Martin Sheppard FCIMPSA, MSAPIA

Martin Sheppard FCIMPSA, MSAPIA

Melbourne, Victoria, Australia
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  • Contact Martin for services

    Business Consulting, Corporate Events, Technical Support, Strategic Planning, and Project Management

About

As the Managing Director of Smart Connection Consultancy, I have over nine years of experience in providing strategic advice and operational solutions to the sport and recreation market and the local / State government sectors. My core competencies include feasibility studies, business improvement assessments, and synthetic surfaces, where I am recognised as the industry leader in Australia.

I am also the Chair of ActiveXchange Australia & NZ, a company that is shaping a data driven approach to planning, investment and delivery across community sport, leisure, aquatics and fitness. Additionally, I am the Chair of the Playing Surfaces Expert Circle at IAKS, the leading global non-profit organisation for professionals from the sports and leisure facilities industry. I am passionate about knowledge sharing, global collaboration and advocacy for the industry, and I have authored The Smart Guides to Synthetic Sports Surfaces, which are the only independent and comprehensive resource of its kind available within Australia. My mission is to enable synthetic surface technology to create the opportunity for the next generation of sport participation and physical activity.

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Experience

  • ActiveXchange APAC Graphic

    ActiveXchange APAC

    Sydney, New South Wales, Australia

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    Essendon, Victoria, Australia

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    Melbourne, Victoria, Australia

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    Melbourne, Australia

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    North Melbourne, Victoria

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    Australia

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    New South Wales, Australia

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    Melbourne, Australia

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Education

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    Activities and Societies: Vice Captain Athletics Team

    Hall President

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Volunteer Experience

  • High Jump Athletics Coach

    Athetics Essendon

    - Present 14 years 8 months

    We have a small but successful group of young athletes that are prepared to train to make a difference, they are passionate about getting the most out of their potential. My role is to guide, mentor and facilitate them to achieve that by providing them with a supportive while challenging environment; fun while disciplined focus; and a balance between sport, home, school and family.

    We strive to keep the group to about 12 people and this year the goal is to have Personal Bests for all of…

    We have a small but successful group of young athletes that are prepared to train to make a difference, they are passionate about getting the most out of their potential. My role is to guide, mentor and facilitate them to achieve that by providing them with a supportive while challenging environment; fun while disciplined focus; and a balance between sport, home, school and family.

    We strive to keep the group to about 12 people and this year the goal is to have Personal Bests for all of them and to have 75% achieve podium finishes at State Champs, and 50% to reach National Championships and to have 3 Podium finishes. Last year we had 4 national age group champions - great group of athletes

Publications

  • The Smart Guides to Synthetic Sports Surfaces

    The highly regarded Smart Guides for Synthetic Sports Surfaces are the only independent and comprehensive resource of its kind available within Australia, and are conveniently packaged into five easy to navigate volumes, as follows:

    Volume 1: Surfaces and Standards – sharing the latest standards of all the key sports, how the synthetic systems are constructed, whole of life costings for synthetic grass, rubber and acrylic surfaces.

    Volume 2: Football Turf - Synthetic and Hybrid –…

    The highly regarded Smart Guides for Synthetic Sports Surfaces are the only independent and comprehensive resource of its kind available within Australia, and are conveniently packaged into five easy to navigate volumes, as follows:

    Volume 1: Surfaces and Standards – sharing the latest standards of all the key sports, how the synthetic systems are constructed, whole of life costings for synthetic grass, rubber and acrylic surfaces.

    Volume 2: Football Turf - Synthetic and Hybrid – exploring how the latest technology has been embraced by all codes of football, including Aussie Rules, Rugby Union, Rugby League as well as Football (Soccer).

    Volume 3: Environmental and Sustainability Considerations – exploring key environmental issues including microplastics, recycling and green engineering as well as how to embrace sustainability principles.

    Volume 4: Challenges, Perceptions and Reality – an independent review of all the global research on key challenges around synthetic surfaces including player safety and injuries, environmental considerations, health concerns and heat.

    Volume 5: Maintenance of Synthetic Long Pile Turf – exploring FIFA research with practical examples for Australia and the importance of maintenance linked to the intensity of usage.

    As part of Martin's continued commitment to knowledge sharing, collaboration and advocacy to the industry, The Smart Guides can be downloaded FREE of charge from the Smart Connection Consultancy website.

    See publication

  • The Smart Guide to Synthetic Sports Fields Rubber Infill

    Smart Connection Consultancy

    The Smart Guide to Synthetic Sports Fields Rubber Infill provides a review of all the evidence to date on the various infills, the perceptions around their dangers and the realities with recommendations on how to reduce risk by specifying independent standards

    See publication

  • The Smart Guide to Maintaining Synthetic Sports Turf (Long Pile)

    Self Published

    The A-Z of maintenance of 3G synthetic sports surfaces, you can access it free of charge from our website (I-Library section)

    Other authors
    • alastair Cox
    See publication

  • The Smart Guide to Synthetic Surfaces (Edition 3)

  • The Smart Guide to Tendering

    ALM

  • The Smart Guide to Best Value

  • The Sm

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Honors & Awards

  • ARV Beau Repair Industry Recognition Award

    Aquatics and Recreation Victoria

    In recognition to the community sport and aquatic industry over 40 years and the last 25 in Melbourne

  • Parks and Leisure Australia (Vic/Tas) 2015 Reseach Award Winner

    Parks and Leisure Australia (Vic/Tas)

    Honoured by my peers for recognising the work we did in the development of the Smart Guide to Synthetic Surfaces (3rd Edition) which we provided free of charge to every local government and sports organisation in Australia so that they could appreciate the benefits of synthetic sports surfaces to grow sports participation.

Organizations

  • Chartered Institute of Management of Sport and Physical Activity

    Fellow

    - Present

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