Oddly enough, I am not a sports follower, but two recent articles in the NYTimes (I am a daily NYTimes reader) caught my attention, particularly after our shared reading about Mr. Steinbrenner.
First, an article about the owner of the Jets, Woody Johnson. In 2000, using a fortune based on his Johnson and Johnson inheritance, he bought the Jets from the Hess estate. The article details Johnson's relatively low-key personality and how he has changed this in great part in order to serve the transformation of the Jets from second-tenant of another team's stadium into a marquee team garnering all the attention.
http://www.nytimes.com/2010/03/28/sports/football/28owner.html
Second, an article about the Wilpon family, father and son, who own the Mets. Fred first bought into the team in 1980, owned fifty percent since 1986, and has been the sole owner since 2002. The article is a criticism of the Wilpon's alleged interference with team management and suggests they find the best general manager and then let him alone to run the team.
http://www.nytimes.com/2010/10/05/sports/baseball/05vecsey.html
Both articles seem to have in common a human resources frame: the best approach to sports management seems to be to hire the best people (with a good fit to the organization) and then support them as they lead the team to success. Of course, perhaps this makes sense in team sports--how better to create a team than a focus on the human resources and management? Perhaps this was the point of the Steinbrenner article as well?
On the other hand, I have a feeling that we will find many connections between team sports and the symbolic frame as well.
Russell West Jr.
I have been mulling over all of the recent stories in articles and on the news but I have really taken issue with the role management plays in sports. Understandably a manager plays a significant role in team success but I feel like a lot of accountability is taken away from the players. Teams are constantly trading managers, and yes at times they trade players as well but there are cases in which the team lacks talent. In my opinion the knicks are a prime example. They have had some pretty high profile failures but there is still something missing. I do think the knicks need a great leader not just a manager, but many of the players lack the talent it takes to win the big one. The begging question remains, does the talent of the team depend solely on management. Players are making millions to perform. Teams who change management like that change clothes really need to evaluate other aspects of the teams short falls. As a leader my self I see the importance of my role in a successful team but I am leading people who have what it takes to lead others as well..
ReplyDeleteShawnta Washington
I'm so glad you guys commented on the role management plays in sports. The SF Giants, which the LA Times quoted (more or less) as having "virtually no offense" just won the NCLS championship and are headed to the World Series. Being from San Francisco, I've obviously taken an interest in this.
ReplyDeleteThere's an interesting article in the SF Chronicle about General Manager Brian Sabean (http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2010/10/25/SPC61G1D74.DTL) and how he led the team to the World Series through wise management decisions. I completely understand Shawnta's point about the importance of actual talent on the team and the Giants definitely have talent to go by however, the role Sabean played in making the decision that he would support the team's pitching staff with a strong bullpen instead of strengthening the offense is essentially what got them to the World Series. How well they actually do against a strong offensive team like the Rangers is yet to be seen. Still, I think it's important to note that Sabean stuck to his guns, building a team playing team as opposed to a group of individualistic all-stars. (Although that will be interesting to see too when the NBA season starts, with teams like the Celtics and the Miami Heat.)
The Giants win this weekend made me realize that "intuition" isn't really factored into good management practice. (Or is it? Maybe because it isn't something that's particularly quantifiable? I'm not really sure.) Nevertheless, I think a good sports manager has a strong intuition about what makes good team and knows that it requires more than just a group of talented players. There is a chemistry that needs to be there. The most remarkable part of the NLCS championship for me was at the end, when Cody Ross (a "cast-off" traded to the Giants) said that the teammates really support and play for each other. I think If a manager can create that kind of team, success is definitely attainable. But we'll see just how important this is when the World Series starts. Go Giants!!!
-Conchita Campos
I have never been a huge sports fan, but recently I've been following the NY Giants and their coach-Tom Coughlin. Sports teams and the management style of their owners, coaches and managers can in many ways equate to studying organizations, both public and private. Of course sports teams are private franchises, but in many ways they answer to the public for their failures, agenda, style. The fans and media unofficially drive their motivation, successes and of course the profit. So for example, when coach Coughlin's strict style was publicly frowned upon, he reinvented himself leading to a greatly improved team performance.
ReplyDelete"Despite the success on the field, Coughlin’s strict rules and coaching style were often criticized, sometimes publicly, by veteran players like Tiki Barber and Jeremy Shockey. The Giants discussed letting Coughlin go at the end of the 2006 season but retained him for one year. Coughlin made adjustments to his coaching style heading into the 2007 season and the Giants went on to defeat the heavily favored New England Patriots in Super Bowl XLII. — Justin Sablich, Aug. 27, 2008"
http://topics.nytimes.com/top/reference/timestopics/people/c/tom_coughlin/index.html
~Gabriela J.