WHO WE ARE
We are a network of professionals working in diverse business areas who have a great passion for the sports of basketball. Organized as a non-profit initiative based on individuals, we apply our extensive business expertise and knowledge gained through multi-year working experience at different multinational organizations and companies to the practical problems of the European Basketball with the aim to increase the overall professionalism in the sports of basketball.
We see ourselves as an important liaison between the European Basketball and the business world. We do not intend to re-invent the wheel, therefore we only focus on proven methods, however are also knowledgeable enough about the sport of basketball in order to come up with new, creative ideas which are plausible, applicable and realistic.
INITIATORS
Cem C. Karamürsel
Born in 1977 in Istanbul/Turkey. Played basketball at junior/local level, was active as a basketball trainer and referee in Turkey and Germany. Has 16+ years of professional experience in the area of finance at multinational companies like NIKE, Coca-Cola and KPMG based in the USA, Germany and the Netherlands. Holds bachelor and master degrees in business administration majoring in finance and accounting from the University of Mannheim/ Germany and University of Marmara/Turkey. Completed EBI master program in 2012 in sports management and marketing organized by Euroleague and Ca’Foscari University/Italy. Is an active US-certified public accountant (CPA) and certified internal auditor. Married, father of two kids. Lives in Germany.
.
M. Orhan Töre
Born in 1971 in Berlin/Germany. Played basketball for 15+ years including professional level in the Turkish Basketball League for the clubs Eczacibasi/Istanbul and PTT/Ankara. Member of the Turkish Junior National Team and captain of Cavusoglu College Basketball Team. Selected as the Most Valuable Player among all high-school players in Turkey in 1988. Studied economics at Bilkent University/Turkey. Has more than 15 years of diversified experience in the fields of finance, accounting, tax, internal audit and compliance at a multinational, global leader medical devices company. Is a certified fraud examiner. Married and has two kids. Lives in Germany and still very passionate about playing basketball in a local league.
WHAT WE DO
We systematically analyze the current challenges of European Basketball and generate ideas and solution alternatives by using our business experience and knowledge combined with our passion for basketball.
We are interested in creative, practical and sustainable solutions that can be clearly understood by all stakeholders and implemented seamlessly. We cooperate with professionals with proven track record in their respective disciplines but also have a sports background.
We apply scientific and analytic methods, but also consider all relevant qualitative factors that might have an impact on the outcome. We are pragmatic and do not get lost in unnecessary/ irrelevant technical or theoretical details.
Our goal is to help European basketball organizations to reach a sustainable level of operations (including financial aspects) to increase the popularity of basketball in Europe. By doing so, we ultimately intend to have a positive impact on the overall basketball participation of the kids and youth.
HOW WE WORK
We contact leagues, clubs or federations proactively in case we believe that we are working (or could work) on a project whose outcome would add significant value to the respective organization. Alternatively, we can be contacted via our contact information which can be found on this website to discuss about a new project and find a way of cooperation to deliver the requested output. We have selected specific areas of focus to ensure the maximum outcome for the initiatives.
Regardless of whether we work on any project for you and/or your organization, we are very much interested in sharing our knowledge and ideas with you, improving our network within the basketball community but also benefit from your experiences and insights. Please contact us here.
We are a non-profit network based on individuals. We only recover our expenses spent on the preparation of the project work, i.e. engaging other experts and/or workforce e.g. to run surveys, data gathering and analytics, travel, hours spent on the project etc. but do not act with aim of generating a profit.
We are looking forward to getting in touch with you
Share your comments or questions with us. Let us know in case you are interested in obtaining more information about our areas of focus, projects or reports.