The true value of an industry event is not measured by how many business cards are exchanged — it’s measured by the relationships and results that follow long after the event ends.
For Towson University and EGYM, that value became clear when a connection first made at the Campus Rec Leadership Summit evolved into a formal partnership helping shape the future of campus recreation technology.
According to Grady Sheffield, the director of campus recreation at Towson University, his first exposure to EGYM happened not through a trade show floor or outbound sales pitch, but through the Summit’s intimate networking environment.
“I was introduced to EGYM at Summit,” said Sheffield. “I hadn’t heard of them… [Jonathan Besecker from EGYM] was there with this weird looking machine. I was like, what the heck is this? And then he told me about it and put me on it. And I was hooked.”
However, Sheffield said it wasn’t just the product itself that stood out — it was the environment in which the introduction occurred.
“Having the vendors there and interacting with us from the very beginning all the way through the end… led to more real conversations, deeper conversations than say at a trade show,” said Sheffield. “It’s more intimate in that way.”
That format is by design.
Unlike traditional conferences where attendees and vendors often engage in brief, transactional conversations, the Campus Rec Leadership Summit integrates partners into the full event experience — from roundtable discussions and meals to networking and dedicated demo sessions. The result is more authentic dialogue and stronger long-term relationship building.
For Jonathan Besecker, a senior account executive at EGYM, that proximity is what makes the Summit uniquely valuable.
“When you are a vendor at the Summit, you’re truly in the trenches with a lot of these directors,” said Besecker. “You get to be a part of the round tables. You get to hear their pain points… It creates a really intimate environment where we get to be kind of on the front lines with them and hear about their day-to-day and the problems they’re trying to solve.”
The relationship between Towson and EGYM did not materialize overnight.
In fact, Sheffield first discovered EGYM at one Summit before returning the following year with another Towson team member for a deeper evaluation.
“We saw EGYM two Summits ago… but we weren’t in a position where we were ready to do anything about it,” said Sheffield. “Then at last year’s Summit, one of our associate directors came with me. It allowed her the same opportunity to ask questions and get way deep into it. I don’t know that having not had that experience again, we would be sitting here today as a partner with EGYM.”
That repeat engagement underscores one of the Summit’s most powerful differentiators: the opportunity to build credibility over time.
“We very easily could have missed on that had we not gone back the next year,” said Besecker. “Part of it is you’ve got to continue to show up for the people that are there. They have to see that you’re invested in continuing that relationship over time.”
Today, Towson has successfully implemented EGYM into its recreation facility, launching the solution at the start of its semester in January.
According to Sheffield, the technology aligned with both the facility’s physical needs and broader wellness objectives.
“It’s allowing us to reduce a barrier to some students who may not want to come in and utilize the facility because they’re intimidated by the equipment,” said Sheffield. “EGYM helps solve that problem.”
For EGYM, Towson’s partnership represents more than a customer win — it’s part of a broader initiative to help shape the future of campus recreation.
“All of those [partners] are a huge part of how we will move forward,” said Besecker. “Just as much as we want to provide to the Campus Recs, they give back to us in shaping the future and how we can support specifically this demographic moving forward.”
For Sheffield, the Summit’s impact extends far beyond vendor discovery.
“There is no better professional development experience for executive level directors and even associate directors than Summit,” he said. “Nobody does director level impact in education and development like Campus Rec Summit does.”
And for vendors evaluating whether the event is worth their investment, Besecker’s perspective is straightforward:
“You’re speaking directly to the people who are in charge,” said Besecker. “There isn’t another format that allows you to be directly next to them in this setting for this amount of time.”
When asked to describe the Campus Rec Leadership Summit in one word, Sheffield answered: “Fantastic.”
Besecker’s word: “Collaborative.”
For both organizations, those words reflect more than the event itself — they reflect what can happen when the right people are placed in the right room, with enough time and trust to build something meaningful.
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