Introduction
Athletic directors are responsible for organizing, leading, and ensuring that sporting programs in educational facilities run smoothly. As leaders, the directors play the most pivotal role in athletics for educational institutions because they lay down the structures and procedures to be followed by all other stakeholders. To ensure they perform this mandate to the required capacity, the directors have to possess many skills. Some of the skills expected of an athletic director include organizational skills, communication skills, hiring and human resource management skills, good planning skills, and financial skills. The directors serve as mentors for the workers and the students in the athletic department. Addressed below are vital roles and responsibilities anticipated from the athletic director and department and the things needed for its smooth running.
Organization of the Office
To boost the employee’s productivity and well being the offices will have to be set up well. First, the athletics department’s offices should not be open offices as researchers have showed that they are not ideal for maximizing the worker’s efficiency (Muzaffar et al., 2020). The offices should be closed plans with an interior décor that boots productivity. The department will have an office that has a good working space. The ventilation and lighting will be given a top priority. Therefore, windows will be set up at an angle that allows enough light and air. The office structure will be in a manner that allows communication among the staff while minimizing unnecessary disruptions caused by movements. The offices need to be set up in a location that allows the director and other staff members to access the sports facilities easily. The walls will have to be thick and soundproof since this will likely promote deep work.
The workspace inside the office will be set up in a workable manner. Since each worker in the office has a different work style, they will have to be consulted on how the furniture should be arranged to maximize their productivity. The internal space’s structure will be fixed in a way that the coaching staff can quickly access any material they need, such as a book, pen, or phone. If possible, all the tools that are constantly used will be made to be accessible while the worker is sitting. Since the staff spends many hours in the offices, the chairs will be made to be comfortable but not in a manner to encourage laxity.
Apart from the comfort, the office layout will be structured to ensure efficiency. There will be video monitors to investigate what the workers are constantly doing. It will aim at creating an atmosphere where the workers know they are responsible for their results. Therefore, there will be conference rooms where meetings are going to be conducted. Additionally, a common hall will be present where different team members will meet and hold casual meetings. Despite casual meetings being known to waste time, they promote teamwork which is crucial for the success of any department. In order to ensure proper utilization of the floor space, some offices will have to be smaller than others. The conference hall will have to be the largest room in the department capable of accommodating all the employees and the athletes. Finally, the casual hall will need to be smaller but with amenities that facilitate creativity and team spirit.
Communication
The athletic department’s mission will aim at ensuring that all the athletes reach their full potential through good practice, training, diet, competition, and commitment. This mission will be published and displayed in various places, including the department’s website and social media pages, the department’s brick and mortar, printings, and publications that the department makes. The mission statement ought to be deliberately mentioned during training and other vital events. The department will have a vision of achieving the highest level of achievement that can be gained in all sporting programs.
Organizational culture in an athletics department determines how members of the organization behave. The athletics department will expect all members to share common beliefs and values. The department will adopt a market culture where the athletes’ results are going to be its biggest objective. The unit will achieve this by carefully evaluating all the athletes under its program. The abilities and quality of the athletes will be closely monitored, and their improvements communicated to the leadership. The department will conduct meetings every Tuesday and Friday to discuss the athletes’ progress. Every possible way an athlete can improve will be tried, and the results monitored. If the method fails, a different technique will be tried until all athletes’ optimal abilities are ascertained. The same criteria will be used to monitor the employees and various programs.
There are three generally accepted methods of communication and leadership in athletic departments. Kurt Lewin devised these methods, and all have shown positive outcomes when used on players and other stakeholders. The first is autocratic leadership, where the director sets the lead and others follow. Chukwusa, (2018) states that autocratic leaders in situations “such as when decisions need to be made quickly without consulting with a large group of people” (p. 3). This method of leadership has been branded as my way or highway form of leadership. The leader typically sets the vision, mission, and culture of the department, and others follow the leader to the best of their abilities without question. While this method works to an extent, it is generally known to damage the team’s attitude.
