Journal articles

Journal Articles The purpose of this paper is to write a synopsis of two article pertaining to management and leadership in coaching with specific reference to sport coaching. For the purpose of this paper the first article that will be covered is Crust & Lawrence (2006) titled A Review of Leadership in Sport: Implications for Football Management. The paper served as a review of research in sport leadership and provides implications for effective football management. Some history of association football management is provided insofar as the paper highlights that the position of manager in the UK is similar to the position of athletic director/head coach in the United States. Although there is not much difference between a manger and a leader most football managers assume the role of maximizing the output of the sports team by effectively organizing, staffing and directing. Moreover, this paper sought to distinguish characteristics that would lead to the appointment of an effective manager to help direct the future success of a sports team. Unfortunately the paper did not distinguish a simple clear cut manager characteristic and postulated that effective management varies across player characteristics and the organizational environment. The next section of the paper distinguished leadership qualities. Quite simply leadership was defined as the attempt to influence others through a variety of mechanisms. Unfortunately the relationship between manager and player is complex and depends largely on the organizational goals (Maintaining team status for example). Without getting into too much detail the paper outlined a great deal of early research pertaining to traits and skills of effective leadership but what proved to be very effective was a strong degree of consistency. Interactional approaches to leadership was covered in brief yet stressed the importance of differentiating between task-oriented football managers and relationship oriented football managers. As a final important point, modern theories on a multidimensional model of leadership were covered and stressed the importance of actual, required and proffered behaviors. Finally the paper concluded with research pertaining to the coach athlete relationship stressing closeness, commitment and complementary attitudes. The second article that will be covered for the purpose of this paper is by Simon (2010) and is titled So You Want to Be a Player. The article focused on Heather LaVine and how she landed a new job with a minor league baseball team and what direction she wants to push the organization. Although LaVine had pursued a number of different careers in her life it was through pursuing a degree in sports management that she became introduced into the field of athletics management. Traditionally it was the case that many leadership roles and administrative positions within sports franchises were filled by former athletes which had the potential to lead to a number of different problems. It is through these studies that helped prepare young graduates for the rigors of such a demanding environment. Although often neglected by top candidates the demands of minor league baseball are parallel to that of professional baseball. LeVine landed this position with a minor league team because it was postulated that one can gain a good understanding of sports management & leadership though studies but one only becomes good through intense, long terms experience. While much of the article focused on the difficulties of breaking into sports management it is clear that there is a changing trend in sports leadership insofar as there is a more largely academic approach to organizational leadership. More and more people breaking into the field have an MBA or other academic background, more and more specialists are being produced in sports psychology, kinesiology, sports management and other athletic disciplines. What is interesting is that this direction to professionals filing the roles of sports organizations is a trend that closely resembles that of other professional organizations. References Crust, L & Lawrence, I. (December 2006) A Review of Leadership in Sport: Implications for Football Management. Athletic Insight Volume 8 Issue 4. [online] Available at http://www. athleticinsight. com/Vol8Iss4/FootballPDF. pdf Accessed on February 9th 2011. Simon, C (April 14th 2010) So You Want to Be a Player. New York Times [online] Available at http://www. nytimes. com/2010/04/18/education/edlife/18conted-t. html Accessed on February 9th 2011.