Last week’s blog, Professional Sports vs. Olympic Sports, examined a variety of topics surrounding sports and generated some great comments. I’d like to take it a step further this week. Let’s examine some of the same questions as before but from a slightly different angle…how does society embrace or reject the values of sports in BUSINESS?

Last week I compared professional sports with Olympic sports and commented, “In today’s world, with free-agents and the reality of ‘sports as a business’ there can be something lacking in terms of player and fan loyalty…the Olympics seem to have a sense of innocence or purity that doesn’t exist in professional sports…we could all use a little of those qualities in our everyday life, regardless of the profession in which we work.”

While most people are painfully aware of the need to work in order to pay the bills it seems as if many businesses have forgotten about the high cost associated with compromising a company’s integrity and reputation. We all know that we should be thankful to have a job during tough economic times. However, many business leaders and administrators seem to have forgotten that not everyone is willing to sell their soul in exchange for their paycheck. In fact, some people are even willing to get paid less money if it means they can be happier in their work environment!

Maybe Bryan Heasley is correct in noting, “…players play with more pride and joy when they are playing for their countries…players know that the Olympics are only a couple weeks and you can be eliminated with one loss.” Over time, people tend to slack off, not work as hard or simply change their focus from achieving new goals to maintaining the status quo.

As Matt Altemose posted, “Although professional athletes grow up wanting to play in the big leagues…once they reach that level…they tend not to play for the team or are just all about themselves.” Even Tiger Woods’ recent actions seem to indicate a greater concern for individual wants/needs then a commitment to the ideals and standards which brought him into the limelight in the first place.

It is not much different in the field of business. There is an old saying that you have to “pay your dues” and “work up the ladder” until you have earned the right to receive certain benefits. Many professions have periods of apprenticeship or training where the newly hired must do more than a fair share of the “grunt work” before earning the privilege to delegate undesirable tasks to others.

But does this make such behaviors right? Isn’t it our professional obligation to teach the “young ones the ropes?” Don’t we WANT people within our own organizations to be successful and contribute to the overall well-being of the company? Why are some people so absorbed with their own careers that they can’t see the big picture, the idea that the entire TEAM wins when individuals are able to achieve? Isn’t Matt’s other statement also true in that, “professional sports players understand that it requires…the me-first attitude…take a backseat?”

What do you think? In what ways do we apply the lessons of sports to the real world? Is it possible to use professional sports in America as a vehicle to inspire others towards attaining excellence in ways other than competition, prestige and profits? How can we take some of the focus away from a company’s bottom line and put the emphasis on recognizing the value of an individual’s contribution to the total organization? Again, maybe I’m wrong and nothing needs to change. However, it seems to me that if a company expects the employees to “do the right thing” and “work in the organization’s best interests” then it is inevitable that employees must be given a reasonable amount of responsibility and freedom. As Grace Hooper Murray is credited for saying, “leadership is a two-way street, loyalty up, and loyalty down. Respect for one’s superiors; care for one’s crew.” I think it is morally wrong to demand loyalty from your employees if the organization itself is not providing employees with respect…what do you think?

I have been publishing this blog for a little over a year now; I must admit I am surprised by the variety it contains. Each article addresses issues, people, events and information I consider pertinent to sport management professionals, business leaders, athletes, sport enthusiasts, high school/college students and their parents. Some are inspired by events in my personal life (especially my two daughters), by my interactions with students/alumni/colleagues (I am a sport management professor) and by the events and circumstances of everyday life. My goal is to provide content that helps readers look at things from a different perspective and enables individuals to learn while being entertained.

For this week’s blog I’d like to get your input.

• What types of topics do you enjoy the most?
• What issues would you like to see covered in upcoming posts?
• Do you have any questions about sport management at the college level or in the “real world” of business?
• Is there an area I have not yet covered that you feel should be examined and discussed?

This is your specific invitation to let me know what you want to see from me on this site. Please remember that I am always open to suggestions or comments—I am just taking this week to especially focus upon your thoughts and ideas. To make things easier and to serve as an overview (especially for those relatively new to the blog), I have organized past postings into categories. I am sure there is a better way to do this (feel free to share suggestions) but here goes anyway.

Listed below are the topics from the past year and the month in which you can find the original post within the archives. Please respond with your thoughts, ideas and suggestions for the future…I’m serious…let me know what you think and what you want in the future and I will do what I can to accommodate your wishes. In the meantime, thanks for reading and joining in on the conversation!