The athletic director could adopt the democratic form of leadership and communication whereby the opinions of a team member are essential in decision making. This is an objective-based approach, and the department members have to understand the character and vision of the department to gain the best results in this method. Some athletic events and people fit this method better than others. Before adopting the democratic leadership style, the department head must consider their office’s athletic activity. It could also affect the hiring process where only retrospective employees and athletes are hired. Moreover, the age of the players is critical before choosing the style, as this democratic style best fits players under the age of 14.
The final method of leadership is the holistic management style, where the happiness of the whole team gets the top priority. This “Laissez-faire” leadership style assumes that every athlete knows what is expected of them and how to get the best from themselves. The leader does not set any fixed procedures that will be followed but instead sets an enabling environment for best performance. This method has strengths and weaknesses and is more appropriate for players above their teenage years. Since the athletic department has a market culture focused on growth, these three leadership styles will be used simultaneously.
Communication has been made easy by the advancement of technology; thus, the department has various communication methods to choose from. Any achievements met by the department or its athletes will be communicated through social media and the department’s official website. Any job openings or other communication with a big target audience will also be communicated similarly. Anybody with feedback for the department will be asked to communicate the same using the email or phone number availed to all. As for internal communication, texting applications that support group interactions, such as WhatsApp, will be used. Video conferencing applications will be highly encouraged when members will interact on this basis from time to time. The very confidential information need to be communicated face to face.
Leadership
There are five primary skills that every effective leader should possess. The first is time management skills as leadership, especially in sports, involves many activities. Time management can be achieved by maintaining calendars, setting deadlines, and completing urgent and vital tasks. A sports director should learn to delegate tasks to remain with tasks that other members cannot deliver. Additionally, learning stress management techniques is critical for the department as stressed individuals have difficulty concentrating on the business. Planning and prioritization are also crucial for effective time management.
The second essential leadership skill is communication skill; a good leader knows how to be precise and clear in their communication. They also incorporate active listening techniques when passing information. In the athletics department, the leader can incorporate different forms of communication such as verbal, non-verbal, written, and visual. They could set up good communication equipment to aid in their communication. Good communication will be incorporated into the department by setting visual instruments such as projectors, whiteboards, and screens to help show patterns.
An athletic leader’s third critical administrative skill is an excellent organizational skill. As its name suggests, it is the ability of the leader to manage to keep the offices and the department in order. A good leader keeps their equipment and accessories organized and retrievable and ensures that the team members are also organized in their work. A good leader will ensure that communication, calendar, and movement of team members are also in order. Organizational skills in a leader are not limited to just office equipment, in any case. In order to ensure that there is some organization in the athletic department, a proper plan supported by adequate funding should be formulated.
Staffing: Hiring of Coaches, Athletic Trainers, and Support Personnel
Before anyone is hired to join the athletic department, they will be analyzed to see how best they fit the department’s culture of optimizing each athlete’s performance. A quantitative analysis will determine how best the candidate will fit their prospective position. Doing analysis will help reduce the bias in hiring managers. In addition, before any candidate is hired, they undergo a series of tests. The candidate who achieves the highest score on the tests will be hired.
If a candidate is confirmed to have integrity, they will be examined if they possess a strong character for judgment. Then their communication skills will be analyzed since most workers will be expected to deal directly with the athletes. The passion for sports and athletics will be highly valued, and a couple of questions will be asked to determine this. Likewise, their temperament will be considered through a personality test which all will be required to take. Finally, their career objectives and inspirations for achieving them will be considered.
An administrative assistant in the athletics department will be expected to perform the following roles and responsibilities. They will assist in all administrative activities such as writing, reading, and proofreading documents. The assistant will also purchase various office supplies, athletic equipment, and any other needed tools. The assistant will schedule, organize, and coordinate meetings and sports events. The administrative assistant will also handle and guard sensitive information about the department. Additionally, they will be trusted to ensure the department adheres to different rules and regulations. Moreover, they will be required to perform any other roles assigned by the athletics director.
