federation Responses to multi-level institutional complexity in a nationalsport Sport Management Review

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Responses to multi-level institutional complexity in a national sport federation

Loïc Pedras*, Tracy Taylor, Stephen Frawley

UniversityofTechnologySydney,Australia

ARTICLE INFO Articlehistory:

Received4September2018 Receivedinrevisedform4May2019 Accepted5May2019

Availableonlinexxx Keywords:

Nationalsportfederations Strategicresponses Organisationalagendas Institutionallogics Hybridorganising

ABSTRACT

NationalSportFederationsareresponsibleforgoverningallaspectsofasportwithintheir respectivecountries.IndevelopingandpromotingtheirsportNationalFederationsmust respond to multi-level complexity arising from internal stakeholder needs and commercial, government and social demands. While organisational complexity responses have been extensively researched, little of thiswork has considered the unique positioning of sport federations. Drawing on the theoretical perspective of institutional logics and complexity, the authors adopted a case study approach to investigate Triathlon Australia’s response to its complex operating environment, conducting 18 in-depth semi-structured interviews with current and former board members,chiefexecutives,seniormanagers,andgovernmentrepresentativesresponsi- blefornationalsportpolicyandfunding.Interviewdatawerecomplementedwithan examinationofTriathlonAustralia’sannualreportsandAustraliangovernmentpolicy documents (1998–2016 period). Four themes and several organisational responses’

themesemergedfrom theinductiveanditeratedthematicdataanalysis:(a)external complexity – alignment, diversiﬁcation, transcendence, negotiation; (b) interstitial complexity–empathy,formalisation,collaboration,specialisation;(c)internalcomplexity–division,balance,leverage;and(d)emotions–connection,harness.Drivenbyquasi- insolvencyandadmissionintotheOlympicprogramme,andnationalgovernmentpolicy requirementsforfunding,TriathlonAustraliarespondedtoitscomplexenvironmentby embracingalllogics,designsandagendas,unravellingnewwaystosolveormitigateitvia hybridresponses.Implicationsforboththeoryandpracticeareoutlined.

1.Introduction

Within today’s contemporary sport environment most sport organisations have to deal with substantial complexity (Gammelsæter,2010; Svensson, 2017) and the “inevitable feature” of change (Slack & Parent, 2006, p.253).Whilemanysportorganisationshaveshowngreatresilience,adaptingtofacechallengesandtocapitaliseon new opportunities(Taylor,Doherty,&McGraw,2015),their responsestocomplexityhavevaried. NationalSport Federations,majorplayersinthesportlandscape,frequentlydealwithheterogeneousandpossiblycontradictory stakeholderrequirementswhoinﬂuencetheiroperationsandwhoseinputsareoftendifﬁculttodetermine(Phillips

&Newland,2014;Winand,Rihoux,Robinson,&Zintz,2012).

*Correspondingauthor.

E-mailaddress:[email protected](L.Pedras).

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.smr.2019.05.001

ContentslistsavailableatScienceDirect

Sport Management Review

j o u r n al h o m e p a g e: w w w . el s e v i e r . c o m / l o c at e / s m r

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NationalSportFederationsareexposedtoamultitudeofexternalpressures,relatedtorequirementsofgovernmentfunding (Dowling&Smith,2016;Grix&Carmichael,2012);politicalprioritiesandagendas(DeBosscher&VanBottenburg,2010;

Hanstad&Skille,2010);expectationsofanincreasinglyprofessionalworkforce(Dowling,Edwards,&Washington,2014;Taylor etal.,2015);implementationofnewbusinessandgovernancepractices(Winand,Scheerder,Vos,&Zintz,2016);andfinding waystobecomemoreattractiveasacommercialproduct(Phillips&Newland,2014).Theyarevulnerabletocomplexityarising fromboththeirinternalandexternalenvironmentsandmostNationalSportFederationshaveacentralfieldpositioninavery complexarrayofprivate,publicandnon-profitorganisationsatdifferentgeographies(i.e.,local,regional,andnational).

NationalSportFederationscanbedescribedasmeta-organisationsinthattheytypicallyconsistofmultipleorganisations.

Theirfederatedorganisationaldesignalsoaddsaninterstitiallevelofcomplexity(Toubiana,Oliver,&Bradshaw,2017)as severalconflictiveinterestsarisefromaffiliatedmemberswithoften-incompatibleintereststhatemergefromregional affiliatesandassociations.

