Understanding Sport Organizations

Trevor Slack, PhD, was the Canada research chair of the International Institute for the Study of Sport Management at the University of Alberta in Edmonton. He was widely published in major sport and organization journals and was a keynote speaker at conferences on sport organizations around the world. He was editor of the Journal of Sport Management and the European Journal of Sport Management, and he served on the editorial board of several journals related to sport management. Slack was awarded numerous grants for social science and humanities research projects. In 1995, he presented the Zeigler Lecture, the leading lecture in sport management, and in 2001, he was awarded a Canada research chair for his work in sport management. Trevor Slack passed away in January 2016. Terri Byers, PhD, is an associate professor at the University of New Brunswick, Canada. She was previously a principal lecturer at Coventry University, and she has taught in higher education in the United Kingdom for almost 20 years. She is widely published in journals, books, and online forums. She is currently working on projects related to managing innovation in sport organizations, using innovation (virtual reality) to create positive legacy from Paralympic Games, and managing diversity in sport organizations. Byers has collaborated with colleagues from around the globe and has been granted research funding from the European Union and Canada for her research in sport management. She takes an innovative and creative approach to projects and believes that students of sport management should always challenge existing practices to constantly improve the sport environment for diverse populations. Alex Thurston, PhD, completed his PhD in analysis of sport policy implementation and is currently teaching several modules across the sport management degrees at Loughborough University in the United Kingdom. He leads the Introduction to Sport Management module and supervises undergraduate and postgraduate dissertation project students. In 2019, Loughborough was ranked number one in the QS World University Rankings for sports-related subjects for the third consecutive year, receiving a 5-star rating. Thurston has a growing list of publications and has presented at conferences all around the world. He also delivered Trevor Slack’s final two keynote speeches: one at the EASM conference in Coventry, England (2014), and the other at the NASSM conference in Ottawa, Canada (2015). Outside of academia, Thurston has more than 10 years of swimming coaching experience. He completed a two-way English Channel relay swim, became a double European champion in 2016, and holds an age-group world record.

Part I. Introducing Sport Management

Chapter 1. The Management of Sport Organizations
Trevor Slack, PhD, and Alex Thurston, PhD
Why Sport Managers Need to Understand the Complexity of the Sport Industry
Some Definitions
Ways to Look at Sport Organizations
Future Directions for Sport Management and Improving Our Understanding of Sport Organizations

Chapter 2. Doing Research in Sport Management
Trevor Slack, PhD, and Terri Byers, PhD
The Research Process
Theoretical Framework
The So-Called Debate on Qualitative-Quantitative or Mixed-Methods Research
Research Design
Data Collection Methods and Issues
Data Analysis Methods
Issues of Quality
The Write-Up

Part II. Fundamentals of Managing Sport Organizations

Chapter 3. Organizational Goals and Effectiveness
Trevor Slack, PhD, and Terri Byers, PhD
Importance of Understanding Organizational Goals and Effectiveness
Organizational Goals
Effectiveness or Efficiency
Approaches to Studying Organizational Effectiveness

Chapter 4. Sport Organizations and Their Environments
Trevor Slack, PhD, and Terri Byers, PhD
The Nature of the Organizational Environment
Research on Organizational Environments
Controlling Environmental Uncertainty
Other Perspectives on the Organization–Environment Relationship
The Relationship Between an Organization’s Environment and Its Structure

Chapter 5. Dimensions of Organizational Structure
Trevor Slack, PhD, and Alex Thurston, PhD
Complexity
Formalization
Centralization

Chapter 6. Design Options in Sport Organizations
Trevor Slack, PhD, and Alex Thurston, PhD
Typologies and Taxonomies
Mintzberg’s Configurations
The Simple Structure
The Machine Bureaucracy
The Divisionalized Form
The Professional Bureaucracy
Adhocracy
Organizational Designs as Ideal Types
Notes on Organizational Size
Contemporary Perspectives on Organizational Design

Chapter 7. Sport Organizations and Their Responses to Policy
Spencer Harris, PhD
Defining Policy
Studying Organizational Responses to Sport Policy

Chapter 8. Strategy in Sport Organizations
Trevor Slack, PhD, James Andrew Kenyon, PhD, and Argyro Elisavet Manoli, PhD
What Is Organizational Strategy?
Levels of Strategy
Strategy Formulation and Implementation
Strategy and Structure
Strategy in Voluntary Sport Organizations

Chapter 9. Sport Marketing
Frank Pons, PhD, Marilyn Giroux, PhD, and Lionel Maltese, PhD
Marketing of Sport: Spectator Sports, Branding, and Merchandising
Marketing Through Sport: Sponsorship, Activation, and Venue Naming

