It is often said to be “the greatest show on earth”, but these days the Olympic ideals of citius, altius, fortius (faster, higher, stronger) can just as easily be applied to the lucrative commercial ventures accompanying the world of sport.
As the events of London 2012 play out around the world, London Business School, in collaboration with Deloitte, is exploring the lessons shared between business and sport, bringing together a world-class line-up of speakers from the worlds of sport, business and academia at its Global Leadership Summit on 21 May 2012.
how principles of teamwork, leadership and motivation in the sports world can be applied to business.
The sporting world will also be represented from the business brains behind such big brands as Juventus, Manchester United and Arsenal football teams, and cricket’s Indian Premier League.
Sir John Armitt, Chair of Olympic Delivery Authority, Beth Comstock, Senior Vice President & Chief Marketing Officer, GE, and Heather Hancock, Lead Partner, London 2012 & Managing Partner for Innovation & Brand, Deloitte UK, are among the top-level business thinkers debating the global impact of major international sporting events. They will cover infrastructure, sustainable legacy, the value of sports industry brands and the reasons behind corporate sponsorship of major sporting events.
Sean Fitzpatrick, Founder, Front Row Leadership and former New Zealand All Black rugby captain will be tackling a panel on strategies for leadership, looking at the parallels between business and sport alongside Niels de Vos, Chief Executive Officer at UK Athletics, and London Business School’s Professor Lynda Gratton.
Sir Andrew Likierman, Dean, London Business School, said: “The relationship between business and sport is not always straightforward. Without sponsorship, some sporting activity would not be possible. But there are criticisms about excessive commercialisation. So what is the right balance?
For the first time at the Global Leadership Summit, academics from London Business School will be joined by peers from some of the world’s leading business schools. Stepping up to the plate will be experts from US-based Wharton, NYU Stern and Fuqua School of Business, Duke University, and Spanish school IE.