The core values that the staff will be expected to show include integrity, team spirit, accountability, fairness, honesty, handwork, and professional diligence, among others. Whenever personal problems arise from the staff, the first thing that the director will do is to listen to them emphatically. The director should determine if the work environment causes the problems or if they come from home. They should then try to offer a practical solution if possible. If the problem is not personal, they should communicate it with the rest of the team and synergize in assisting the affected employee. A support system should also address the problem at hand and similar problems if such a problem arises. The athletics director should follow up later to determine if the problem was solved.
Department Meetings: Frequency, Purpose, and Agenda
Departmental meetings help ensure that the goals of all team members are aligned. If the leader is motivational and knows how to communicate effectively, they can motivate and inspire their employees during these meetings. These meetings also share information, pushing the department toward its goals. Departmental meetings also push team members towards accomplishing their projects and sharing an activity that gives them bragging rights. Some policies and procedures should be addressed by the athletics department constantly. For instance, how the department is likely to handle injuries and treatment of staff. The department should also be discussing the policy and procedures concerning their athletes’ training. The department should constantly evaluate how it can improve the athletes’ skills.
The department of sports can conduct either formal or informal meetings. Rules and regulations generally govern formal meetings; however, informal meetings are never planned for and follow any set structure. Informal and formal meetings have similar aspects, such as having minutes and agendas. An agenda is a list of items to be discussed in a meeting, usually a formal meeting. The components of an agenda include the themes for the discussion and goals. In addition, the agenda describes the outline of the meeting and the support documentation used. The time that the meeting will take is material that is included in the agenda. They go further to state the amount of time each topic should consume expressly. The athletics director is also expected to attend annual general, statutory, and board meetings. After attending these other conferences, the director should report the conclusions made from the meeting to the staff.
Parent Engagement
It is essential for the athletics department to involve the parents of the athletes in decision-making actively. Dorsch et al (2019) conclude parent education of children athletics is important commenting “There really needs to be some sort of training or some information that could help parents” (p. 18). To ensure parents participate well, the athletics director should engage with the parents in a manner that creates a positive atmosphere. This atmosphere will be created by knowing every parent by name and their child’s performance emailed to them. Parents will be invited for volunteer games for them to feel as part of the fraternity. The department will expect parents to play their part in ensuring their children attain their goals.
The department will create a special committee to teach parents the importance of sports. It will also give them presents whenever their children excel athletically. It is helpful to make parents for various athletics programs. The department will look for parents with skills and ambition for sports and make them advocates for various programs. End-of-event celebrations will be hosted to celebrate and honor the most successful athletes. Their parents will receive invitations to the celebrations and awarded if their children perform well.
Discipline and Codes of Behavior
Student-athletes will be required to attend 75% of the training. They will also be expected to obey the rules the athletics department sets. Staff ought to have professional conduct failure to which they will risk losing their jobs. Parents will be required to facilitate their children to be good athletes and should allow them to join the training. The actions, attitudes, and ways of talking to one another will have to follow the department’s guidelines. These standards will be modeled by rewarding those who obey them and punishing the culprits. Some formal disciplinary actions include team suspicion, extra training sessions, and detention. Before joining the athletics department, the student and her parents must sign a sign of conduct agreement form.
Scheduling of Athletic Facilities
The facilities available in the athletics department include the department offices, classes for teaching athletics, a gym, swimming pool, sports pavilions, and stadiums. The privilege will be given to those who come first whenever there are overbooking issues. All amenities in the department will be shared according to the team that is in most need. A master calendar will be used to show the most urgent and vital sports events.
Game Day Preparations
Before the Game
Before any game starts, the department will check if there may arise any hazards in the process. It will also check the fitness of all athletes and ensure they are okay. The eligibility of any athlete to compete will be adequately analyzed. The department leaders will check if all the equipment needed is ready; if not, purchases will be made. The department will also play the role of ensuring that the sports events are adequately covered. Athletic events need officials to referee them, and the department will hire the proper officials to oversee this. Before the games, the department will also ensure concession stands, security, ticket tackers, and announcers. Moreover, the buses to carry people around, physicians, and water coolers will be availed.
After the Game
After the games, the department will ensure that it deposits the ticket money. The officials responsible will ensure that the store equipment is safely kept. Concessions will be collected and taken for safekeeping. It will also ensure that there is a field, bleacher, facility rooms, and locker clean-up. A checklist will be created to help keep track of these duties. Any expenses that are supposed to be covered by the sports director will also be remembered and paid.
Coach Evaluations
Evaluations will be conducted regularly to ensure that each staff member achieves their goals. The goal-setting process will mainly target the performance of the students. It will also aim at their level of determination in making the students better athletes. Coaches should be evaluated based on Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Realistic, and time-bound (SMART) goals. An example of a SMART goal would be that students will perform better athletically than last year. The coaches should be evaluated every week. The head coach evaluation will include his cooperation with the administration, relationship with various parties, and coaching performance. The level of cooperation concerning paperwork should be rated as either good, needs improvement, unsatisfactory, or not observed. Other questions that need to be asked and rated using the same criteria include the level of communication of the coach with the assistant coach. The head coach cooperation with the head office. His level of cooperation with various school policies, administrative guidelines, league rules, and safety roles. The head coach will also be rated based on their cooperation with the athletic director. How well and how regularly the coach communicates with the athletics director will also form part of their evaluation. Finally, the coach’s level of care for the school facilities will be recorded and analyzed.
The assistant coach should be evaluated using almost the same criteria as the head coach. On top of the priority list when evaluating the assistant coach should be their level of loyalty to the head coach. The quality of assistance they give the head coach should be emphasized in their evaluation form. Since the assistant coach’s roles include constantly being in contact with the student-athletes, they will be evaluated on their enthusiasm when working with them. Their communication with the student, relation with the administration, communication with opponents, communication with officials, and promotion of school activities will be in their evaluation form.
Maintenance of Athletic Fields, Courts, Weight Room
The athletic department will give the safety of the students and other staff members a key priority. The athletic fields will be regularly noted, and if the conditions warrant renovation, the department will ask the principal and other policymakers to provide funding. If the athletic fields, courts, and weight rooms have not been badly damaged, the department will use its maintenance fund to do the repairs. Inspections on whether sports facilities are in an excellent and tenable repair condition will be done with the help of a checklist. An external expert will handle the inspections with the help of the assistant coach.
Budget and Funding
Budgeting and funding play a vital role in the success or failure of the athletic department. Therefore, this unit will ensure a proper planning tool to ensure proper funding. This tool will also monitor the use of funds, and the events that have insufficient utilization will be outlined. Funding for the segments of the department that are doing well will be calculated on the percentage basis of their improvements. The athletics director will only issue extra funding if they are convinced that the money will be used to achieve a specified goal and objective.
Booster clubs will be essential in ensuring that the athletics department runs efficiently. As is often the case, the funds that the athletics department will receive from the school’s administration and ticket collections will not be sufficient to support the ever-growing athletics school community (Eyleret al., 2020). Additional facilities need to be constructed, and students need to be able to travel and compete outside the home environment. For the parents and other participants to feel included, the department will print t-shirts with the school logo and sell them above their market price. During sporting activities, eateries will also be sold, and the funds gained will be used to supplement the limited budget the department receives.
In addition to the booster clubs, the department will hold other fundraising events if and when a need arises. All fundraising events will have a clear purpose and goal, which is to be communicated clearly in writing. The goal of the fundraising event, which will be the amount of money needed, must also be supported by a plan and budget. The athletics director must convince the relevant school leadership that fundraising is necessary. The school must be unable to support the plan for the hosting of the fundraising event.
