We couldn't have our excellent education without our sponsors and the projects they provide. Sponsors will only continue with us as they find their participation in Capstone to be valuable. The sponsor experience is greatly influenced by the coach so please do your best to support the sponsor.

Maintain communication with the sponsor

The single most important thing you can do to ensure a positive experience for the sponsor is to maintain regular communication with the sponsor. When communication is consistent, sponsors feel like part of the project and can deal much better with any challenges that arise.

Your first contact with the sponsor should be within a day or two after you are assigned your project. Please contact the liaison and introduce yourself. If possible, this contact should be by telephone rather than email. Ask some questions about the project. Collect any information that may help you to introduce the project to your team. Remind the liaison of the team assignment date, as shown on the Coach At-a-glance.

Your second sponsor contact should be with your team and will likely take place at the end of the Product Development Introduction. You may wish to contact the sponsor during the Product Development Introduction, but there won't be much time for visiting the sponsor at that time.

Help the team and liaison get acquainted. Get the project started on the right foot.

Throughout the course of the project, you should have regular communication with the liaison, both with and without the team. You and the liaison can work together to help the team succeed. If there are any concerns or problems with the sponsor, contact the External Relations Manager over your project.

Sponsor relationship with the team

The project sponsor carries a unique influence with the team. The students are aware that the sponsor has paid a fee, and that the liaison is a practicing professional. More than anybody else associated with Capstone, the students feel a significant responsibility to the sponsor. This sense of responsibility is a great motivator for the team.

This influence can be very helpful to the team and the success of the project. If you find something that the team should be doing, but they are too busy or distracted to heed your advice, you can ask the sponsor to make the request of the team. When the request comes from the sponsor, it can often carry much more weight than when it comes from the coach or the instructors.

The sponsor can be a great partner in helping the team succeed. Take advantage of this help.