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Structure and Strategy
Organizational structure in sport serves several functions, including helping those within the organization to understand their roles, expectations, decision making, authority, and responsibility. It also can help with collaboration, assigning of tasks, and communication. Leaders must determine what structure is the best to carry out the organization's mission and objectives. There are numerous ways to set up and manage the organization; however, the structure that leaders choose will have an impact on the strategy used to achieve success.
Structure
Organizational charts are often made to illustrate the line of authority, division of labor, and chain of command within a structure. The more layers within the structure, as displayed by an organizational chart, the more complex (also called taller) the organization becomes. On the other hand, fewer layers represent a less complex (or flatter) structure. Further, the structure will dictate the span of control, which is the number of people reporting to a manager. Typically, lower-level managers have a wider span of control. Delegation of authority and decision making can be an issue within the structure depending upon the centralization or decentralization of the decision making.
The size of the organization has an influence on how the structure is designed. In the sport industry, professional teams and National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division I athletic departments generally have taller structures. These organizations and institutions have high revenue generation. On the opposite end of the spectrum are NCAA Division III and other small college institutions, high school athletics, and club sport programs. These groups generally have flatter athletic department structures. One Major League Baseball (MLB) franchise has more than 150 employees and 20 departments or divisions with at least six layers from top to bottom. Another MLB franchise has more than 250 employees and 21 departments or divisions. As these examples illustrate, more people within an organization generally means a taller structure. A small junior college athletic department has 14 people and five sports in the entire organization. There are no layers between the athletic director and the head coaches; it is a very flat structure. The structure should reflect the organization's long-range plans or strategy.
Strategy
The strategy of a sport organization should be concerned with its long-term direction and scope. To determine the direction of an organization, consider its strengths and weaknesses. A SWOT (strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats) analysis will help determine the competitive advantages or disadvantages it possesses. As the strategy develops, it illuminates the types of resources that are needed; decisions should be made on how to allocate those resources to achieve success. However, without implementation, a strategy is rendered useless. In further defining strategy, it can be put together on three different levels: corporate, business, and functional. Corporate-level strategy sets the organization's overall direction and goal setting. One way to set the overall direction is to develop vision and mission statements. These statements will help keep the pathway of the organization's future clear. When making decisions, one can look at the mission statement to ensure that the organization is following the direction the club's administration intended. As an example, one MLB team's mission statement is “Through the strength of the national pastime, we will enhance the quality of life in our community through educational, health, and spiritual endeavors.”
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