Northern Arizona University head men\u2019s basketball coach\u00a0Shane Burcar\u00a0has announced the hiring of\u00a0Jon\u00a0Ahola\u00a0as the program\u2019s new Chief of Staff.\u00a0Ahola officially joined the Lumberjacks in August in preparation for the 2025-26 season.<\/p>\n
Ahola will serve the coaching staff in managing a wide range of responsibilities including leadership, name, image and likeness (NIL) opportunities, transfer portal management, recruit, family and alumni player relationships, professional player programs and program fundraising.<\/p>\n
Ahola\u00a0brings a distinguished background in business leadership to the NAU Basketball program. Most recently, he served as Vice President of Global Research and Development for the Stryker Trauma & Extremities Division. During this time,\u00a0Ahola\u00a0and his team oversaw the successful integration of Wright Medical, the largest acquisition in the company\u2019s history. His team also launched over 40 new products, streamlined R&D processes, cut new product\u00a0time to market and reduced overall R&D spend. Ahola has been very successful throughout his career at building large global and engaged teams, leading to multiple R&D awards and recognition.<\/p>\n
The hiring of Ahola, with his performance orientation and business\/financial acumen, puts the Lumberjacks at an elite level in the college basketball industry in recognizing the rapidly evolving landscape of collegiate athletics.<\/p>\n
\u201cThis move is critical to navigate the new landscape of college basketball in NIL, recruiting and player development,\u201d Burcar said. \u201cJon\u2019s passion to serve and lead people is well-documented by the many successful people he has influenced. With Jon\u2019s work ethic we will be able to create the vision of the NAU Men\u2019s Basketball Family we all desire. As evidenced by building multiple professional relationships over his 29-plus year career in the medical device industry, Jon will help our program contend for Big Sky Championships annually.\u201d<\/p>\n
In addition to his leadership roles at Stryker,\u00a0Ahola\u00a0served as the Executive Sponsor of Stryker\u2019s Emerging Professionals employee resource group, chaired Michigan Tech\u2019s Engineering Advisory Board, and completed multiple leadership development programs offered by Harvard University and Stryker. He graduated summa cum laude with a Bachelor of Science in Mechanical Engineering from Michigan Technological University.<\/p>\n
\u201cThank you to NAU for this incredible opportunity,\u201d\u00a0Ahola said. \u201cI couldn\u2019t be more excited to work with Coach Burcar, NAU alumni and the NAU Men\u2019s Basketball team to develop world class leaders on and off the court in our quest to win Big Sky Championships and entry to the NCAA Tournament! Let\u2019s Go \u2018Jacks!\u201d<\/p>\n