Global Leadership in Team Sports
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Global Leadership in Team Sports An Explorative Study of Global Head Coaches of Football Master Thesis University of Applied Sciences Vorarlberg [International Management and Leadership] Submitted to Prof. Dr. Carsten Bartsch Handed in by Naly Rajaofera Dornbirn, [08th January 2021] Global Leadership in Team Sports Abstract The research activity described in this master thesis focus on global leadership in team sport. Football head coaches working or who have worked in the globalised Big Five leagues of England, France, Germany, Spain and Italy are investigated. These leagues are host to players, staff, executives, fandoms and head coaches from around the globe. Sport in gen- eral is posed as a valid platform to investigate global leadership. Elite and globalised clubs in association football are further posed the archetype of global sport. Head coaches at the helm of the on-field and off-field teams are hypothesised as global leaders, due to their squad, staff and networks of global nature and the span of their influence on individuals around the globe. It is proposed that investigations of the leadership in this setting can usefully contribute to insights on global leadership. The research activity follow an exploratory purpose resulting from a gap found in the literature review. The research design framework is a first sequential loop of Ground Theory methodology with the aim to identify useful hypotheses for future the- oretical sampling. Secondary data was gathered and analysed qualitatively. The data stems from the public domain and statements from interviews, commentaries, biographies, and conferences on or by the head coaches. The theoretical framework of the presented re- search covers the personal traits and attributes of the investigated individuals. Findings both overlap and contrast with findings from other global leadership research activi- ties. The differences were identified in properties of the global sport business such as con- stant public attention. Based on the findings from the purposive sampling and acknowledging applicable limitations on the findings, hypotheses for theoretical sampling are proposed. Theoretical sampling is the next step in the workflow of the Grounded Theory methodology used for this study. I Global Leadership in Team Sports Acknowledgment I would like to acknowledge Professor Dr. Carsten Barsch the supervisor of this thesis, I am gratefully indebted to his very valuable advices at most crucial phases for the advancement of this thesis. His pleasing manner and refreshing insights were enriching every exchange beyond the topic and scope of this thesis. I also would like express my appreciation to Ms. Sabine Simon of Fachhochschule Vorarl- berg for her unfailing support and kindness from Day 1 of the selection process to this study. Finally, I must express my very profound gratitude to my family and friends for continuous encouragement throughout the last two years. A very heart felt thank you to Christoph, Elisa, Philipp, Ranja and Vlad who supported me in the proofreading process. I appreciate the feedback and suggestions. Dedication To Andreas, Daniel, Elisa, Ksenia, Larisa, Manar, Manuel, Marija, Markus, Michael, Olga, Paula, Philipp, Saurabh, Thomas, Tyler and Verónica – FHV’s IML Pioneer Class 2018, and a genuine global crew who inspired this thesis. II Global Leadership in Team Sports Table of Contents Table of Contents............................................................................................................. III List of Figures .................................................................................................................... V List of Tables .................................................................................................................... VI Abbreviations ................................................................................................................. VII 1. Starting Point ............................................................................................................. 1 1.1 Zeitgeist: Requirements for Global Leaders and Global Leadership.................................. 1 1.2 Sport, Naturally Global .................................................................................................. 1 1.2.1 Football, The Global Sport ............................................................................................... 3 1.2.2 Elite Coaches in a Global Setting ..................................................................................... 6 1.3 Research Purpose, Question and Scope .......................................................................... 8 1.4 Structure of the Document ............................................................................................ 9 2. Research on Leadership: Literature Review .............................................................. 10 2.1 Leadership and Semantics ............................................................................................ 10 2.2 Revisiting Traditional Leadership Research ................................................................... 11 2.3 Culture as a Variable and Cross-cultural Leadership ...................................................... 18 2.3.1 Culture: Semantics and Conceptualisations .................................................................. 19 2.3.2 Cross-cultural Leadership Research .............................................................................. 23 2.3.3 Multicultural Teams ...................................................................................................... 27 2.4 Start and Advances in Global Leadership Research ....................................................... 29 2.4.1 Semantic Debate and Conceptual and Methodological Approaches ............................ 29 2.4.2 A Summary of Findings from Global Leadership Research ........................................... 33 2.5 Sport and Leadership Research .................................................................................... 37 2.5.1 Sport’s Traditional Leadership ....................................................................................... 38 Coaches as Leaders of Athletes .............................................................................................. 38 Leaders of Athletic Organisations ........................................................................................... 46 2.5.2 Sport-Cultures-Leadership............................................................................................. 47 2.6 Exploratory Research on Leadership: Methodological Approaches ................................ 49 2.7 Summary of Literature Review ..................................................................................... 50 3. Research Design ....................................................................................................... 53 3.1 Research Methodology ................................................................................................ 53 3.1.1 Research Methodological Framework and Approach ................................................... 53 3.1.2 Conceptual Approach .................................................................................................... 55 3.1.3 Purposive Sampling: Target Group ................................................................................ 55 3.2 Research Methods ....................................................................................................... 56 3.2.1 Data Type, Collection, Sources and Management ........................................................ 56 Data Sources ........................................................................................................................... 56 Data Collection Technique and Guidance .............................................................................. 57 Data Management and Organisation ..................................................................................... 58 3.2.2 Qualitative Analysis of Secondary Data ......................................................................... 58 III Global Leadership in Team Sports 3.3 Collected Data ............................................................................................................. 59 4. Qualitative Data Analysis Results and Findings ......................................................... 63 4.1 Personal Traits ............................................................................................................. 63 4.2 Cognitive Complexity Competencies............................................................................. 65 4.3 Operational and Strategic Competencies ...................................................................... 65 4.4 Intrapersonal Competencies ........................................................................................ 67 4.5 Managing-Relationships and Others Competencies ...................................................... 68 4.6 Findings Outside Initial Framework .............................................................................. 69 4.6.1 Transformational Self .................................................................................................... 69 4.6.2 Leadership Styles ........................................................................................................... 70 5. Discussion and Limitations ....................................................................................... 71 5.1 Findings from Reviewed