MostNationalSportFederationsalsodealwithinternalcomplexityastheyhaveboth‘high-performance’and‘participation’ agendas, andtheirvery existencecan bethreatened iftheirresultsdo notmeetfundinglinkedkeyperformanceindicators which encompassbothparticipationandelitesuccessoutcomes(Dowling&Smith,2016;Houlihan&Green,2010).Elitesuccessofa givensportisrealisedthroughathleteachievementinmajorinternationalcompetitionsandprofessionalleagues(DeBosscher, Shibli,Westerbeek,&VanBottenburg,2015),andisunderpinnedbymotivesasdiverseasideology,nationalpride,prestige, recognition,andpoliticalgain(Grix&Carmichael, 2012;Houlihan &Green,2008). Themain objectives ofparticipation sportis to increasethenumberofpeopleengaginginphysicalactivity,bothorganisedandnon-organised,(DeBosscher&VanBottenburg, 2010),thatcancontributetobettersocial,education,andhealthoutcomes(Hylton,2013).

Insummary,mostNationalSportFederationscontendwithmulti-levelcomplexity—thatistheexperienceofcomplexity atseverallevels(external,interstitial,andinternalcomplexity),whichrequiresarangeoforganisationalresponses.National SportFederationsexperiencemulti-levelcomplexitywhenrespondingtonumerous,oftenconﬂicting,requirementscoming from: commercial, government, and social logics (external complexity); interests of afﬁliates within the federation (interstitialcomplexity);andadual-missiontodelivereliteandparticipationoutcomes(internalcomplexity).Whilethe effectsofcomplexityinorganisationshavebeenextensivelyresearched,littleisknownaboutmulti-levelcomplexityand howorganisations respondto it (Greenwood, Raynard, Kodeih, Micelotta,& Lounsbury,2011; Pache &Santos, 2010).

Consequently,extendingourunderstandingofcomplexitymanagementatdifferentlevelsisboththeoreticalandpractical important.Weexaminethedifferentlevelsof complexityandassociated responsesas ameansofcontributing toour understandingofcomplexitymanagement. Thepurposeof thisresearchis toinvestigate aNationalSportFederation’s responsetoitscomplexoperatingenvironment.

2.Literaturereview

2.1.Institutionallogicsandcomplexity

Institutionaltheory,namelyinstitutionallogicsandcomplexity(Greenwoodetal.,2011;Thornton,Ocasio,&Lounsbury, 2012)providesaframeworkbywhichtoexploreNationalSportFederationsorganisationalresponses.Institutionallogicsare setsofprinciplesthatstipulate“howtointerpretorganisationalreality,whatconstitutesappropriatebehaviour,andhowto succeed”(Thornton,2004,p.70).Organisationsfaceinstitutionalcomplexitywhentwoormorelogicshaveincompatible requirements(Greenwoodetal.,2011).

Earlyorganisationstudiesresearchinsportfocusedmainlyonclubs,deinstitutionalisation(O’Brien&Slack,2003),and legitimacyprocesses(Phillips&Newland,2014),andexaminedthepresence,changedynamicsandeffectsofinstitutional pressures(Edwards,Mason,&Washington,2009;Green&Collins,2008).Intheirworkonthistopic,CousensandSlack (2005)notedashiftfromthedominantleagueinstitutionallogictoacorporatelogicintheNorthAmericaprofessionalsport organisations. However, institutional logics have not been widely used in sport management scholarship, thus the applicationofthisperspectivecouldprovidenewsportmanagementinsights(Washington&Patterson,2011),inparticular, howsportorganisationsdealwithlogicmultiplicityandrespondtotheirconﬂictingrequirements.

Mostorganisationalstudiesidentifytwoinstitutionallogics:commercialandsocial(Battilana&Dorado,2010).However, researchusingsportﬁeldshaveshownthecomplexpresenceof threeormorelogics(Gammelsæter, 2010;Skirstad&

Chelladurai,2011;Steen-Johnsen&Amis,2010),withthecommonlyadded thirdlogicrelatingtothecriticalityofthe government (Steen-Johnsen & Amis, 2010). Notably, the role of government is largely missing from contemporary institutionalresearch(Clegg,2010).

