Olympic Sport Organisations in Times of Crisis and Change

Abstract

Modern management is strategic and purpose-driven and has often been neglected in sports organizations. Here, for the first time, in close cooperation with eleven National Olympic Committees and the EOC EU Office of Sport, a guide to strategic management for sports organizations is presented, which also includes crisis and change management and increases crisis resilience. It is aimed at all those interested in (sports) management of NPOs and Olympic organizations in particular. It is a good read and includes many workshops, case studies, examples and best practice applications. The authors have been researching sports management, Olympic research and sports communication for years.

Strategy development in times of crisis – How the European National Olympic Committees are mastering the corona crisis

“…So which strategic development tools can be applied to NOCs? The NOCs can be seen as representatives of Olympism within their respective territories or states and play an important role in spreading the Olympic values and the work of the Olympic Movement around the world (Preuss et al, 2022). Their functions include preparing athletes and teams for the Olympic Games, developing sport at all levels, training sports coaches and administrators and creating Olympic educational programs.…”

“…This means that the National Olympic Committees must always be considered in the context of the associated state. According to Preuss et al (2022), NOCs are facing various organizational, financial, technological, political and environmental challenges to date, making the application of strategic management essential to address them.…”

“…The opportunities, risks, strengths and weaknesses identified earlier form the basis for defining short-and long-term strategic fields of action. So, basically, a SWOT analysis is performed here, and the proposed steps also coincide with those from the non-profit and sports related literature (Bryson, 2018;Kong, 2008;Preuss et al, 2022). What remains unclear in Lanzer's framework is who exactly is involved in the strategy development process.…”

“…Regarding sports governing bodies, Camy and Robinson (2007, p. 64) suggested, that the Executive Board must be part of the process: "The strategic planning process should be coordinated and supervised by a senior Board member or a strategic committee that will act in concert with the Executive Board and any paid staff". Preuss et al (2022) recommend "a good mix of people, who know all about the different areas of the problems and are aware of the decision-making process and culture within the NOC". The sixth step involves creating a strategic roadmap, outlining specific projects and measures within the chosen strategic areas.…”

“…The tools and outputs to be developed will equip and support the NOCs in their daily operational management and thus improve their governance. This includes a guidebook which was designed to support the NOC in terms of strategic management (Preuss et al, 2022).…”