For All Readers
1st Time for Everything (March 2009)
A Different Perspective (April 2009)
I am _____? (January 2010)
Make a Positive Lasting Impression (October 2009)
Motivation (June 2009)
Peopling (September 2009)
Planning for Success (February 2009)
Preparation, Reaction, Change (March 2009)
Success (December 2009)
Taking Responsibility (July 2009)
Tips for Landing a Job (May 2009)
What do you read? (February 2010)

Networking and Social Media
10 Tips for Twitter Networking (August 2009)
Basic Networking Tips (January 2009)
How can Twitter help me? (April 2009)
Networking and Fantasy Football (September 2009)

Issues for College Students
Easing the Transition between High School and College (June 2009)
Get Involved (August 2009)
How do you study? (May 2009)
Student-Athletes (February 2009)

Sport Management Majors (Information and Conferences)
Advice for Sport Management Students (December 2009)
Choosing a Sport Management Program (July 2009)
CSRI Conference in Chapel Hill: Day One/Day Two (April 2009)
Health Care Reform and the Sport Industry (July 2009)
Make the Most of the New Year (January 2010)
Princeton Sports Symposium (December 2009)
Sport Management Faculty (February 2009)
Sport Management Projects (May 2009)
Students Host Professional Panel and Charity Event (October 2009)
YCP Alumni on the Web (May 2009)

Highlights of Sport Professionals
Bob Ancharski/Hershey Bears Hockey Club (April 2009)
Lewis Howes/Sports Networker (September 2009)
Steve Masterson/Game Face, Inc. (March 2009)
Packy Moran/University of Ohio (March 2009)
Becky Norris/Oklahoma City Thunder (March 2009)
Jeana Olchowy/National Pro Fastpitch (June 2009)
Dr. Ramlan/Director General of the National Sports Institute of Malaysia (November 2009)
Dave Salter/Author (October 2009)

Miscellaneous Topics
Brest Cancer Awareness Month (October 2009)
Fix It (February 2009)
Random Thoughts (November 2009)
Rush Limbaugh (October 2009)
Summer Job (June 2009)
Trip to Malaysia (November 2009)

After taking an extended and much needed break, I am back! I hope everyone had a wonderful holiday season and your new year is off to a great start.  During my break I did a lot of work.  I know it is an oxymoron but I started working on a couple of projects that I have been putting off and I am really excited about them now that the ball is rolling.  I am working with some great people and I will fill everyone in regarding these projects another time. 

This week’s post is centered on the theme of conferences and opportunities—both enable individuals to network and gain valuable insight on what it takes to get a job in the sports industry from those currently working in the field.  Although I am constantly telling students what they need to do or what they should be doing, it is sometimes more effective when they hear it from someone else.  As a result, I have compiled the following list of some upcoming conferences which I recommend attending if you are a student, young professional or someone trying to get into the sport industry: 

• 2/1-2/3 National Sports Forum – Baltimore, Maryland http://sports-forum.com/
• 2/19-2/20 18th Annual Georgia Southern Sport Management Conference – Savannah, Georgia http://ceps.georgiasouthern.edu/conted/sportconference.html
• 3/5-3/6 Sports Industry Networking and Career Conference Washington, D.C. http://www.sinc-conference.com/
• 3/26-3/27 Sports Events Marketing Experience Washington, D.C. http://www.seme-now.com/
• 4/14-4/16 6th Annual Southern Sport Management Conference Troy University Troy, Alabama http://troy.troy.edu/healthandhumanservices/khp/ssm2009.html
• 4/21-4/23 2010 Scholarly Conference on College Sport Chapel Hill, NC http://www.csriconference.org/

In addition, the two sites listed below are not actually conferences but both put on amazing networking events. I recommend you make them part of your regular reading and attend as many of their events as possible:

• The Business of Sports – http://www.thebusinessofsports.com/
• The Sports Networker (has a great weekly newsletter as well) – http://www.sportsnetworker.com/

Please let me know, if I have missed any conferences or good networking opportunities…I’d be happy to post them as well!

With graduation less than a week away, I have been thinking about the current graduating seniors and what they will be doing in the upcoming years.  They will face many challenges and changes in the industry and I am sure they will be resilient and successful.  This got me thinking about some alumni and what they are doing specifically in terms of new media. Below are three examples of individuals with a vision satisfying a need on the internet.

Steve Masterson started the Sports Business Education Network while he was a student at York. Steve does a wonderful job of revising and updating the site to meet the needs of the members. The Sport Business Education Network (www.sben.org) is a FREE resource dedicated to providing sport-specific resources and information and a central point for job seekers, professors, students, and employers to network — potentially leading to employment.

Matt Blaszka and some friends started SnatchSports (http://snatchsports.com/) in October 2008 due to friends never being able to agree.  Blaszka says “Our writers may not always agree on the issues, but we will always provide a non-biased look into the world of sports. Our goal is to give our opinions, good and bad, on the topic we are most passionate about…sports. If nothing else, we hope to stir some discussion (or debate). We also value outside views (they’re what keep this site going), so feel free to join into any one of the discussions.”

Brendan Wilhide also saw a void and filled it rather quickly.  Brendan created sportsin140.com, a website that covers athletes and sports on Twitter.  The site has been featured on New England Cable News and in the Toronto Globe and Mail and Seattle Times newspapers. It contains the only list of validated athlete Twitter accounts on the Internet. You can follow @sportslist on Twitter for the latest updates.

You can follow all three individuals on Twitter at @Steve_Masterson @blask22 @beingthere