• Aerodynamics • Business • Chassis • Composites •
• Controls • Electrical • Powertrain • Suspension •
Business
The business subsystem manages all non-engineering aspects of the team. This includes order schedules, subsystem budgets, sponsor acquisition, and social media and public relations management. The business team also organizes travel itineraries, documents submissions for competitions, and designs competition/team uniforms.
What We Do
The role of this business subsystem is to make sure that GT Motorsports and its engineers can continue to develop competitive and well-designed vehicles. As a non-profit organization, GT Motorsports is funded through the assistance of the Woodruff Mechanical Engineering School, the Student Government Foundation, and the Sponsors that are represented on this website. As a result, the business subsystem must uphold professional relationships with these organizations.
Technical Information
The business subsystem must obtain reliable sources of revenue so the team can make its necessary purchases. One of the most important roles of the business subsystem is to manage the team’s budget. At the beginning of each year, a budget is developed to create a breakdown of the year's expenses based on the designs that are created for the vehicle. From these numbers, subsystem budgets are derived and subsystem leads are responsible for using those monies appropriately. Generally, the business subsystem helps these leads throughout the year to ensure monies are used appropriately for the leads' desired design goals.
In addition to creating these budgets, the business subsystem must also monitor the team's current balances and make decisions about when purchasing should be made. This is a result of how the team gets money. Sponsors do not donate money at the same time. Different companies will make their donations throughout the year, which results in a team balance that can fluctuate throughout the year. Therefore it is vital to maintain proper relations with sponsors and continually seek out prospective sponsors.
In addition to managing sponsor relations, the team must successfully coordinate marketing tactics to best promote the team across social media and the school. Business designs t-shirts, polos, and jackets for each competition year, follows through on sponsor benefits packages, and maintains the team’s social media and website to apprise alumni and sponsors of progress. Any material posted should present the team positively and professionally and reflect well on the team and Georgia Tech as a whole.
Future Goals and Projects
The business subsystem goals are the same as they have always been: ensure the financial stability of the team and make our sponsors happy. With more members now joining the Business subsystem, it is possible to begin and maintain more projects such as quarterly newsletters, improvements to the team’s office, promotional videos, re-painting the teams trailer, etc.