Unit 7 Final Assignment Paper and Powerpoint

  Final Capstone Paper Project (Due by Thursday 11:59 p.m. in Unit 7) Write a capstone paper that includes the unit writing assignments from the entire course. When designing this paper, be sure that each of the following sections is illustrated on its own separate page from the general context:

Abstract

, Acknowledgements, Tables and Figures, References and Appendix. The length of the Final Capstone Paper is a minimum of 30 pages. Each of the following sections should be illustrated on a page of its own according to APA formatting: Abstract, Acknowledgements,

Tables and Figures

, References, and Appendix. 

Final Capstone Paper Project Written Assignment: Submit by Thursday 11:59 p.m.

After completing Unit Six, you should combine all of your writing assignments into a Final Paper according to the following outline:

Abstract
1. Acknowledgments
2. Table of Contents

Tables and Figures

3. Introduction
4. The Value of Education in Your Sports Organization
5. The Value of Understanding Current Issues and Trends in Sports Organization
6. Leadership and Sports Ethics in Sports Organizations
7. High-Performance Teamwork and the Success of Sports Organization
8. The Value of Advanced Organized Leadership in a Sports Organization
9. The Impact of Sports Finance and Budgeting in a Sports Organization
10. The Ethics of Strategic Leadership in a Sports Organization
11. The Importance of Understanding Current Issues in Human Resources of a Sports Organization
12. How Will You Impact or Incorporate a Christian Worldview within the Parameters of an Existing of Future Sports Organization
13. Personal Reflections on Your Master of Sports Administration Academic Journey: From Bachelor’s Degree to Master’s Degree
14. Conclusion
15. Reference Page
16. Appendix (only if needed)

Unit Seven:  Final Paper with all yellow sections and green sections need to be submitted by Thursday of Unit Seven.

Unit Seven:  PowerPoint needs to be loaded to the Canvas and to a Discussion Forum for peers to see in a Virtual Capstone Conference Forum.  There will also be a discussion forum posted so that you can post the PowerPoint for you and your peers to see your presentations between Friday and Saturday of Unit Seven. Earlier submission in Unit Seven is encouraged.

 A minimum of 20 references are required, including the text, The Holy Bible (New Living Translation), books and articles from academic sources (Net Library), and other periodicals. Be attentive to APA style, grammar and punctuation, integration of required components, and critical thinking. Papers should contain a title page, appropriate citations, and references. The APA Publication Manual is provided as your reference for style. Assignments are due no later than 11:59 p.m. (CT) on Thursday. Earlier submissions are accepted. The Final Capstone Paper Project will be evaluated using the Final Capstone Paper Project rubric in Appendix B. Final Capstone Paper Project-PowerPoint Presentation (Due by Thursday at 11:59 in Unit 7) Complete a 20 slide, Final Capstone Paper-PowerPoint Presentation. Assignments are due no later than 11:59 p.m. (CT) on Thursday. Earlier submissions are accepted. The Final Capstone Paper PowerPoint Presentation will be evaluated using the Final Paper Capstone PowerPoint Presentation rubric in Appendix C. 

SPORTS ADMINISTRATION ISSUE 2

The Value of Educating Superstar Professional Athletes about PEDs’ Effects

Trae’Von Clavo

Belhaven University

MSA 670

Dr. Woods

10/24/2020

Running head: SPORTS ADMINISTRATION ISSUE

The Value of Educating Superstar Professional Athletes about PEDs’ Effects

Generally, being a superstar professional athlete comes with many opportunities. Apart from the huge salaries and media attention they receive, most of these athletes also act as brand ambassadors for many organizations and receive enormous compensations and favors. To many youths, superstar athletes are role models who need to be emulated at all costs. We live in a society that is significantly attracted to sports and views it as a form of escapism. Thus, our society perceives athletes as role models for everyone in the community. However, since no one is perfect, these superstar athletes can serve as good and bad role models (Riley, 2017). Additionally, being a superstar athlete also comes with the pressure to win at all costs. Thus, the athletes’ heightened use of performance-enhancing drugs (PEDs) has become an endemic ethical problem in our societies. Thus, the appropriate sports education may help solve the problem.

Several athletes have, in the recent past, been caught or admitted using PEDs. Andre Agassi, Mark McGwire, Barry Bonds, Lance Armstrong, Maria Sharapova, Ben Johnson, Ekaterina Bobrova, etc. are just some of the superstar professional athletes who have been implicated in the PEDs usage scandal (Jussim, 2020; CBC News, 2016). The PEDs are prohibited drugs or substances that enhance any form of human performance by boosting their muscle strength and power and aiding in its quick recovery. Although such effects are beneficial at face value, their usage has elicited several ethical and professional sports issues. PEDs may unfairly help an athlete win in a competition over competitors who have not used them. Such an occurrence is against the sport’s values of fair play, professionalism, and sportsmanship. Additionally, several health issues exist related to PEDs’ usage (Mayo Clinic Staff, 2019). Finally, if caught, an athlete’s career may just end like that.

Despite all the aforementioned consequences, the athletes’ use of PEDs is continually on the rise. Consequently, having the athletes undergo a sports values education and training may be a valuable solution for the problem. Sports managers, administrators, educationists, etc. can play a critical role in information these superstar professional athletes that PEDs are a threat to their health and careers and society’s wellbeing. Contemporaneously, it is commonplace that an athletic superstar who has meteorically risen into the apex of the sports, with fans marveling at their agility, quickness, and strength, have in the next instant been brought to a screeching halt due to PEDs’ usage. Generally, the PEDs’ usage accusations would be followed by investigations, probations, suspensions, and under the worst-case scenario, suspensions, and expulsions from the sports (Northwestern University, 2015).

