Management Theory

My management philosophy, and how it aligns with my career!

A manager’s core job is to achieve an organization goals by utilizing its resources effectively through planning, organizing, leading and evaluating, by selecting the right people for the job, according to Aicher, Paule-Koba & Newland (2016). While management functions are academic disciplines taught in sport management, as individuals we have our unique beliefs or preference as it relates to management style.

My management philosophy is geared more towards the democratic style of leadership, with an understanding that as the decision maker, it is my responsibility to ensure that my employees know that they are part of the team and their opinions are valued, and ensure that they feel secured. The management functions include planning, organizing, leading and evaluating, which involves staffing and controlling, should be merged with personal or innate skills and applied to the process of management practices.

The right ‘FIT’

Recruiting the right person for the job and keeping them is not an easy task. As a democratic leader, good communication skill is needed to encourage constant and
effective interactions to foster good relationships with all stakeholders including staff, patrons/customers, sponsors, emergency teams, etc. for the planning and execution of a successful sport event.

Even though the manager is leading the team, staff should feel included and have the freedom to share their opinions or ideas with the team. Including staff in
the decision making process, is one of the many ways as a leader, I have empowered my team, and of course, this approach also contributed to the success of the project.

Some managerial attributes that helped

1) Stand out people skill, is also another very important element, as this helps to make managing people very easy and contributes greatly to positive results.

2) Good Listener, a leader must be open to suggestions and be willing to learn from others, is an indications of a strong and confident leader who aligns its people with the organization for the greater good.

3) Trust the team, trust in any environment is very important, and one of the most vital components for the success of the organization and everyone involved. To motivate and empower followers, they should be given tasks and are held accountable for the result which will ultimately determine the success or failure of the project and will also build trust between managers and workers.

As a democratic manager or leader, I more than less, displays flexibility in managing which results in the display of strength, confidence and trust in the people I lead. A leader must recognize that things are not always going to go according to the script, and with this in mind, I need my people to have the organization best interest at heart. Therefore as managers, we must be ready for unforeseen circumstances and know how to adapt to any changes that are thrown at team.

My leadership style must show that I have a calm and positive persona that will filter down to and make it easy for workers to approach me and are assured that I will listen and be rational. This management style avoids overacting or panic in the event of a crisis or things not going according to plan. Trusting my people with assigned task encourages team work and will facilitate the process to rectify situations if necessary.

Building trust with workers is gaining their respect as a result of making them feel comfortable enough to know that you got their back, and in return they will protect the interest and the image of the organization. An employee is more than a worker, he or she is a contributor investing time and energy towards the success of brand or organization they represent, and should not just be seen as someone that is being paid to do as they are told and nothing more.

As a sport manager graduate, in the evolving world of the sport industry, the decision to
adapt the management philosophy as a democratic leader, aligns perfectly with my career because I am about team work which requires collaboration that involves sharing ideas and putting those ideas together to generate success.

Having team members that are encouraged to communicate with management are beneficial to the organization’s success and most times makes the process easier. In this new era where sport events has evolved and is now considered entertainment, it is imperative that recruiting the right person for job is treated as an important exercise.
I think this management style is best suited because there are many elements involved in sports event management as it relates to planning and executing through team work, and trust is one of the main ingredient for success.

At a sport event, patrons have high standards and are expecting to be entertained by having a high level experience. With the many different components such as the facility, tickets access, security, emergency action plan, sponsors, media, etc. to be consider, I must be assured that my team is empowered and motivated to execute their task with confidence.

Overall, this management style is about having the ability to build trust among the workers and management groups, to show workers that they are valuable to the organization. Their opinion matters, the organization cares about them and their needs
and the partnership with them is to ultimately achieve the objectives, and maintain being a firm and decisive leader so that we are all winners at the end of the project.

References

Aicher T. J., Paule -Koba, A. L., & Newland, B. (2016). Sport facility and event management.