Einstürzende Neubauten

I have always wanted to use the name of the German band founded in the 80s in the title of the article. Now was the right time for it, because the name means collapsing new buildings.

Strong criticism of the Olympics and the entire Olympic movement has entered the public debate. At the same time, at home, Veikkaus and the system built on the basis of its income is drifting into a final dead end.

Both Sami Itani and Annika Mutanen have creditably opened up the problems of the Olympics and the Olympic movement in their articles published in Helsingin Sanomat.

Sami Itani: Canceling the Olympics would be a great opportunity for sports

Annika Mutanen: The dark side of a dream

Coalition politician Kai Mykkänen dared to say out loud what everyone knows: "It would be time to admit that this emperor has no clothes, says Kai Mykkänen about Veikkaus' position"

In the course of the Games, other problems of sports and especially the Olympics also became public. For example, an undemocratic and partly deeply corrupt administration, disregard for the well-being of athletes, senseless waste of resources and the polishing of the reputation of cruel dictatorships have put the entire elite sport under question.

The discussion reflects the movement of society, with which the structures of sports - or many other areas of life - have not kept up at all. However, the inevitable changes in the social status of sports, as well as in the requirements and funding set for its management, have attracted quite a bit of attention among sports people. Would it be so that we close our eyes and hope that the storms of the world do not touch the birdhouse?

Drivers of change

At least there is influence behind the change two clear megatrends:

1. Increasing influence of new governing systems
2. Accelerating technological change and hyperconnectivity

New ways of influencing create a challenge for old structures. As people become increasingly networked and educated, their demands for opportunities to participate grow. These requirements are not channeled into traditional structures, but new multi-layered and partly informal structures are created that change as needed. Different interest groups demand to have – and get – their voices heard. As the demands for justice grow with this, rigid and irrelevant structures are doomed to change or disappear.

Accelerating technological development and the networking of people create new operational opportunities and new ideas spread more and more efficiently. This is how the speed of change increases and systems that stand still are doomed to be left behind. Operational efficiency requirements are increasing. We cannot afford to waste resources and operators must constantly focus their activities. The change in the demographic structure also affects such that there is a crying shortage of talent, and we cannot afford to lose competence and commitment.

Change or lose

In the prevailing reality, changes are necessary. Every sports organization and community must claim its right to exist in the new situation. In fact, in the future it will be redeemable deed by deed and decision by decision. When money is no longer shoveled like crap on a pallet and the structures are subjected to demands for ethical sustainability and opportunities for influence, the former game no longer holds.

If there's one thing I've learned in my twenty-year adventure in the advertising world, it's that even the best ad won't save sales if the product is bad. For sports organizations and communities, this poses a tough challenge. When existence for existence's sake is no longer possible and money doesn't grow on trees, many people are in trouble.

Now it's no longer worth thinking about whether the structures of the sport will change significantly, but where the position will be after the changes. Preparing for change is always stressful and changes are very laborious. But on the other hand, change is always a great opportunity for those who have the ability to adapt and the ability to benefit from the changed situation.

Solutions

The key realization that everyone in a decision-making position in the field of sports should achieve is that activities are not done because of structures, but the players in sports are at the center. Of course, primarily the athletes, but also the athletes' close circle, coaches, administrators, fans, financial stakeholders and business activities around sports all demand their voice and space in the operation.

Action must be focused. The activity must have a goal and a plan to achieve it, even more so written down in an understandable form. The core values of the operation must also be found and, of course, recorded. The goal, plans and values must be such that the participants can and want to commit to them. They must be formulated clearly and comprehensibly. Although the entries must be concise, downright slogan-like, it is important to support them with enough background material and discussion to deepen the entries. The core of the activity must be understandable to all involved in order to commit to it.

If the participants do not want or cannot commit to the policies made, the participants will certainly find other ways or contexts to act. This must also be accepted. No activity can please everyone, and since choices have to be made when defining an activity, some people's views will surely differ from the chosen policies. On the other hand, if one does not dare or know how to make choices, the nature of the activity remains vague, and no one can properly commit to it.

Goals, plans and values must be constantly challenged and discussed at different operational levels, and there must always be a genuine dialogue about them with the participants. The discussion must be two-way and you must be able to be flexible about your own views if strong arguments come up in the discussion. In this way, new ideas can be found and, on the other hand, the reflection that has already been carried out can be carried forward.

The entire operation at all its levels must strive to fulfill the purpose of the operation ethically. Everything from the strategy to the implementation of the cleaning must be evaluated from this point of view. The operation must be transparent so that the review can be done by all involved and also by outsiders.

When the financing of the operation changes from the distribution of good distributed by someone else to being dependent on the funding coming through one's own operation, and when the results are measured also with clear financial metrics, there is also a considerable change. When every decision made has to be measured – bigger or smaller – for its impact on the resources of the operation, I have to think about management in a completely new way. Resilience and backbone are required to focus on core tasks while taking care of sufficient resources.

Change must not be feared, but must be accepted as a prevailing and natural state, with both threats and opportunities. Flexibility and responsiveness are required, and on the other hand, the ability to see beyond changes and build longer arcs past short-term turbulence.

Transitioning from a line organization and a command economy to a value-driven low-level organization that strives for ethically high-level operations, where discussion and participants are an asset and not subordinates, is certainly difficult for many. Real financial responsibility adds to the pain. Titles bring prestige and cast structures create security. But when the earth shakes hard, it's better to live in a village built of wood than in a concrete colossus. When concrete breaks in an earthquake, even the most imposing structures collapse.