For many athletes, the usage of PEDs despite its risks is a calculated risk, i.e., these athletes are just gamblers. They have to evaluate not only its benefits and downsides but also the risk of being caught. However, the winner bias and the need for extra cash and fame drive most athletes to decide to use PEDs. Thus, good values and PEDs education should be holistic in that it should cover the drugs’ effects on athletes, sports, and society. Without education, many athletes would be consumed with the potent and addictive drive to be victorious over a defeated opponent and the glory that comes with it, rather than following the overriding sports notions of fair play and sportsmanship. The education helps professional athletes understand that their fervent pursuit for victory would ultimately and significantly compromise their ability to make the appropriate decision (Whitman, 2007). Additionally, they should be made to understand that the drugs threaten the millions of children fans who view them as role models and the societal ideals of valorous pursuit of victory, hard work, and integrity. Without the appropriate values of education, it will be difficult to prevent the vice.

References
CBC News. (2016, March 8). Maria Sharapova The Latest Athlete To Be Caught Doping. Retrieved October 20, 2020, from CBC News: https://www.cbc.ca/news/world/sharapova-list-drug-athletes-1.3480918
Jussim, M. (2020). The 15 Biggest Steroid, PED, and Doping Scandals in Sports History. Retrieved October 22, 2020, from Men’s Journal: https://www.mensjournal.com/sports/15-biggest-steroid-ped-and-doping-scandals-sports-history/
Mayo Clinic Staff. (2019, May 18). Performance-enhancing drugs: Know the risks. Retrieved October 20, 2020, from Mayo Clinic: https://www.mayoclinic.org/healthy-lifestyle/fitness/in-depth/performance-enhancing-drugs/art-20046134
Northwestern University. (2015, July 14). Exploring Topics in Sports: Why Do Athletes Risk Using Performance Enhancing Drugs? Retrieved October 22, 2020, from Northwestern University: https://sps.northwestern.edu/stories/news-stories/why-do-athletes-risk-using-PEDs.php
Riley, K. (2017, August 11). Professional Athletes Serve As Role Models, Both Good And Bad. Retrieved October 22, 2020, from The State Press: https://www.statepress.com/article/2017/11/spopinion-professional-athletes-serve-as-role-models-both-good-and-bad
Whitman, J. H. (2007, November 12). Winning At All Costs: Using Law & Economics To Determine The Proper Role Of Government In Regulating The Use Of Performance-Enhancing Drugs In Professional Sports. University of Illinois Law Review, 2008.

SPORTS ADMINISTRATION ISSUE 2

The Ethical Problems Related with the Superstar Professional Athletes’ Usage of PEDs

and the Role of Coaches in the Fight against the Phenomenon

Trae’Von Clavo

Belhaven University

MSA 670

Dr. Woods

10/24/2020

Running head: SPORTS ADMINISTRATION ISSUE

The Ethical Problems Related with the Superstar Professional Athletes’ Usage of PEDs

Sports ethics are very integral to any sporting activity. Values like strong work ethics, integrity, sportsmanship, and general ethical conduct or behavior remain at the individual athletes’ apex and professional teams’ goals. However, when the athletes fail to live up to the ethical expectations, they are likely to be recipients of immense public ire and league penalties. Several ethical issues are increasingly taking traction in sports, including the use of performance-enhancing drugs (PEDs) by athletes. In every major sporting team and association, any athlete who has been found guilty of using any illegal performance-enhancing drug will likely face a diverse range of penalties, including fines, recall of awards, suspension, or even expulsion. Thus, as one of the sports administrators close to the athletes, athletics coaches have an integral role in preventing the use of such drugs.

Despite all these adverse consequences, many athletes still use doping drugs and related performance-enhancing substances. Several high profile athletes like Andre Agassi, Mark McGwire, Barry Bonds, Lance Armstrong, Maria Sharapova, Ben Johnson, Ekaterina Bobrova, etc. have either admitted or found guilty of using these drugs (CBC News, 2016). Annually, the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) screens urine and blood samples from several hundreds of thousands of Olympic athletes. From these tests, up to 2% of them usually test positive for prohibited substances. However, it is projected that the number of actual cases could be significantly high (Specktor, 2018).

A successful sports administration and management career require that one understands the influence of ethics in professional sports. Sports managers must always be aware that if players break the ethical rules and guidelines, both the player and the team can face severe fines and penalties. Unfortunately, many athletes still use performance-enhancing drugs. PEDs can boost any form of activity performance in humans because they increase muscle mass and strength. In sports, athletes’ use of doping and anabolic-androgenic steroids is banned since they could give a sportsperson an unfair advantage over the competitors who do not use them, and therefore, undermine sports values like teamwork and fair play. Additionally, performance-enhancing substances have also been determined to have various negative health consequences (Mayo Clinic Staff, 2019).

However, several superstar professional athletes are still factually or legally guilty for PEDs’ usage. Whitman (2007) argues that the society’s implicit approval of PEDs is a positive externality that has been effective in overshadowing the two negative externalities, i.e., the decrease in the level of confidence that the public has on the sports’ integrity and the PEDs’ negative effects on the nation’s youth. Thus, the author determines that PEDs’ usage in sports by professional athletes has become an endemic ethical crisis in the society instead of contributing towards the improvement in social welfare. The ‘‘winner bias’’ concerning PEDs’ usage by athletes has significantly clouded their judgment to an extent that they cannot accurately and appropriately realize the consequences of their decisions to the general society (Whitman, 2007). Thus, by trying to win at all cost and by all means, the athletes jeopardize the society’s wellbeing.

Athletics coaches have a significant role to play in managing the situation. First, whether they suspend the implicated athletes or release public statements against such acts, how they handle the cases significantly influences public perception. Secondly, coaches should engage the athletes in ethical values education (Balci & Erdeveciler, 2017). The coaches can engage the athletes in teaching and workshops where they can be trained on the fact that performance-enhancement drugs threaten their health, unfairly enhance performance, and violate the spirit of sportsmanship. They also play an integral role in sports ethics because of their immense ability to set and influence the team culture (STU, 2019). They should involve the players in open discussions to inform them that the use of the prohibited substances is unethical, immoral, unsportsmanlike, and illegal.