SkirstadandChelladurai(2011)concludedthatdifferentandconﬂictinginstitutionallogics–amateur,professional,and commercial–cancoexistinamultisportclubenvironmentandarelinkedtospeciﬁcagendas(i.e.,participation,elite,and entertainmentsport).Thissuggeststhepresenceofaverticalmulti-levelconnectednessandpotentialcomplexity.Howsport organisationsrespondtothisandtheunderstandingofaninterstitiallevelofcomplexityareabsentfromthedebatesofar.

2.2.Multi-levelcomplexity

GovernanceconﬂictcanarisebetweentheNationalSportFederationsandkeyactorswhomaywanttoshapethesportfor aspeciﬁcpurpose(Washington&Patterson,2011).Besidesexperiencinginstitutionalorexternalcomplexityemanating

2 L.Pedrasetal./SportManagementReviewxxx(2019)xxx–xxx

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fromtheirfield,NationalSportFederationsalsofacecomplexityat interstitialandinternal levels,asWashingtonand Patterson(2011)noted,“sportfieldsaresitesofconflictandstruggleatbothlogiclevelandatthegovernancelevel”(p.10).

Bydesign,mostNationalSportFederationsdealwithaninterstitiallevelofcomplexity,duetotheirfederatedoperating model,inordertogoverntheirseveralregionalafﬁliatesandtheoftenconﬂictiveintereststhatarise(Toubianaetal.,2017).

Addingtothecomplexity,theparticulartensionsthatemergebetweenNationalSportFederationsandafﬁliatesalsoneed organisationalresponses(Toubianaetal.,2017).

Internalorganisationalcomplexityoccursoverconﬂictiveconcernsandpredilections(Toubianaetal.,2017).ForNational SportFederations,internalcomplexityandconﬂictisrelatedtotheirneedtobothincreasesportparticipationandachieve eliteperformance(DeBosscher&VanBottenburg,2010;Hanstad&Skille,2010).Challengesarisingfromthiseliteversus participation agenda can impact a National Sport Federation’s legitimacy and effectiveness, and are at the core of organisationalsurvival(Greenwoodetal.,2011;Phillips&Newland,2014;Washington&Patterson,2011).

2.3.Organisationalresponses

Recentresearchhassuggestedthatmultiplelogicsmaycohabitwithinanorganisationforlengthyperiodsoftimeand thismultiplicityoflogicscanimpactthewayinwhichanorganisationrespondstodifferingstakeholderdemands(Besharov

& Smith, 2014).As organisations experience different degrees of complexity they varytheir responses toconﬂicting prescriptions, prioritisingcertain interestsatthe expenseof others(Greenwood etal., 2011).It hasbeen shownthat organisationalresponseshaveimportantconsequencesforsociallegitimacyandaccesstoresourcescriticalforsustainability (Greenwoodetal.,2011;Washington&Patterson,2011;Winandetal.,2012).

Greenwoodetal.(2011)suggestedfield-levelandorganisation-levelfactorscouldexplainvariationinhowlogicsare enactedbetweendifferentfieldsandorganisations.However,Carlsson-Wall,Kraus,andMessner,2016)arguethatthisdoes notexplainvariationswithinorganisationswhereby“thesamesetoflogicsmaycreatetensionsinsomesituationsbutnotin others. . . [as logics are]. . . accorded different priorities in different situations” (p. 47–48). Similarly, in studying commercialisedsportclubsinEurope,Gammelsæter(2010)identifiedsevenco-existinglogicswhichhesuggestedcould:

“createthepotentialforfragmented,incoherent,conﬂictridden,and goal-ambiguousorganisations,butpluralismalso createsopportunitiesfororganisationstomeetexpectationsfromvariousconstituentssimultaneously”(p.585).

Inconceptualisinghowsportfordevelopmentandpeaceorganisationsdealwithmultiplestakeholdersandassociated tensions,Svensson(2017)suggestedfourhybridtypesformanagingdivergentdemands:differentiated,separatingdistinct elementspertaining todifferent logics;symbolic, adoptingsome componentsof a logicinto anotherone;integrated, dissimilar logicsarecombined tocreatea newone;dysfunctional,whencontradictory logicsmake hybrid organising inoperative.

InrelationtoSwedishfootball,Carlsson-Walletal.(2016)suggestedthatonewayofdealingwithcompetinglogicswas through producing ‘concurrent visibility’ through performance management systems. Their research found that

“compatibility of logics varies not just between ﬁelds and organisations. . . but also between situations within an organisation...whereby...thesametwologicsmaybeexperiencedaseitherconﬂictingorcompatible”(p.57).

