The Process and Outcomes of Relationships between Community Sport Organizations and Sponsors

Katie Misener -The University of Western Ontario, SRG 2009

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2009

Nonprofit community sport organizations (CSOs) face many contemporary challenges which are forcing them to look beyond their own membership for revenue and respond to the growing need to seek alternative and diverse revenue streams in order to fund operations, maintain low membership fees, and continue to provide accessible programs (Berrett, 1993; Doherty
& Murray, 2007). Developing relationships with other organizations, and sponsors in particular, may be one means of helping CSOs continue to offer important sport services in their communities. The purpose of this phase of the research program was to examine the process
and outcomes of CSO-sponsor relationships.

CSO presidents (N = 189) from across Ontario completed a survey measuring the extent to which their club’s relationship with its key sponsor was characterized by elements of process dynamics and management, and several outcomes, as identified in a broader qualitative study (Misener & Doherty, 2009). Specific objectives of the study included developing measures of the relationship process and outcomes, determining the perceived extent of the various elements of relationship process and relationship outcomes, and examining the association between the relationship process and further outcomes. A further objective was to identify any significant predictors of these outcomes. The results revealed support for four relationship process elements (operational competence, dependability, balance, and relational competence), highlighting that the relationship process is multidimensional in nature and relies on diverse competencies and dynamics. The research also revealed two relationship outcomes (program/operations quality and community presence) and showed that the relationship process elements are associated with achieving beneficial outcomes for CSOs. The strongest predictor of these outcomes, operational competence, was perceived to be evident in CSO-sponsor relationships to a significantly lesser extent than other process elements. This suggests that in order to achieve these broader outcomes of relationships, and ensure sport development in our communities, CSOs and policy makers should invest in and focus on developing task-based competencies.

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