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The Sports Strategist: Developing Leaders for a High-Performance Industry
In the $750 billion sports industry, is winning on-the-field the only success driver that matters for a sports business off-the-field? Today, the high-performance sports business is more complex than ever before and is presenting new challenges to the industry at all levels. Sports organizations are fighting hard for the money and engagement of fans, media, sponsors, and employees while facing unprecedented competition both domestically and internationally. The cost of doing business continues to rise, while traditional revenue streams are under increased pressure.
In The Sports Developing Leaders for a High-Performance Industry , authors Irving Rein, Ben Shields, and Adam Grossman demonstrate that relying too much on winning is a losing long-term strategy for dealing with these challenges. Instead, they argue that sports strategists must focus on building and growing sustainable long-term businesses without depending too much on winning. Their approach centers on identifying and maximizing key factors in sports organizations that, unlike winning, can be controlled and shaped.
Blending extensive industry experience and real-world case studies with their academic expertise, the authors arm readers with the combination of the necessary tools to help them make better strategic decisions. Everyone from industry veterans to aspirational managers will learn how to design identities, reinvigorate venue experiences, manage narratives, and maximize new technology in today's connected world. In addition, readers will explore how to implement business analytics, build public support, and apply ethics in decision-making. These techniques are vital to creating a successful sports organization that is ready to reap the benefits of winning when it does happen, without having to suffer when it does not.
The demand for innovative leaders who can address these issues and make tough decisions on which challenges to prioritize has never been greater. The Sports Strategist is an essential resource for anyone looking to thrive in the sports industry.
In The Sports Developing Leaders for a High-Performance Industry , authors Irving Rein, Ben Shields, and Adam Grossman demonstrate that relying too much on winning is a losing long-term strategy for dealing with these challenges. Instead, they argue that sports strategists must focus on building and growing sustainable long-term businesses without depending too much on winning. Their approach centers on identifying and maximizing key factors in sports organizations that, unlike winning, can be controlled and shaped.
Blending extensive industry experience and real-world case studies with their academic expertise, the authors arm readers with the combination of the necessary tools to help them make better strategic decisions. Everyone from industry veterans to aspirational managers will learn how to design identities, reinvigorate venue experiences, manage narratives, and maximize new technology in today's connected world. In addition, readers will explore how to implement business analytics, build public support, and apply ethics in decision-making. These techniques are vital to creating a successful sports organization that is ready to reap the benefits of winning when it does happen, without having to suffer when it does not.
The demand for innovative leaders who can address these issues and make tough decisions on which challenges to prioritize has never been greater. The Sports Strategist is an essential resource for anyone looking to thrive in the sports industry.
288 pages, Hardcover
First published January 1, 2014
17 people are currently reading
38 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews
July 21, 2014
The Sports Strategist: Developing Leaders for a High Performance Industry takes the reader into the quickly growing and evolving sports world. Now more than ever, the sporting landscape is crowded with competition for the increasingly precious sports fans dollar. This challenge has been increased by the fact that technology is increasingly making it easier for fans not to come to games. The Sports Strategist is all about dealing with the challenges that this new world of sports defined by increased technology and competition.
This book reads like the fairly well known business book Good to Great by Jim Collins for the sports world. The authors are very clear on needing to have vision for your sports organization, no matter the sport and evaluating potential decision on the basis of that vision. There is also a chapter on the danger of technology—both hastily adopting the newest latest and greatest technology when it really does not fit with your organizations needs and the clumsy use of platforms like Twitter by athletes.
Yet, this book is also different because it contains several chapters on challenges unique to the sports industry. These include: conflict management for when your athletes misstep, ethics in sports, and perhaps most importantly the chapter on sports landscaping which discusses ways that sports teams can better include the public and local community in its efforts to achieve things such as new stadiums so that new projects actually help the community as promised, rather than just becoming a costly multi-million dollar tax payer funded expense that benefits the team alone. This multi-million dollar expense is unacceptable in these times.
A fascinating look at a developing industry.
This book reads like the fairly well known business book Good to Great by Jim Collins for the sports world. The authors are very clear on needing to have vision for your sports organization, no matter the sport and evaluating potential decision on the basis of that vision. There is also a chapter on the danger of technology—both hastily adopting the newest latest and greatest technology when it really does not fit with your organizations needs and the clumsy use of platforms like Twitter by athletes.
Yet, this book is also different because it contains several chapters on challenges unique to the sports industry. These include: conflict management for when your athletes misstep, ethics in sports, and perhaps most importantly the chapter on sports landscaping which discusses ways that sports teams can better include the public and local community in its efforts to achieve things such as new stadiums so that new projects actually help the community as promised, rather than just becoming a costly multi-million dollar tax payer funded expense that benefits the team alone. This multi-million dollar expense is unacceptable in these times.
