Sport Knowledge Australia To Reveal Exclusive Case Studies

By Imago Group - Jenny Muir
Wednesday 7 September, 2005

SYDNEY — An elite group of top level sports administrators, from Australia and overseas, will be among the first to experience Sport Knowledge Australia’s (SKA) cutting edge offerings when they attend the organisation’s inaugural six-day residential course starting on 16 October.

A highlight of the “Executive Sport Management” course, which is designed to enhance senior executive skills in all management areas, will be the revelation of a set of unique case studies especially commissioned for the event.

SKA’s Australia’s Chief Executive Officer, Leighton Wood, says the select management group will be privy to the academic studies which analyse a diverse assembly of sports and topics including Australian Rules and Rugby Union, country horse racing and the packaging and re-selling of Olympic knowledge.

The Canterbury Crusaders Super 12 rugby union franchise has been chosen as a topic for analysis because, says Wood, “The Crusaders have won five of the last eight Super 12 titles and the study demonstrates how the province’s on field success is attributable to a distinctive organisational culture which resonates from the boardroom to the playing field.”

Country Racing Victoria also provides a fascinating basis for management and organisational examination says Wood, “In an environment where others have been forced to close race tracks because of viability, the CRV has enjoyed sustained business growth.

“Each year it coordinates 412 race meetings which attract around 600,000 spectators and contributes $478 million in off course wagering. The case study examines the strategies that the CRV employed to achieve its improved performance over the last five years.”

Since its launch in June this year, SKA has run seminars in China on sport venue management and in Australia on player valuation strategies.

Continually updating their knowledge base is essential for sport executives’ sustained development says Wood, “While we happily hark back to the ‘greatest Olympics ever’, the world has moved on rapidly over the last five years and new benchmarks are being set across Europe, America and Asia.

“For local executives to maintain pace with the international community, and indeed aim themselves to set benchmarks in quality of management, constant re-assessment, updating, and astute use of knowledge resources are imperative.

“Our course is a highly intensive ‘immersion experience’ over six days and it is about exploiting sport commercially to an optimum level while identifying and preserving its ethos. We work to enhance senior executive skills in economics, leadership, marketing and communications.”

ABOUT: Sport Knowledge Australia launched in June 2005 with a Federal Government grant of $8.6 million. It is owned jointly by the University of Sydney, University of Technology, Sydney and the Sydney Olympic Park Authority.

SKA delivers executive level education and knowledge sharing of sports management, coaching and science in educational programs, commissioned studies and research within Australia and through partnership programs overseas.

SKA will assist the continued global growth of the sports industry, helping more communities around the world to benefit from strong sporting cultures.