Sport Governance: What Are We Actually Talking About? – Michael Pedersen

Sport governance is increasingly acknowledged as a critical challenge to sport leaders. However, with yet no common international understanding of what it comprises and a term like corruption being used at random to describe almost any potential wrongdoing, sport leaders face the risk of inadequately considering all relevant risks and opportunities in their decision-making about future governance.

This first contribution of mine to iSportconnect’s new expert column on sport governance offers clarity and an attempt to contribute to the much-needed development of a common understanding of what comprises sport governance. Future contributions of mine will focus on GOOD governance in sport – why it is of strategic importance, cases of evolving good practice and how to actually go about modernizing governance standards.

A common understanding of sport governance is the foundation for sport leaders to adequately identify and address risks and opportunities

Building on recent private conversations of mine with leaders of more than 50 national and international sport federations, mostly secretary-generals and board chairs, it is clear to me that there is indeed no such thing as a common international understanding of what comprises sport governance. The absence of a common understanding poses a great risk, as it makes it almost impossible for sport leaders to adequately consider all relevant risks and opportunities when taking strategic decisions about future governance. Consequently, I strongly advise sport leaders to start any strategic discussion about future governance by first developing a joint understanding among all key stakeholders of what they are actually talking about.

Sport leaders tend to have a broad range of perceptions of what sport governance actually is

Many sport leaders tend to consider sport governance a question about management structures and levels of democratic, skills-based, transparent and accountable decision-making in their organizations. Some also consider governance a question about managing the playing field of the sport(s) that they oversee. Others consider governance a question about how sporting events and the organization of such events are managed too. At the same time, many sport leaders tend to consider governance a question about preventive measures, i.e. statutes and other rules and regulations. Some also consider governance a question about the level of effectiveness in detecting and sanctioning breaches of preventive measures.

It is useful to consider the scope of sport governance as two-dimensional

As a first step in supporting sport leaders to engage in strategic discussions about future governance, I would like to offer the perspective that sport governance ought to be looked at through two equally important lenses, each of which are comprised of three specific governance components. On one hand, horizontally, the scope of sport governance comprises internal, athletic and event governance components. On the other hand, vertically, the scope of sport governance comprises preventive, detective and sanction governance components. The table below defines and clarifies the scope of sport governance along those lines:

From what I hear and observe, it seems that many sport leaders miss out on the opportunity to consider all six components of sport governance in their strategic decision-making about future governance. That especially occurs to be the case for horizontal sport governance components such as athletic governance and event governance, for vertical sport governance components such as detective governance and sanction governance, and for all six sport governance components considered as a whole.

As my thinking about sport governance continues to evolve, I will probably soon add a fourth governance component to the list of horizontal sport governance components. When I do add it, I will call it ‘sport in society governance’ and consider it as governance of projects and organizations that aim at utilizing the unique power of sport in addressing social issues, i.e. through street football like approaches to educational sport.

 

(Street football in Lima, Peru (private picture): Is the role of sport in addressing societal issues also part of what comprises sport governance?)

So what is GOOD governance in sport then all about?

Beyond considering what comprises sport governance, an even more important question for sport leaders to consider further down the road is of course what comprises GOOD governance in sport. While striving to offer perspectives around exactly that in future contributions of mine to iSportconnect’s expert column on sport governance, I would like to offer the following definition of GOOD governance for now:

Governance standards to which a sport organization holds itself accountable and consistently improves upon that confidently assure its key internal and external stakeholders that its organization and associated sport(s) and events are managed in way that supports the achievement of strategic objectives while taking into account internal weaknesses and strengths and external threats and opportunities.

Do share your perspectives too

I hope you find this first contribution of mine to iSportconnect’s expert column on sport governance an interesting read. I also hope that you will feel encouraged to contribute your perspectives too for us collectively to be able to take the current thinking about sport governance to the next level.

My next contribution will focus on the business case for good governance in sport

Keep an eye on my future contributions to iSportconnect’s expert column on sport governance. They are going to offer perspectives on the strategic importance of good governance, cases of evolving good practice, what sport leaders actually decide to do when modernizing governance standards and not least how they go about it.

My next contribution, which will be published by mid May 2013, is going to explore the business case for good governance in sport. Or put differently, why raising governance standards to a best in practice, leadership level is both strategically important and urgent to sport leaders.

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Michael Pedersen, Founder of M INC., is an internationally recognized expert and leader in good governance, transparency, ethics and integrity.