References
Balci, V., & Erdeveciler, Ö. (2017, May). Some Sports Managers’ Views about Values Education through Sports. Journal of Education and Training Studies, 5(5), 197-203.
CBC News. (2016, March 8). Maria Sharapova The Latest Athlete To Be Caught Doping. Retrieved October 20, 2020, from CBC News: https://www.cbc.ca/news/world/sharapova-list-drug-athletes-1.3480918
Mayo Clinic Staff. (2019, May 18). Performance-enhancing drugs: Know the risks. Retrieved October 20, 2020, from Mayo Clinic: https://www.mayoclinic.org/healthy-lifestyle/fitness/in-depth/performance-enhancing-drugs/art-20046134
Specktor, B. (2018, February 13). Why Is It So Easy to Cheat at the Olympics? (Future US, Inc. 11 West 42nd Street, 15th Floor, New York, NY 10036.) Retrieved October 20, 2020, from Live Science: https://www.livescience.com/61747-how-widespread-olympic-doping.html
STU. (2019, October 25). Ethical Issues in Sports Administration. (St. Thomas University) Retrieved October 20, 2020, from St Thomas University (STU) Online: https://online.stu.edu/articles/business/ethical-issues-sports-administration.aspx
Whitman, J. H. (2007, November 12). Winning At All Costs: Using Law & Economics To Determine The Proper Role Of Government In Regulating The Use Of Performance-Enhancing Drugs In Professional Sports. University of Illinois Law Review, 2008.

CAPSTONE PROJECT 2

The Role of Ethical Leadership in the Fights against PEDs’ Usage by Superstar Professional Athletes

TraeVon Clavo

Belhaven University

MSA 670

Dr. Woods

10/31/2020

Running Head: CAPSTONE PROJECT 2

The Role of Ethical Leadership in the Fights against PEDs’ Usage by Superstar Professional Athletes

Superstar professional athletes are imitated, admired, and revered by the youths in the society. However, the fortunes, fame, and notoriety also come with immense responsibility. Generally, whereas guardians and parents act as role models to their kids, the superstar professional athletes are deity-like heroes. Thus, although some of these athletes may deny that they do not have any accountability to the youths and the society, the fact is that they do. Ideally, if not realistically, sports figures need to portray integrity and honesty to the young people and the society because they owe them their stardom. It is the young people who tune-in for games, sit in the stadium seats, buy their jerseys etc.

Consequently, the athletic competition should be guided by the spirit of sportsmanship, fair play, and professionalism at every level. Sports competition should be about having a level playing field, spirit de corps, safe and productive training techniques, team values, and hard work (Mannie, 2018). Athletes should achieve a competitive edge and greatness over the others through God-given talents, physical and mental toughness, and perseverance in the most optimal and honorable way possible. Unfortunately, the contemporary sports competition has been more about the athlete who has used the best prohibited, dangerous chemicals to boost their performance. The use of performance enhancing drugs elicits a lot of ethical issues in sports competition at all levels. Thus, it is the responsibility of the sports management and administration, based on an ethical leadership, to inform the athletes about the dangers of PEDs’ usage. These prohibited drugs have left the legacies of some of the most prolific and highly talented athletes of this generation tainted with an asterisk suggesting their guilt for PEDs usage.

Ethical leaders will want to inform the athletes that about from destroying their career, legacy, and health, PEDs also destroys the lives of countless young people who, driven by the ‘‘winner bias’’ effect, would want to achieve greatness and all that comes with it at all cost. Perhaps, the best example of a leadership failure in curbing PEDs usage was during the Sochi Olympics in 2014 when Russia was alleged to have run a systematic doping program. The whistle-blower, Grigory Rodchenkov, who was the director of Russia’s anti-doping lab, confessed how the country developed and ran elaborate protocols and schemes to create PEDs and a plot to switch the implicated athlete’ urine samples to evade detection. The Russia’s case demonstrates just how states can sponsor far-reaching doping tactics to help their athletes win. The whistle-blower, who said that he also masterminded and participated in the program after being forced by high-profile and powerful people in the Russian government, apologized for the act, stating that the illegal and unethical actions denied hardworking and clean athletes from having a level playing field (Mannie, 2018).

Ethical sports leaders value integrity, honor, and fair competition. The type of leadership normally both resides within the leader because of their deeply-held beliefs and disseminates outward from them concerning their behavior and thoughts. Sports leaders demonstrate ethical leadership through normatively appropriate conduct via personal actions and interpersonal relations. They also demonstrate it through their promotion of such normatively-appropriate conducts to their followers through decision-making, reinforcement, and communication (Ibrahim, 2017). Athletes, coaches, physicians, team administrative staffs, governments, etc. should cooperate and marshal all their resources towards ensuring that the ethical issue of PEDs usage is completely remedied. Coaches, administrators, organizers, leaders, etc. are responsible for always being vigilant in ensuring the prompt detection of those who conspire to cheat the system.

Reference
Ibrahim, L. Y. (2017, June). Leadership & Ethical Leadership In Sports Organizations: A Review. Leadership Project. https://www.researchgate.net/publication/317869668_LEADERSHIP_ETHICAL_LEADERSHIP_IN_SPORTS_ORGANIZATIONS_A_REVIEW
Mannie, K. (2018, June 12). PEDs in Sports: The Ongoing Fight. Retrieved October 24, 2020, from COACH & AD: https://coachad.com/articles/peds-in-sports-the-ongoing-fight/

CAPSTONE PROJECT 4

High Performance Team-Work as an Alternative to PEDs’ Usage amongst Superstar Professional Athletes for Team Success

TraeVon Clavo

Belhaven University

MSA 670

Dr. Woods

10/31/2020

Running Head: CAPSTONE PROJECT 2

High Performance Team-Work as an Alternative to PEDs’ Usage amongst Superstar Professional Athletes for Team Success

Every athlete and sports team wants to emerge as the best side in any competition. Unfortunately, some superstar professional athletes get driven by the winner bias to an extent that they no longer care about the overall team success or the sports values. Such athletes want to win at any cost, even if it means using performance-enhancing drugs (PEDs) to give them a competitive edge over their competitors. The greed for emerging winners in competitions, and the fortunes, notoriety, and fame that come with it have even driven some sports organizations and government to the point of masterminding doping schemes to give their athletes a competitive edge over their competitors. For instance, during the 2014 Sochi Olympics, Russia was accused and found guilty for having masterminding such a systematic doping scheme (Mannie, 2018). However, the usage of PEDs by the superstar professional athletes will always have a negative consequence, to the athletes’ health, their career, and the societal wellbeing and welfare. It goes against the sports’ spirit and values of professionalism, fair play, sportsmanship. Additionally, even if they are not caught, the guilty-conscience will eternally reproach them.