A fascinating look at a developing industry.
July 7, 2014
Reviewed on http://www.batsarenotbugs.com/2014/07...
At some point in every fan's life the curtain gets peeled back and they realize that their beloved sports franchises are not single-minded entities completely devoted to on-field success. They employ accountants and business managers, have substantial advertising budgets, and eagerly engage in as many sponsorships as possible/legally permitted. Ultimately, as a result of the increasing popularity of sports and some absolutely ridiculous broadcasting agreements has seen the industry balloon into a $750 billion business. In The Sports Strategist, Irving Rein, a communications professor at Northwestern, Ben Shields, the former head of social media at ESPN, and Adam Grossman, a consultant that has worked with the likes of the Minnesota Timerwolves and head of a sports analytics firm, have written a readable and entertaining guide to navigating the growing complexities of sports business and developing plans for financial success without relying completely on winning. It provides a wealth of information to those working in or looking to break into the field but also makes for an enlightening read for general sports fans looking to better understand the business side of things.
The book is primarily concerned with making money from off-field endeavors. While they acknowledge the importance of winning, (sometimes anyway, there are plenty of examples of good teams in dire financial straits and vice versa and a 2009 study by Kirk Wakefield at Baylor found that current season winning percentage trailed stadium quality and star players as factors that impacted attendance for MLB games), corporate officers, marketing teams, and their ilk have little direct control over such factors. Thus, personnel matters are largely pushed to the background and the authors examine broader business strategies related to topics such as public relations, stadium experience, and branding.
The Sports Strategist is mainly comprised of relevant case studies relating to the current major subjects in the industry, from marketing strategies to currying municipal favor for stadium funding and other matters. The book is broad in scope, covering all levels of athletics from high school to professional and leagues ranging from the English Premier League to single A baseball. The prose is rather jargon-free and while I was familiar with some of their examples, some of the cases were new and fascinating to me. Learning about tactics such as Northwestern using the Dutch auction model to price college basketball tickets and the Cleveland Indians' clever Lunch and Three Innings promotion to attract downtown office workers made the book worthwhile. All key takeaways are lucidly explained and sometimes concepts are codified into useful models that readers can apply to their own experiences. My only real criticism is that this wide-ranging "breadth over depth" approach left me wishing for more detail in certain passages.
I should mention that I generally stray away from business books (I like to spend my leisure time in a less "work"-y fashion) and I don't work in sports. I picked The Sports Strategist up because I find sports business interesting and have always enjoyed the Wall Street Journal and Economist articles highlighting the innovative ways teams and leagues are trying to maximize profits. I was looking to learn more about the subject and The Sports Strategist delivered on that premise. I gained insight into how sports teams try to attract fans, control social media catastrophes and handle other business matters and was entertained throughout.
Additionally, many of the broad concepts promoted in the book are applicable to other industries. The authors emphasize more general strategies such as the importance of differentiation, ensuring all employee teams are on the same page, utilizing technology effectively, and meeting problems with a holistic approach, things that are certainly important outside the athletic realm. More business-minded readers can get a good bit out of the book (especially from some innovative ways teams have utilized new technologies) even if they work outside of sports.
In Sum
The Sports Strategist was a surprisingly engaging look into the sports industry. While it seems mainly designed for managers inside and outside sports to develop successful strategies, it also provides a readable overview of the inventive methods teams are using to ensure financial success for anyone looking to learn more on the subject.
8/10
At some point in every fan's life the curtain gets peeled back and they realize that their beloved sports franchises are not single-minded entities completely devoted to on-field success. They employ accountants and business managers, have substantial advertising budgets, and eagerly engage in as many sponsorships as possible/legally permitted. Ultimately, as a result of the increasing popularity of sports and some absolutely ridiculous broadcasting agreements has seen the industry balloon into a $750 billion business. In The Sports Strategist, Irving Rein, a communications professor at Northwestern, Ben Shields, the former head of social media at ESPN, and Adam Grossman, a consultant that has worked with the likes of the Minnesota Timerwolves and head of a sports analytics firm, have written a readable and entertaining guide to navigating the growing complexities of sports business and developing plans for financial success without relying completely on winning. It provides a wealth of information to those working in or looking to break into the field but also makes for an enlightening read for general sports fans looking to better understand the business side of things.
The book is primarily concerned with making money from off-field endeavors. While they acknowledge the importance of winning, (sometimes anyway, there are plenty of examples of good teams in dire financial straits and vice versa and a 2009 study by Kirk Wakefield at Baylor found that current season winning percentage trailed stadium quality and star players as factors that impacted attendance for MLB games), corporate officers, marketing teams, and their ilk have little direct control over such factors. Thus, personnel matters are largely pushed to the background and the authors examine broader business strategies related to topics such as public relations, stadium experience, and branding.
