Natalie Smith co-authors book on Sports Management
FIFA Master alumna, Dr. Natalie Smith (Class of 2010), Assistant Professor at East Tennessee State University is the co-author of the new book, “Organizational Behavior in Sport Management: An Applied Approach to Understanding People and Groups.”
Her co-authors are Dr. Chris Barnhill, who is associate professor of Sport Management and Program Coordinator at Georgia Southern University, and Dr. Brent Oja from University of Northern Colorado where he is assistant professor of Sport Administration.
Geared toward undergraduate students, the book discusses how sports organizations function and the mechanisms that go into organizational behavior as well as how employees are motivated and work together.
The book also covers the organizational structure and culture in sport.
“A highlight of the book is the practitioner interviews that we have within each section,” said Smith, an assistant professor in the Clemmer College’s Department of Sport, Exercise, Recreation, and Kinesiology. “These experts – all from around the world – connect theory with practice and provide insights on various topics. Students can grasp the relevance of these interviews to their own career goals.”
Those practitioners who are interviewed discuss a challenge that their organization worked to overcome. These testimonials provide the framework for applicable theories and interventions used by organizations. Students gain an understanding of how leaders apply theory to communicate with and engage employees to accomplish desired goals.
Smith said the billion-dollar industry of sports offers a host of career opportunities for college graduates, ranging from the college and professional levels to international organizations such as International Olympic Committee and FIFA, as well as the youth and Little League settings and even the booming esports industry.
Smith is finishing her fifth year as a faculty member at ETSU. Prior to working in academics, she spent the majority of her career in professional men’s and women’s soccer.
Palgrave Macmillan is the publisher.
*This article was originally published on East Tennessee State Univerity's website.