PEDs usage can also affect teamwork amongst athletes. Ideally, athletes use the drugs to enable them primarily achieve personal success and glory, whereas the overall team success is a secondary goal. Thus, ensuring a team agility and resonance becomes very hard. Thus, a safer, holistic, and ethical alternative to PEDs usage is the building of high-performance team-work. The building of high-performance teamwork is critical for an agile winning team. High-performance teams need talented, skillful athletes and trust-based cooperative behavior amongst its members to ensure team success. Such teams are based on communication, trust, and clear vision, and responsible, skilled, and motivated team-members. Additionally, ethical leadership is also critical for high-performance teams because it helps set clear legal and ethical goals, standards, roles, and principles for everyone to follow.

Teams are an integral part of the sports organization’s culture. Team-base structures are the only component that can ensure organizations transform into agile high-performers, especially under the contemporary sports environment that is common with fast transformations and complexities. High-performance teams, although not very common, can help any sports organizations achieve what would otherwise seem extra-ordinary and unachievable (Hakanen, Häkkinen, & Soudunsaari, 2015). Sports teams, when built under high-performance ideals rather than PEDs usage, would help its members deliver an extra-ordinarily excessive performance that could not be reasonably expected compared to its competitors. In sports competitions where teamwork is required, such as rugby, soccer and football, having the best individuals, high-end facilities, extraordinary coaches, and more resources does not guarantee success. However, it is only those teams that can optimally combine its members’ insights, experiences, and skills and transform them into a high-performance team that can be sure of success (Afterburner, 2020). High-performance teams differ from the working groups, because under the latter, every team member will care about the group’s success. Thus, ethical and successful leaders must strive to develop such teams rather than let athletes cheat the system.

References
Afterburner. (2020). Building a High-Performance Team: Professional Sports and Your Business. Retrieved October 24, 2020, from Afterburner: https://www.afterburner.com/building-a-high-performance-team-professional-sports-and-your-business/
Hakanen, M., Häkkinen, M., & Soudunsaari, A. (2015). Trust In Building High-Performing Teams – Conceptual Approach. Electronic Journal of Business Ethics and Organization Studies (EJBO), 20(2).
Mannie, K. (2018, June 12). PEDs in Sports: The Ongoing Fight. Retrieved October 24, 2020, from COACH & AD: https://coachad.com/articles/peds-in-sports-the-ongoing-fight/

SPORTS MANAGEMENT & ETHICS 2

The Value of Advanced Organized Leadership in the Fights against PEDs Usage by Superstar Professional Athletes

Trae’Von Clavo

Belhaven University

MSA 670

Dr. Woods

11/7/20

The Value of Advanced Organized Leadership in the Fights against PEDs Usage by Superstar Professional Athletes

In the contemporary era where the usage of performance-enhancement drugs (PEDs) by athletes has broken the ceiling, sports organizations are desperate for measures that can be used to correct the problem, and by extension, preserve the spirit of sports. Advanced leadership is one of the measures.

Typically, most of the doping and PEDs usage cases currently being witnessed are an indirect or direct result of leadership failures. For instance, the Russia doping scandal during the 2014 Sochi Olympics was caused by athletes leaders’ irresoluteness to stand up for the sports values. The government-sponsored doping program significantly altered the past Olympics Games’ results. Thus, sports officials and athletes compromised on their principles to aid the widespread and state-sponsored doping scheme (Mannie, 2018). In 2016, anti-doping authorities drawn from about 20 countries voiced their concern for the deteriorating sports ethics, and called for a change in WADA’s leadership. Following a meeting held in Bonn, Germany, the officials repeated their recommendation that no anti-doping decision-maker should be allowed to hold a policy-making position or role within a sports organization to prevent or minimize the occurrence of cases of conflicts of interest with could arise when ‘‘…officials promote the Olympic brand while pursuing offenses that could tarnish it…’’ as had been witnessed during the Russian doping scandal (Ruiz, 2016). Thus, leaders should play a critical role in restoring the public’s confidence in the worldwide anti-doping system by establishing policies, controls and restraints to reform the currently corrupted system.

Advanced leadership is critical in any area of sports. As a behavioral process, leadership influences both individuals and groups towards the team’s set goal. The leader plays the dual function of ensuring that all the players are satisfied while simultaneously steering the individual and the entire team to a success (Sampla, 2014). Advanced leaders can influence and dissuade professional from using PEDs. Such a leadership is built on a solid foundation comprising of a clear mission and vision for the future, a specific strategy, and culture that is conducive to success (Rihal, 2017).

Specifically, advanced leaders value personal excellence, the proper attitude to realize maximum achievement, character and integrity as their life and leadership’s foundation, patience, effective and consistent communication, and creating the right culture for the team to thrive (Wolf Management Consultants, LLC., nd). Such character traits means that advanced leaders can successfully handle virtually every challenge. According to Ibrahim (2016), ‘‘[l]eadership constantly presents challenges both to the leader’s abilities and a person, things and change; change brings challenge, and no matter how good a leader is, can’t stop that from happening’’ (p.73). The challenges may come in the form of problems or people that presents obstacles to fulfill their mandate. The author continues to state that ‘‘[h[one handles those challenges will define one as a leader and have a great deal to do with how effective one can be’’ (p.73). Advanced leaders plays the frontline leadership role, and applies their existing or new skills and knowledge to ensure clearer communication, retain strong teams, understand and lead the teams, effectively resolve conflicts, and attain higher productivity (Ibrahim, 2016).

In the sports world, advanced leaders can play the management and leadership role. Apart from doing the tasks themselves, they can empower their subordinates to implement and achieve anti-doping goals. Additionally, the fights against PEDs usage is both complex and challenging, advanced leaders are well equipped to handle them because they can both cope with complexity and the changes (Ibrahim, 2016). Thus, advanced leadership is a valuable tool in the fight against PEDs. The leaders can collaborate with their team and one another to root out the vice. They are able to successfully adopt and enforce anti-doping regulations. As principled and resolute leaders, advanced leaders can help formulate and enforce strong policies to protect whistleblowers and ensure both comprehensive screening and the exclusion of corrupt system and officials from international competitions. Such leaders can also exercise their influence to halt the global doping network.

References
Ibrahim, L. Y. (2016). Effective Managerial Leardership and Challengesin Sport Organization. IOSR Journal of Sports and Physical Education (IOSR-JSPE), 3(5 [Sep.–Oct. 2016]), 73-80.
Mannie, K. (2018, June 12). PEDs in Sports: The Ongoing Fight. Retrieved October 24, 2020, from COACH & AD: https://coachad.com/articles/peds-in-sports-the-ongoing-fight/
Rihal, C. S. (2017, December 14). The Importance of Leadership to Organizational Success. Retrieved October 29, 2020, from NEJM Catalyst: https://catalyst.nejm.org/doi/full/10.1056/CAT.17.0301
Ruiz, R. R. (2016, October 26). WADA Needs New Leadership, Antidoping Officials Strongly Suggest. Retrieved October 29, 2020, from The New York Times: https://www.nytimes.com/2016/10/27/sports/doping-wada-ioc-craig-reedie.html
Sampla, S. (2014). Leadership And The Role Of A Leader In Sports. Retrieved October 29, 2020, from BelievePerform: https://believeperform.com/leadership-and-the-role-of-a-leader-in-sports/
Wolf Management Consultants, LLC. (nd). Advanced Leadership: The Eight Significant Principles. Retrieved October 29, 2020, from Wolf Management Consultants, LLC.: https://www.wolfmotivation.com/programs/advanced-leadership-the-eight-significant-principles

SPORTS MANAGEMENT & ETHICS 2

The Impact of Sports Finance & Budgeting in Sports Organizations’ Fight against PEDs’ Usage by Superstar Professional Athletes

Trae’Von Clavo

Belhaven University

MSA 670

Dr. Woods

11/7/20

The Impact of Sports Finance & Budgeting in Sports Organizations’ Fight against PEDs’ Usage by Superstar Professional Athletes

The usage of performance-enhancement drugs (PEDs) by superstar professional athletes and others continues to attract a lot of debate as a critical issue in sports values and ethics. Generally, PEDs such as doping substances is considered unethical and unhealthy for the athletes, the sports industry, and the society. The World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) is an internationally sports management and administration funded by the member-states, and which is responsible for the prevention of PEDs usage by athletes. In this paper, I will discuss the impacts of sports finance and budgeting in sports organizations, using the case of WADA.

The current world Anti-doping Code developed by WADA takes a tough approach to doping. WADA has for various occasions justified the approach by mainly advancing two justificatory arguments that the ‘‘protection of the spirit of sport warrants tough measures and, second, that athletes have voluntarily consented to the Code’’ (Geeraets, 2018). Athletes who have been determined to be guilty for first-time doping can be suspended for up to four years instead of the initial two years, and that the agency now relies on strict and vicarious liability standards. Based on the spirit of sport, there are about three criteria that the agency is committed to. The first criterion is the medical or related scientific evidence that the drug or method can produce the pharmacological effect or experience that can potentially enhance sports performance. Secondly, it also relies on the medical or related scientific evidence that the use of the substance or method represents a potential or actual health risk to the athlete. Then final criteria are based on the agency’s commitment to its determination that the substance or method’s usage violates the sports’ spirits as per the description provided in the introduction to the Code.

The spirit of the sport concerns health, ethics, fair play, and honesty, teamwork, character and education, excellence in performance, dedication and commitment, fun and joy, courage, respect for self and other participants, respect for rules and laws, community an solidarity, etc. However, based on the contemporary circumstances marked by an constant and exponential rise in doping and PEDs use cases by a burgeoning number of athletes and financial and budgetary constraints, the social reality is that WADA can only create a façade of justice rather than serving it (Geeraets, 2018). WADA needs a lot of funds to finance its activities, from testing and screening of samples, research and development activities, investigations, litigations, enforcements, etc. Generally, WADA relies on funding from its members, and the unwillingness of some of its stakeholders to provide sufficient funding of the national anti-doping organizations (NADO) has significantly paralyzed their activities. Thus, the organization has started looking for new sources of funding from the sports industry such as betting companies and commercial sponsors instead of solely relying on national governments and the International Olympic Committee (IOC) (Homewood, 2012; Grohmann, 2019). Additionally, the agency have also in the past contemplated on including tougher measures against stakeholders who have failed to fulfill their financial obligations to WADA (Sportcal, 2003).

Thus, any sports organization and agency, including WADA, needs good funding and financial practices for its practices to thrive. For instance, due to its scope and nature, the fight against PEDs usage needs huge funding to ensure its success. In the case of WADA, more money and effective budgeting has often led to more tests, increased detection, more funding for research and development practices, etc. (Moller, 2017). The outcome would be good sports free from PEDs. However, since the agency is experiencing gross financial constraints, it has not been effective in funding its operations. The result is the burgeoning number of undetected PEDs cases, and other unethical sports practices.

References
Geeraets, V. (2018). Ideology, Doping and the Spirit of Sport. Journal of Sports, Ethics and Philosophy, 12(3).
Grohmann, K. (2019, November 5). WADA To Ask Commercial Sponsors For Money In Anti-Doping Fight. Retrieved January 29, 2020, from Reuters: https://www.reuters.com/article/us-sport-doping-wada-sponsors-idUSKBN1XF1IZ
Homewood, B. (2012, February 7). Financial Constraints And Complacency Worry WADA. Retrieved October 29, 2020, from Reuters: https://uk.reuters.com/article/uk-doping-finance/financial-constraints-and-complacency-worry-wada-idUKTRE8161CZ20120207
Moller, C. M. (2017, January 12). More Money – Better Anti-Doping? Retrieved October 29, 2020, from The Sports Integrity Initiative: https://www.sportsintegrityinitiative.com/money-better-anti-doping/
Sportcal. (2003, September 9). Press Releases: WADA Executive Committee to Discuss Future Role . Retrieved October 29, 2020, from Sportcal: https://www.sportcal.com/News/PressReleases/98857?size=50%2C50

CAPSTONE PROJECT – READING ASSIGNMENT 2

Strategic Leadership Ethics Role in the Management of PEDs’ Usage amongst Superstar Professional Athletes

Trae’Von Clavo

Belhaven University

MSA 670

Dr. Woods

Superstar professional athletes use performance-enhancement drugs (PEDs) to enhance their performance and general competitiveness in sports competitions. However, the usage of these drugs in sports have been banned or prohibited based on health, legal and ethical grounds. Globally, sports administrators and management have prohibited these drugs based on health grounds, citing that PEDs can potentially damage the users’ – be they elite athletes who risk being detected or recreational sportsperson who are unlikely to get tested – health. Ethically and legally, they have also been banned because of the three compelling reasons of safeguarding sport’s values and meaning, preserving the athlete’s integrity, and ensuring fair competition amongst the athletes (Savulescu, Foddy, & Clayton, 2004). Ideally, it is unethical and unprofessional for athletes who have used PEDs to enhance their performance to be crowned as the competition’s winner over those who have not used these drugs.

Ethical and strategic sports leadership is a very critical tool in the fights against the athletes’ use of PEDs. Strategic leadership is a three-step process that includes the strategy formulation, implementation, and evaluation (Wahlström, 2018). Through ethical leadership, strategic leaders can effectively and significantly prevent or influence athletes from using PEDs like anabolics and other steroids, dehydroepiandrosterone (DHEA), diuretics, blood doping, ephedrine, Human growth hormones (HGH), etc (Krans, 2016). Strategic leaders can successfully help fights PEDs within the sports industry by exercising their abilities to create ethical and desirable vision, express it, passionately possess it, and persistently pursue it to its fulfillment. Strategic leaders express strategic vision for their teams and organizations and persuade and motivate them to pursue the vision until its accomplishment. Generally, the modern sport industry is under constant scrutiny for moral bankruptcy (Ibrahim, 2017). Thus, strategic leaders, driven by the incessant need for success, are ethical leaders, and apply moral reasoning to approach and resolve value-based conflicts and ethical dilemmas that might arise within their sports organizations like the PEDs usage by athletes. Under such circumstances, ethical strategic leaders strive to choose well by pursuing options that would not only bring success to them and the organization, but also reduce risks like damage to their reputation.

Ethical strategic leadership is two-fold. It entails the leader making and following ethical decisions to resolve ethical dilemmas and exploring their deep personal beliefs and values concerning both self and sport, and which inform their thinking and action. Strategic leaders should prioritize value-based culture and ethical leadership at all times. The leaders need to serve as role models of respect, fairness, honesty, trustworthiness, and integrity to their teams. They also model on how the superstar professional athletes under them should use values like pursuit for honor, professionalism, and the spirit of sportsmanship to guide their decisions and actions, and that they should strive to enact reward systems that ensure that their team-members are accountable for ethical, legal and professional conduct throughout their career in sports. Strategic leaders are often at a better position to accomplish massive success in their endeavors because of their vision and general success that they enjoy within the organization, especially due to their success trend. Ethical strategic leaders often have the moral courage to follow what is morally right irrespective of the circumstances that they may find themselves (Lumpkin & Doty, 2014). Accordingly, they can help nurture the appropriate value-based culture that is against PEDs’ usage by athletes within their organizations.

References
Ibrahim, L. Y. (2017, June). Leadership & Ethical Leadership In Sports Organizations: A Review. Leadership.
Krans, B. (2016, December 19). Performance Enhancers: The Safe and the Deadly. (M. Charles, Editor) Retrieved November 10, 2020, from Healthline: https://www.healthline.com/health/performance-enhancers-safe-deadly
Lumpkin, A., & Doty, J. (2014, August/ Fall). Ethical Leadership in Intercollegiate Athletics. The Journal of Values-Based Leadership, 7(2 – Article 6).
Savulescu, J., Foddy, B., & Clayton, M. (2004). Performance Enhancing Drugs: Why We Should Allow Performance Enhancing Drugs In Sport. British Journal of Sports Medicine, 38(6), 666-670.
Wahlström, T. (2018, November 1). Strategic Management in Sports. Retrieved November 10, 2020, from The Sport Digest: http://thesportdigest.com/2018/11/strategic-management-in-sports/

CAPSTONE PROJECTS 2

The Importance of Understanding Current Human Resources’ Issues in the Management of PEDs’ Usage amongst Superstar Professional

Trae’Von Clavo

Belhaven University

MSA 670

Dr. Woods

Human Resource is the organizational division mandated to determine, screen, recruit, and train job applicants, and administer employee-benefit programs. It also refers to the people who collectively form the workforce of the economy, industry, business sector, or organization. Additionally, term is also narrowly synonymous with human capital, personnel, labor, manpower, people, or associates. In sports organizations, human resource is very essential because it helps them deal with the fast-changing business environment and a greater demand for quality employees (Kenton, 2020). Other critical human resource responsibilities include compliance with guidelines concerning the athletes and organizations, recruitment and training, compensation and benefits, firing or laying-off, etc.