The Sports Strategist is mainly comprised of relevant case studies relating to the current major subjects in the industry, from marketing strategies to currying municipal favor for stadium funding and other matters. The book is broad in scope, covering all levels of athletics from high school to professional and leagues ranging from the English Premier League to single A baseball. The prose is rather jargon-free and while I was familiar with some of their examples, some of the cases were new and fascinating to me. Learning about tactics such as Northwestern using the Dutch auction model to price college basketball tickets and the Cleveland Indians' clever Lunch and Three Innings promotion to attract downtown office workers made the book worthwhile. All key takeaways are lucidly explained and sometimes concepts are codified into useful models that readers can apply to their own experiences. My only real criticism is that this wide-ranging "breadth over depth" approach left me wishing for more detail in certain passages.
I should mention that I generally stray away from business books (I like to spend my leisure time in a less "work"-y fashion) and I don't work in sports. I picked The Sports Strategist up because I find sports business interesting and have always enjoyed the Wall Street Journal and Economist articles highlighting the innovative ways teams and leagues are trying to maximize profits. I was looking to learn more about the subject and The Sports Strategist delivered on that premise. I gained insight into how sports teams try to attract fans, control social media catastrophes and handle other business matters and was entertained throughout.
Additionally, many of the broad concepts promoted in the book are applicable to other industries. The authors emphasize more general strategies such as the importance of differentiation, ensuring all employee teams are on the same page, utilizing technology effectively, and meeting problems with a holistic approach, things that are certainly important outside the athletic realm. More business-minded readers can get a good bit out of the book (especially from some innovative ways teams have utilized new technologies) even if they work outside of sports.
In Sum
The Sports Strategist was a surprisingly engaging look into the sports industry. While it seems mainly designed for managers inside and outside sports to develop successful strategies, it also provides a readable overview of the inventive methods teams are using to ensure financial success for anyone looking to learn more on the subject.
8/10
December 4, 2014
With teams worth one billion dollars or more, sports has become a huge business. No longer a hobby for businessmen who own other businesses, sports stands on its own and requires executives who understand the business world and the difference between owning a team and owning a newspaper, for example. The Sports Strategist helps those in the business or interested in getting into the sports business.
The book starts with an introduction to the sports business and shows how winning by itself is not a key to sports success. It discusses teams that have been perennial winners and yet lost money (one, the Glasgow Rangers, even went bankrupt although setting a record for most championships) and other teams like the Chicago Cubs that were more profitable when they were losers. The book then discusses several topics, each which is given a chapter. These include, Designing an Identity, Mastering New Technologies, Developing Public Support, and Crafting a Crisis Blueprint. The authors explain, for example, that having a successful player may help to get people into the stands but it also carries risks if something happens with that player to drive fans away. Being prepared for the worst is always the best. The authors also dedicate a chapter to the importance of ethics in the sports business and give several cases where getting less money upfront (not signing a deal with a controversial company, for example) can lead to greater money and less problems in the long run.
Overall, this book is an excellent introduction to the sports business even if you don't have a business degree. It uses a lot of case studies to help you understand what went wrong and what went right in the sports business world. If you are teaching or taking a sports business class this could make a great a supplemental text book. Highly recommended.
The book starts with an introduction to the sports business and shows how winning by itself is not a key to sports success. It discusses teams that have been perennial winners and yet lost money (one, the Glasgow Rangers, even went bankrupt although setting a record for most championships) and other teams like the Chicago Cubs that were more profitable when they were losers. The book then discusses several topics, each which is given a chapter. These include, Designing an Identity, Mastering New Technologies, Developing Public Support, and Crafting a Crisis Blueprint. The authors explain, for example, that having a successful player may help to get people into the stands but it also carries risks if something happens with that player to drive fans away. Being prepared for the worst is always the best. The authors also dedicate a chapter to the importance of ethics in the sports business and give several cases where getting less money upfront (not signing a deal with a controversial company, for example) can lead to greater money and less problems in the long run.
Overall, this book is an excellent introduction to the sports business even if you don't have a business degree. It uses a lot of case studies to help you understand what went wrong and what went right in the sports business world. If you are teaching or taking a sports business class this could make a great a supplemental text book. Highly recommended.
July 10, 2019
2.9 Stars. This was optional reading for my Sport Strategist class, and I decided to give it a shot. I thoroughly enjoyed the first 5 chapters of the book, but as I kept reading, the book just got harder and harder to get through. The last 4 chapters took much longer than it should have, and everything seemed to get repetitive and frankly a little boring. Nevertheless, good information and well written.
July 8, 2016
Can sports franchises bilk fans out of money without winning? Why, yes, they can. Here's how.
July 19, 2021
Great book
New trends supported by really world examples.
New trends supported by really world examples.
Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews