Tia’s journey with SportsGrad and how she was able to secure a job at Cricket Australia through the hidden job market.

We breakdown her move from the Gold Coast to Melbourne, her recent summer of cricket, the importance of connections in achieving her goals as well as her time working at the Southport Sharks.

We also take a deep dive into her experiences abroad from studying in Spain and England, working at Spanish basketball side, UCAM Murcia CB, as a Sport Management intern and her involvement with Blue Star Camps and Camp America.

So if you’re looking for a job in sport, tune into this week’s episode to learn how you can break into the sports industry via the hidden job market.

🔥 Quickfire Questions

1. What inspired you to work in sport?
   Growing up, my parents always had my brother and I playing sport. My dad is a boxing coach, so most weeks we were training in our garage, which also doubled as his boxing gym. From the age of six I played netball, eventually competing at representative and Premier League level until I was 19. I didn’t always love watching sport growing up, but I loved playing it. Volunteering at my brother’s rugby league club is where I started to feel that working in sport was a natural path for me. I was drawn to the excitement, the passion, and the environment. I think a big part of it comes from my family, but also from the feeling sport creates. It’s all I’ve ever known, and it’s always where I’ve felt most at home.

2. What was your first sports-related role?
   Unofficially, it was probably volunteering in the canteen at my brother’s rugby league club. My mum was the treasurer at the time, so most afternoons after school and on weekends I’d be there helping out wherever I was needed. It was very much a family effort. My first official paid role was umpiring netball at my local courts when I was about 13. It didn’t last too long... I quickly realised I didn’t love being yelled at by the mums when I got a call wrong! But it definitely gave me thick skin and an early appreciation for how tough officiating can be.

3. What did you study after high school?
   After high school, I went straight to Griffith University on the Gold Coast, where I completed a Bachelor of Business majoring in Marketing and Entrepreneurship. Fun fact - I actually started in Sport Management and Event Management, but after struggling a bit in my first year, I decided to change. More recently, I moved to Spain for 9 months to complete a Master’s in Management of Sports Entities alongside an MBA. During that time, I interned with UCAM Murcia CB in Spain’s ACB Basketball League, which gave me hands-on experience working within a professional sporting organisation.

4. What's one interview question you were asked to answer for this role?

   I’ve always found it interesting when people are asked, “What three words would your friends or colleagues use to describe you?” It really makes you stop and think about how others see you. I actually use this question myself when interviewing applicants (I did this for Camp America for a bit), it’s simple, but it tells you a lot about someone’s self-awareness and how they reflect on their own strengths.

5. A book or podcast recommendation that's helped your career?

   Honestly, there are so many! I’m a big fan of Brene Brown. I like her books on vulnerability, self-awareness and leadership, because I think being aware of yourself and knowing how to lead is so important in any career. Another one I love is The Creative Act: A Way of Being by Rick Rubin - it has so many lessons on creativity that you can apply to everyday work. In terms of podcasts, there are many ahah SportsGrad is one, obviously.

6. If you could try another job in sports for a day, what would it be?
   Oooo I think it would be a sports reporter or even something like a data analyst for tipping. I love the idea of being right in the action, telling the story, or diving into the numbers behind the games,it would be so interesting to see how all the insights and stats shape what actually happens on game day.

What exactly does your job involve?

In my role as Partnerships Coordinator at Cricket Australia, I make sure commercial partners and fans have a seamless experience on match days while supporting the commercial team behind the scenes.

A typical day can include planning and coordinating partner activations, managing logistics for stakeholder events, handling merchandise programs, and liaising with suppliers and internal departments.

On game days, I’m on-site ensuring activations run smoothly, supporting partners, and troubleshooting any issues that come up. The purpose of my role is to deliver a high-quality experience for both fans and commercial partners while helping the club meet its commercial objectives. The outcomes I focus on are strong partner relationships, engaging activations, and successful, well-organised events.

What are some of the responsibilities of your role?

Most of my role focuses on the admin and operations side of things, making sure everything runs smoothly for partners and supporting the partner leads. Over the summer, I handled partner ticketing and hospitality, coordinated signed merchandise for partners, and managed behind-the-scenes logistics for events.

I also support game-day activations and liaise with suppliers and internal teams to keep everything on track. A typical week or month is really varied - some days I’m working through approvals, updating databases and purchase orders, or preparing reports for the commercial team, and other days I’m on-site ensuring everything runs seamlessly for partners and fans. It’s mostly admin and ops, but it’s all about keeping the experience smooth and professional.

What does your career journey look like?

I started my professional career at Southport Sharks as a Marketing and Social Media Assistant, and over four years I progressed to Senior Digital Content Coordinator. Most of my time there was focused on marketing for the wider business, but my main passion was creating content for the VFL and QAFLW programs.

Alongside marketing, I also got involved in game-day operations, developing the online merchandise store, and assisting with the development of Fempro Armour for the women’s team — all while playing there myself. Outside of Sharks, I worked at a summer camp in North Carolina, USA, as a camp leader, overseeing 150 female campers aged 11–14 and a team of 30 staff, including leadership staff. That role taught me a lot of transferable skills around management, organisation, and communication.

Earlier in my career, I also umpired from a young age and completed an internship in Spain, which gave me great insight into professional sport.

All of these experiences together led me to my current role as Partnerships Coordinator at Cricket Australia, where I now combine my marketing, operational, and game-day experience to deliver high-quality experiences for partners and fans.

What challenges did you face to break into sport?

Breaking into sport has definitely been challenging. it’s such a competitive industry and there are usually so many people applying for the same roles. Early on, I found it tough keeping track of applications, dealing with rejections, and sometimes feeling like I wasn’t quite ready for certain roles.

Over time, I’ve learnt that it’s as much about who you know as what you know. You need to be able to show someone why you’d be a good fit for their team, but also hope they can see your potential. I’ve realised that persistence, networking, and proving your passion and capability are just as important as experience, and that mindset has helped me get to where I am today.

How did you decide what career direction to take?

It definitely took me a little while to realise this was the career path for me. I started in marketing, but I didn’t see it as a long-term goal. I love the creative side of sport, telling the story of a club, players, or the community, but I wanted to explore other areas within the industry.

Partnerships caught my interest because I’d dabbled in it during my time at the Sharks. I realised it offered more opportunities to build relationships and create projects that add value for everyone. I’ve always been fascinated by how businesses use sport to connect with people, and this role also gave me the chance to be involved in operations, which I really enjoy. Sport was always the right industry for me, but it took some time to find the part of it that truly excites me. Partnerships felt like the perfect fit.

What impact has networking had on your career?

What impact has networking played in your career? Networking has played a massive role in my career. I’ve been really fortunate to have relationships with people who genuinely want to look out for me and help me along the way. A lot of that started during my time at Southport Sharks. If it weren’t for my colleague Cam, I wouldn’t have known about SportsGrad as early as I did, and I knew it was a community I could lean on at some point in my career.

Even landing my role at Cricket Australia came down to being in the right environment and building connections. Reuben was hosting a house party around footy finals, and I had met a few people there, including Dante. I asked him about his role because it was something I wanted to do. I mentioned I was looking to move to Melbourne and get my foot in the door. As I was about to leave, they stopped me and asked if I’d be interested in Dante’s old role, they needed someone temporarily. I said yes, texted Reuben the next day, had a call with Nath early the following week, and within days I had an in-person interview and the job offer. Two days later, I flew down to Melbourne to start the role. It really showed me how being in the right environment, meeting the right people, and building genuine connections can completely change your career trajectory.

When you landed your job, what do you think made you stand out?

I think a big part of it came from the interview itself. At the end, I asked about the team environment and how everyone felt working there, it was a simple question, but it showed I cared about fitting into the team, not just the role. I could see they engaged with this question as well. I also made sure to highlight my experience, which I sometimes forget to mention, and shared that I’d studied abroad twice, in England and Spain, which gave me a point of difference. Combined with showing that I was there to contribute and help the team from day one, I think that’s what really made me stand out.

What advice would you give to your younger-self to help them take action?

I’d tell my younger self to keep finding ways to get experience and learn from those around you. I was lucky early on to have people I could learn from, but I also realised that if you don’t ask, you don’t get. Even just asking for opportunities to volunteer or for advice can go a long way. It’s important to take every chance to learn from others, build connections, and keep working towards your goals. And if you get stuck, that’s okay, it’s all part of the journey. One door might close, but another will open, so always be ready for those moments.

What’s your #1 ‘pinch me’ moment working in sport?

One of my biggest “pinch me” moments was working the Ashes at the MCG. Seeing the stadium full of fans and then getting the chance to take a group out onto the pitch was incredible. Just standing there, soaking in the atmosphere, made me really appreciate how special these experiences are.

What do you think your life would look like if you hadn't pursued a career in sport?

I probably would still be working in marketing in some capacity, but for a brand I wasn’t really passionate about. I’ve always loved the arts too, so maybe I would’ve ended up in the entertainment industry, working on concerts or shows or something like that. Or maybe I’d still be a barista, who knows, aha. Honestly, I can’t really imagine it, but I know I’d be missing the energy, excitement, and community that comes with working in sport.

Others you might like to learn from:

#338: From the AFL, to Cricket NT CEO at 29, to Executive GM at Cricket Australia with Joel Morrison

#337: How Dante beat 99% of Grads to land his dream job at Cricket Australia

#309: How I landed my dream job at Cricket Australia | Reuben Williams, Founder of SportsGrad