Similar to other organizations, the contemporary sports organizations have undergone several critical transformations. For instance, they have moved away from the traditional in-house human resources administrative duties and outsourced tasks like payrolls and benefits to the use of outside vendors. Additionally, the incessant push for strategic human resource initiatives within the organizations starting from as far as the 1980s has given rise to the collective strategies referred to as human resource management (HRM) strategies. The new HRM strategies encompasses a comprehensive approaches used to manage the organizations culture, the environment, the staff, and the athletes. A good HRM initiative should focus on recruiting, managing, directing the athletes towards the right direction. For the past few years, the sports organizations have undergone major human resource management transformations, leading to the general evolution of everything, from the athletes’ recruitment, software systems, athletes’ analytics, etc. (wi-fiattendance.com, 2019).

The organizations are depending on big data analytics to enhance performance and employee experience, advanced people analytics like predictive models that come with advanced feature like employee retention predictors, learning management systems and augmented reality for training optimization, digitalized rewards and recognition systems, online skills assessment, biometric time tracking and security, etc. Other general trends include the need for enhanced employee engagement through seminars and sessions like counseling on improved work-life balance, dietary counseling, etc., the move towards leadership transformation, targeted recruitment, and application of wearable tech designed to track several features like body temperature, pupil dilation, heart rates, etc., performance management systems like VR, instant feedback, real-time open-dialogue conversations etc. (wi-fiattendance.com, 2019).

Sports organizations can leverage the current human resource trends to help in the fight of performance-enhancement drugs’ (PEDs’) usage amongst superstar professional athletes with greater success. Effective HRM practices are very critical in the sports in the sports industry, and can significantly improve discipline amongst the athletes (Sports Facilities Advisory, LLC., 2019). By using better human resource practices during the athletes’ recruitment, selection and appraisal stages, the sports coaches and other managers would significantly reduce the uptake of PEDs users into the organization. Additional, focusing on close employee engagement practices would help the human resource department identify the culprits and initiate or invoke the necessary corrective or rehabilitative measures.

Additionally, better or effective HR practices can be used as an alternative to the employees’ use of PEDs to enhance their performance. Contemporary research shows that being in compliance with good HRM practices can significantly improve the sport’s organization’s sporting performance (Georgios & Chatzoglou, 2008). Sports organizations needs to understand and implement effective human resource development policies and practices that are against the use of PEDs and use dedicated HRM managers to enforce them. Since human resource also entails the philosophies specifying the organization’s values, sports managers and administrators can successfully use the desirable practices and policies to enforce these positive and anti-PEDs values, and understand their enforcement (Ohio University, 2020). If properly applied, effective human resource can lead to higher athletic achievement levels amongst athletes and within the forum organizations even without their use of PEDs.

References
Georgios, T. N., & Chatzoglou, P. D. (2008, May). Enhancing Performance Through Best Hrm Practices, Organizational Learning And Knowledge Management: A Conceptual Framework. European Business Review, 20(3), 185-207.
Kenton, W. (2020, July 28). Human Resources (HR). (J. Mansa, Editor) Retrieved November 10, 2020, from Investopedia: https://www.investopedia.com/terms/h/humanresources.asp
Ohio University. (2020). Human Resources In Sports Organizations. Retrieved November 10, 2020, from http://athleticadminonline.ohio.edu/resources/articles/human-resources-in-sports-organizations/
Sports Facilities Advisory, LLC. (2019, January 22). Common Human Resource Issues. Retrieved November 10, 2020, from https://sportadvisory.com/common-human-resource-issues/
wi-fiattendance.com. (2019, May 17). What Are the Recent Trends in Human Resource Management? Retrieved November 10, 2020, from wi-fiattendance.com: https://www.wifiattendance.com/blog/recent-trends-human-resource-management/

CAPSTONE PROJECT 2

The Role of Faith and Christian Worldview in the Fight against PEDs’ Usage by Athletes

Trae’Von Clavo

Belhaven University

MSA 670

11/21/2020

Dr. Woods

The world of athletics and sports is full of activities that can drag us out of faith. People are obsessed with competing, winning, and gaining fame and riches by every means possible. Consequently, most of the athletics debates are informed more by secular reasoning rather than faith. Fortunately, one of our study objectives was to successfully integrate faith and a Christian worldview applicable to all areas of sports administration and coaching professions. I am particularly drawn to how sports administrators and managers can apply faith and a Christian worldview to fight against the massive usage of performance-enhancing drugs (PEDs) by superstar professional athletes at every level.

As I have noted in my earlier posts, the use of PEDs by superstar professional athletes is an endemic ethical challenge that has lowered our faith in sports’ integrity and had a significant adverse impact on social welfare. Thanks to the overarching ”winner bias phenomenon” that has significantly clouded the athletes’ judgment, they continue to use these drugs and substances to emerge the winners in competitions without realizing the potential harm their behavior poses to sports, society, and themselves (Whitman, 2007). We live in an age where athletes pursue success at all costs without considering the means. Fortunately, sports administrators and managers can help solve the problem by integrating faith and a Christian worldview in their practice. Lawrence Ressler (2008) argues in her journal article, The Integration of Athletics and Faith, that faith and ‘‘…Christian worldview should impact how one understands competition, coaching philosophy, the concept of team membership and the use of abilities’’ and ‘‘…the purpose and meaning of sports’’. If we realize such integration, we can successfully fight PEDs’ usage amongst athletes because of a faith-based and Christian worldview values trust, fairness, humility, and integrity in all kinds of competition.

The Bible contains several verses relevant to faith, integrity, humility, honor, and fairness in all forms of competition. For instance, in Galatians 5: 19-20, the Bible states some undesirable traits that Christians must avoid, including enmity, strife, jealousy, rivalries, dissensions, and divisions. PEDs usage directly leads to these outcomes. The Bible also urges us to consider others’ interests in the same way that we consider ours. In Philippians 2: 3-4, the Bible states that ‘‘[d]o nothing out of rivalry or conceit, but in humility considers others as more important than you. Everyone should look out not only for his own interests but also for the interests of others’’. Lying in a competition is also prohibited in James 3: 14- 15, which states that ”[b]ut if you are bitterly jealous and there is selfish ambition in your heart, do not cover up the truth with boasting and lying. For jealousy and selfishness are not God’s kind of wisdom. Such things are earthly, unspiritual, and demonic”.

Furthermore, even for those who get away with cheating and earn all the fame, enormous rewards, and attention, the Bible states that such are vanity and that we can only cheat men, not God. The Bible says that ”…[y]ou are those who justify yourselves before men, but God knows your hearts. For what is exalted among men is an abomination in the sight of God (Luke 16:15-16).

Now, what can sports administrators and managers do to contain the vice? The Bible has a solution. Romans 12: 2 warns us against copying the world’s customs and urges us to ”…let God transform [us] into a new person by changing the way [we] think”. It continues to state that we should ”…become conceited, provoking and envying [of] each other” (Gal. 5: 26). By incorporating faith and Christian teaching in athletes, I will implement and enforce policies against the ethical issue and lead by example. Through workshops and mentorship programs, I would explain to the athletes that the primary end of their life and competitions is to know God and Jesus Christ as the eternal life (John 12:2) rather than the lure of winning and the accompanying fame, riches, power.

Finally, PEDs have several adverse healthcare implications on the body. Many athletes who have used them often live to narrate heartbreaking stories about how these substances affected their lives (USADA, 2020). However, God prohibits anyone from taking any drug or substance that is harmful to their body. For instance, the Bible states that ”[d]o you not know that you are God’s temple and that God’s Spirit dwells in you? If anyone destroys God’s temple, God will destroy him’’ (I Cor. 3:16-17). I will inform them that even if they use these drugs and get away with it in this world, God will ultimately punish them for harming His temple.

References
Ressler, L. E. (2008, Spring). The Integration of Athletics and Faith. Direction, 37(1), 91–102. https://directionjournal.org/37/1/integration-of-athletics-and-faith.html
USADA. (2020). Effects of Performance-Enhancing Drugs. Retrieved November 20, 2020, from USADA.com: https://www.usada.org/athletes/substances/effects-of-performance-enhancing-drugs/
Whitman, J. H. (2007, November 12). Winning At All Costs: Using Law & Economics To Determine The Proper Role Of Government In Regulating The Use Of Performance-Enhancing Drugs In Professional Sports. University of Illinois Law Review, 2008.

CAPSTONE PROJECT 2

Personal Reflection on My Masters of Sports Administration Academic Journey: From Bachelor’s to Master’s Degree

TraeVon Clavo

Belhaven University

MSA 670

11/21/2020

Dr. Woods

I have realized that sports administration is a highly demanding but lucrative field, contrary to popular opinion. In my reflection on my ”Masters of Sports Administration Academic Journey: From Bachelor’s to Master’s Degree”, I will describe my academic journey in the field, the past, the present, and the future.

Until now, I have come to understand that a degree, either Bachelor’s or Master’s, is ideal for people who want to combine their passion and enthusiasm for sports and business skills. If successful in achieving optimal combination and landing or creating a lucrative career role or position, one is sure to enjoy a successful career. In general, the sports administration degree imparts to students concepts and skills related to marketing, finance, management and administration, and law and ethical issues related to the sports industry. The classes and topics are designed to help learners understand the sports organization’s business side while using the latest technologies and trends. The outcomes are that students can develop and broaden their skillsets in sports and its administrative issues and also acquire essential competencies related to attentiveness to details, communication, problem-solving, and critical thinking, to name but a few. The skills are not in vain. Graduates at every level need them for a successful career and in every situation, like negotiating a multibillion-dollar deal for a team or player that they represent or a sponsorship contract for a local event.

How did I get here? It usually is tough to find a definitive solution to the question. However, the shortest answer is that I got here due to many years of hard work, focus, diligence, adaptability, and trust in God’s guidance. I developed an interest in sports and sports administration in high school. As a popular and excellent basketball player in high school, I was made the captain for our school-team in the final year. My primary role was to coordinate all the team’s activities. After high school, I would go on to play street basketball, and ultimately, join a local but popular basketball team. Since then, I have never looked back on my love for sports. Thus, I managed to secure admission to pursue a bachelor’s degree in Sports Administration. Many people think that sports administration is about practicing and playing. However, it requires significant mental input. The bachelor’s degree lays the theoretical foundation in sports law, sports history, communication, finance, sports facility management, event management, sports marketing, ethical and legal issues in sports administration, etc. I must admit that I had a successful academic journey in college.

The Master’s degree entails specializing in and advancing one’s knowledge in a particular field. During the Master’s program, I have learned a lot, especially in research and sports ethics related to athletes’ use of performance-enhancing drugs (PEDs). I have established that sports administrators engage in many research activities when handling both sports and business issues related to the industry. Though I still play basketball, I was also lucky to land a coaching job at an upcoming community basketball team. For the past two years that I have been holding the position, I have started noticing some positive developments. The team-members’ cohesion and drive have improved, and we have significantly attracted and retained many sponsors and fans who have continued to support us.

I have a great passion for playing and coaching basketball. However, armed with my Sports Administration degrees, I know that I can comfortably work as an event organizer, sports academician and researcher, sports manager, etc. I understand that to be successful in the sports industry, I must be passionate about sports and business (Balan, 2020). My future goal is to help my team achieve its goal of being a successful team. Also look forward to raising a pool of young, competitive, highly-talented, and professional basketball players who would be able to dominate and live a mark in the basketball world for years to come. Fortunately, through the Master’s degree, I have learned how to push for more innovation in the world of physical fitness, support athletes, revolutionize the athletics program, and lead the team to the path to victory.

Reference
Balan, R. S. (2020, August 20). Why Study a Sports Management Degree in 2020 (and Careers to Choose after Graduation). Retrieved November 20, 2020, from Studyportals: https://www.mastersportal.com/articles/2724/why-study-a-sports-management-degree-in-2020.html