Critical Leadership Skills

Business of Sports BADM 4880 Summer 2013

Instructor: Bob Donchez E-mail: [email protected] Phone: 303 492 5962 Office: Koelbel 423 Classroom – Koelbel S110 Mon 6/24 (a.m.); Tue 6/25 (a.m.), Wed 6/26 (a.m.), Thu 6/27 (a.m.) Mon 7/1 (a.m.), Tues 7/2 (a.m.) A.M. times (9 a.m. – 12 noon); P.M. times (1-4 pm) Office Hours: by appointment.

Course Description:

The program and modules within the certificate program are intended for students and graduates interested in pursuing careers in the sports and recreation industry.

The sport business areas explored throughout the program are the following: professional franchises and leagues; amateur athletics, including collegiate sports and the Olympics; corporate America; the media; and the public sector.

Various topics that students will investigate are the process involved in managerial/financial decision-making in various sports organizations, multiple legal issues pertaining to sport, facilities and event management, sport entrepreneurship and various marketing/promotions concepts and issues. Students will evaluate, analyze and critique the strategic decisions of key industry participants.

This module examines the economics and finances of sports enterprises and their business operations, and decision-making in the business of sports based off of financial information.

Module Objectives: 1. Demonstrate an understanding and application of financial decision-making in sports enterprises/businesses/operations. 2. Use / discuss case studies to examine how decisions are made to run sports organizations and maximize value 3. Understand the financial ramifications of management decisions within sports enterprises and the impact they have on the economy, society and their communities. 4. Apply various concepts learned throughout the semester to cases and real-world scenarios in the sport industry.

Course Requirements and Expectations:

1. Class participation as demonstrated by completing the readings for each class/unit and actively participating in class discussions. Just attending class is not enough……you must actively engage and participate. No sleeping, cell phone use or texting during class. 2. Completion of class assignments and participation in class discussions is required. 3. Financial analysis and discussion are required and weighted heavily. 4. All work must be original and prepared specifically for this class. All papers must be typed and no late projects will be accepted. Both a hard copy and an electronic copy must be provided to the instructor of the due date. The instructor reserves the right to turn all papers in the Turnitin.com.

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Module Requirements:

The grade for this Module will be composed of the following elements: Participation/Discussions/Attendance 30% In-class quizzes 10% Revenue & Cost Structure Executive Summary 25% Presentation of Point-CounterPoint Debates 35%

Class Participation

Class participation is a critical aspect of this course. Participation will be evaluated on class attendance and the quality of participation. A quality contribution is one that represents expressing one’s own unique perspective on the topic or engaging in critical thinking that moves the discussion forward or opens up new ways of looking at an issue/problem.

Discussions

Discussions are an important part of the business process in the real world and the learning experience in this course and are reflected in the final grading. Assigned material will be analyzed and discussed throughout the day. In addition, you will be required to respond to classmate discussions and questions asked by the professor. This combined with in-class group work will be considered in your participation grade. Absences reflect poorly in the overall course grade. In-Class Quizes: Short quizzes on reading material distributed in class.

Executive Summary: A two-page max executive summary from each group on the relevant revenue and cost structure pertaining to a financial decision in the sports world. Examples include: Decision to sign a free agent player Relocation of a sports franchise Consideration of a new broadcasting rights agreement

An executive summary is a short, concise, business document used to provide/highlight relevant information to clients and/or upper management. The key is to present/format the data and information in a manner that quickly and concisely. Academic approaches such as or similar to an essay/thesis/term paper will not be accepted.

Presentation – Point-CounterPoint Group Debates. Sets of two groups will take opposite sides of current issues in the sports world and will debate, using real-time financial data/information/analysis to support their arguments. These will be approximately 20 minutes per each debate topic (10 minutes per group). Each presentation should be succinct and well-researched and supported.