Analyzing Project Management Methods in Organizing Sports Events

Martin Schnitzer,Kathrin Kronberger,Sebastian Wenger,Filippo Bazzanella

doi:10.1177/2158244020970940

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to investigate the use and importance of project management (PM) methods in organizing sports events (SEs). Furthermore, the study analyzed differences in usage and importance of PM methods in relation to the type of SE. Finally, reasons for and obstacles to the implementation of PM methods in organizing SEs were identified. To assess the research questions, a quantitative survey ( n = 78) and a focus group discussion ( n = 5) were carried out. The results showed that PM methods were employed for SEs with higher usage and importance rates in large compared with small SEs. Requirements by event stakeholders, knowledge transfer, confidence building, progress control, and justification as well as opportunities to save money by introducing an improved planning process were identified as the main reasons for using PM in the organization of SEs. This study is the first work to provide an overview of the usage of specific PM methods in organizing SEs.

Highlights

History has revealed how important sports events (SEs) are, recounting the role they have played in the development of society and the many communities on our planet (Masterman, 2009)
Micro-events with a budget below €30,000/ event were excluded from the sample; the results showed that all of them implemented less than 50% of the proposed project management (PM) methods
The overall usage rates were in line with the expectations of the Focus Group Experts (FGEs), as the following statement demonstrated: I am not very surprised. (FGE 5)

Summary

Introduction

History has revealed how important sports events (SEs) are, recounting the role they have played in the development of society and the many communities on our planet (Masterman, 2009). SEs are different from non-SEs. According to Greenwell et al (2014), they differ from other events “in the sense that some form of competition involving physical prowess is involved” Attending SEs is a popular leisure activity (Crawford, 2004). Their rising popularity is a global phenomenon, resulting in more and bigger events being established worldwide to profit from the associated economic potential (Preuss, 2015). In recent times, facing the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) crisis, mega events such as the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games have been postponed, adding a new challenge to the event industry in general and to event managers in particular.

Objectives

Methods

Results

Discussion

Conclusion