The purchase process differs for orders less than $5000 from those above. For purchases above the above-listed amount, a purchase order must be available. However, purchasing printing items, furniture, storeroom items, and copiers will require a purchase order. The purchasing process starts with filling out and sending a requisition form. After sending the requisition forms, the department will receive reports. If the unit wishes to change the orders, it will only be possible before receiving invoices. Then, the standing orders for repetitive purchases will be established.
Representation at Conference, District, State; Membership & Professional Participation
The first association recommended for the department to join the National Collegiate Association (NCAA). Secondly, the department should have membership in the Association for Intercollegiate Athletics for Women (AIAW). It should also seek membership in the oldest athletics body in the country, the National Association for Intercalate Athletics (NAIA). To ensure its training activities are well supported, the association will push for registration in the National exercise training association. In addition, membership with the American medical association will be sought to gain medical support and ensure that the athlete’s safety and health are protected.
Joining athletic associations gives student-athletes a chance to compete with their peers regularly. Some associations also provide insurance programs for all members; thus, any injuries that may arise during games are covered. The school and the department also open a chance to receive extra funding if they win the competitions scheduled by the associations. The departments may also get regular publications and media coverage if they join various state and national associations. These groups may also offer education programs to coaches and other key staff of the athletics department. This education is converted into better management of athletic activities in the school. It also opens the chance for career development since some athletes have a chance to join and play for more prominent institutions.
Relationships with School Administrators and Faculty
The athletic department can encourage the school into involvement with sporting activities by first integrating them with academics. This could be achieved by ensuring the athletes always perform well in class, preventing unnecessary friction with the faculty. It could also convince the school administration by proving the direct correlation between athletics and good health and nutrition. The correlation between sporting activities and the overall happiness of the students has to be demonstrated (Murphy et al., 2018). The faculty members must be constantly reminded of the importance of education to the athletic career of the students. The faculty members have to be shown how success in life contributes to success in the field. Studies of how tactical athletics events require deductive decision-making taught in class must be availed to them. The discipline acquired in class, such as time management skills, is also vital in athletics.
Conclusion
For an athletic department to run smoothly, there are a lot of nuts and bolts that the athletic department is expected to tighten. The department’s organization, communication, staffing, and leadership have to meet the anticipated quality standards. For this to be ensured, department meetings must be conducted regularly, and all parties will be accountable for their results. The student’s parents have to be fully engaged, and the discipline of all athletes should be enforced. The department should ensure proper sports event scheduling and that everything goes smoothly before, during, and after the game. All employees of the unit ought to fill out evaluation forms as this will help gauge their performance. Budgeting is essential for the department to run smoothly, and since school budgets are limited, the above-proposed solutions, such as booster clubs, will help to supplement deficits. Finally, the department should maintain a good relationship with the school, and coaches will gain the awareness of the importance of academics.
References
Chukwusa, J. (2018). Autocratic leadership style: Obstacle to success in academic libraries. Library Philosophy and Practice, 1. Web.
Dorsch, T. E., King, M. Q., Tulane, S., Osai, K. V., Dunn, C. R., & Carlsen, C. P. (2019). Parent education in youth sport: A community case study of parents, coaches, and administrators. Journal of Applied Sport Psychology, 31(4), 427-450.
Eyler, A. A., Valko, C. A., Curoe, K., & Ramadas, R. (2020). Sports participation fee policies in US high schools: A national survey of athletic directors. Translational Journal of the American College of Sports Medicine, 5(8), 69-81.
Murphy, M. H., Carlin, A., Woods, C., Nevill, A., MacDonncha, C., Ferguson, K., & Murphy, N. (2018). Active students are healthier and happier than their inactive peers: The results of a large representative cross-sectional study of university students in Ireland. Journal of Physical Activity and Health, 15(10), 737-746. Web.
Muzaffar, P. N. A., Noor, N. M., & Mahmud, S. A. (2020). A comparative study on the impacts of open plan and closed office layout on employees perceived productivity. Jurnal Penyelidikan Sains Sosial (JOSSR), 3(6), 49-58.