Part III. Dynamics and Complexity of Managing Sport

Chapter 10. Control in Sport Organizations
Terri Byers, PhD, Alex Thurston, PhD, and Phillip Lunga, MBA
Evolution of Control
Elements, or Components, of Control
Sport Management Research on Control

Chapter 11. Gender and Sport Organizations
Berit Skirstad, MS
Concepts of Sex and Gender in Sport
Historical Development of Women in Sport and Sport Organizations
Barriers for Women to Overcome in Sport
Theoretical Approaches Explaining Underrepresentation of Women in Sport
Gender Equity Policies in Sport

Chapter 12. Volunteers in Sport Organizations
Graham Cuskelly, PhD
Sport Volunteerism Defined
Size, Nature, and Scope of Volunteering in Sport
Volunteer Life Cycle
Organizational Commitment
Psychological Contract and Volunteers
Volunteer Management
Volunteers and Paid Staff

Chapter 13. Governance of Sport Organizations
Borja GarcÌa, PhD
Theoretical Frameworks
The Autonomy of Sport and the Role of the State in Sport Governance
The Assessment of Governance

Chapter 14. Decision Making in Sport Organizations
Trevor Slack, PhD, and Alex Thurston, PhD
Defining Decision Making
Conditions Under Which Decisions Are Made
Approaches to Understanding Decision Making

Chapter 15. Power and Politics in Sport Organizations
Trevor Slack, PhD, and Alex Thurston, PhD
Strategic Choice
Power and Authority
Sources of Power
Other Notable Interpretations of Power
Power in Sport Management Research
Organizational Politics
Politics in Sport Management Research

Chapter 16. Managing Conflict in Sport Organizations
Trevor Slack, PhD, and Terri Byers, PhD
What Is Conflict?
Horizontal and Vertical Conflict
Is Conflict Dysfunctional to the Operation of a Sport Organization?
The Conflict Process
Sources of Conflict in Sport Organizations
Conflict Management Strategies
Stimulating Conflict
Current Research About Conflict in Sport Organizations

Chapter 17. Managing Culture in Sport Organizations
Trevor Slack, PhD, and Terri Byers, PhD
Organizational Culture Compared to Climate
Manifestations of a Sport Organization’s Culture
Thick and Thin Cultures
One or More Cultures
Organizational Culture and Effectiveness
Creating, Managing, and Changing a Sport Organization’s Culture

Chapter 18. Organizational Change in Sport
Trevor Slack, PhD, and Alex Thurston, PhD
The Concept of Change
Change as Paradox
Perspectives on Organizational Change
What Causes Organizational Change?
Resistance to Change
Dealing With Resistance and Implementing Change
Stages of the Change Process
Innovation in Sport Organizations

Chapter 19. Leadership and Sport Organizations
Trevor Slack, PhD, and Terri Byers, PhD
Traditional Approaches to Leadership
Charismatic and Transformational Leadership
Modern Approaches to Leadership: Beyond Idealistic Views of Leaders

Part IV. Contemporary Issues in Sport Organizations

Chapter 20. Mental Health and Sport Organizations
Meghan Thurston, DClin Psy, PhD, Jon Arcelus, LMS, GP(T), FRCPsych, PhD, and Alex Thurston, PhD
An Introduction to Mental Health
Classification Systems
Factors That Contribute to Mental Health Difficulties in Sport
Mental Health Difficulties
Management of Mental Health Difficulties in Sport
Role of Mental Health Professionals in Sport

Chapter 21. Technology in Sport Organizations
Trevor Slack, PhD, and Andy Miah, PhD
Research on Technology and Organizations
Critiques of the Technology Imperative
Microelectronic Technologies
Relationship Between Technology and Organizational Structure

Chapter 22. Sports Analytics
Bill Gerrard, DPhil
The Nature of Sports Analytics
Moneyball: The Game Changer
Analytics in Invasion Team Sports
Other Applications of Analytics in Sports Organizations

Chapter 23. Corporate Social Responsibility and Sport Organizations
Christos Anagnostopoulos, PhD, and Jonathan Robertson, PhD
Corporate Social Responsibility
Theoretical Perspectives of CSR
Multilevel Approach for CSR and Sport Organizations

Chapter 24. Procurement and Sport Organizations
Sue Arrowsmith, QC (hon), DJur
A Multidisciplinary Perspective
Introduction to Procurement and Its Significance for Sport Organizations
Objectives of the Procurement Process
Transparency and Competitive Bidding
Procurement for Sporting Events
Procurement by Sport Federations