Thepresenceofmulti-levelcomplexityhasimplicationsforgovernance(Gammelsæter,2010),differentwaysofenacting logicsthroughperformancemanagement(Carlsson-Walletal.,2016)andthedevelopmentofsustainablestructuresand processes (Svensson, 2017).In addition,Svensson(2017) arguedthatorganisationalhybriditycanhelp NationalSport Federationsdevelopmoresustainablestructuresandprocesses,andcalledfortheuseoflongitudinalcasestudiestoprovide muchneededempiricalinsights.Webuildontheseeffortstodate,examininginstitutionallogics,complexity,andresponse decision-makingwithinaNationalSportFederation.

3.Method

Asinglecasestudyapproachwastakentogenerateabetterunderstandingofinstitutionalpressuresandorganisational responses tomulti-level complexity(Yin,2014).Caseselectionwasmade through theoreticalsampling basedon its potential for theory building (Eisenhardt & Graebner, 2007; Eisenhardt,1989). Triathlon Australia selection met a combinationofcriteria.First,asanOlympicNationalSportFederation,TriathlonAustraliahasaccesstoallpublicfunding programsand,consequently,totheirassociatedgovernmentalpressuresandduties,suchasmandatoryannualreports thatinformaboutresponsestothegovernment logic.Second,a strongandfoundationalcommercialcomponent(i.e., IronMan), along with the presence of elite and participation commercial stakeholders, generates significant non- governmentrevenueandconstitutesathirdinstitutionallogic–commerciallogic.Third,theuseofahybridmodelto governtheirregionalaffiliates(i.e.,StateandTerritoryTriathlonAssociations)that formthefederationadvisesabout TriathlonAustralia’sexperienceofinterstitialcomplexity,thesociallogicrequirementsandtheresponsestoit.Fourth,the achievement ofworldclasscompetitionresultswhilegrowingitsparticipationbaseprovidesuseful dataconcerning TriathlonAustralia’sresponsestopossiblyconflictingeliteandparticipationagendaneeds–internalcomplexity.Fifth, innovativepracticestodelivertheireliteandparticipationagendassuchasworldchampionshipsthatincluderecreation sportparticipantsin thesameevent.Finally,publiclyavailableandrich(e.g., insolvencyperiods andentrancetothe Olympic program) data, as well as Triathlon Australia’sshort history (i.e., founded in 1989) enhances longitudinal investigationandtheorybuilding.

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3.1.Organisationalcontext

ThesportoftriathlonstartedtodevelopandformaliseitsoperationsinAustraliaintheearly1980s.TriathlonAustralia wasconstitutedin1986.ItisafederationcomposedbyeightdifferentStateandTerritoryTriathlonAssociations.Each associationisastand-aloneafﬁliatedorganisationwiththeirownlegalstatus,board,andprofessionalstaff.Theycurrently worktogetherwithTriathlonAustraliaasa‘onemanagement’model.Australiaisoneofthemostsuccessfulcountriesin triathlon internationally, with medals won in almost every major event in both men’s and women’s competitions.

Membershiphasgrownsignificantly, from9755membersin 2010–2011to21,445triathletes in2014–2015(Triathlon Australia,2010b,2012,2013,2014,2015a).TriathlonAustralia’sbudgetdependslessonpublicfundingthanotherAustralian NationalSportFederations(Australian Instituteof Sport,2015c).Dependency onAustralianInstituteofSportfunding droppedfrom67%in2014to47%in2015(AustralianInstituteofSport,2015c,2015a).TriathlonAustraliahasasignificant recordinorganisingmajorevents.Ithashosted88worldandcontinental events.Italsohasastrongpresenceinthe InternationalTriathlon Union (ITU) decision-making structures with one vice-president onthe executive board, two honorarymembersandthreeAustraliansinITUcommittees.ThefieldpositionofTriathlonAustraliawithintheAustralian sporteco-systemisrepresentedinFig.1.

3.2.Sourcesofdata

DatagatheringtechniquesincludedcollectinggovernmentandTriathlonAustraliadocumentsanddatacoveringthe periodfrom1998to2016andconductingaseriesofin-depthinterviewswithkeyinformants.Documentsincluded:national governmentlegislationandpolicies;AustralianOlympicCommitteepolicies;TriathlonAustralia’sannualreports,strategic plans,and jobdescriptions.The selectedTriathlon Australiadocumentsprovidedinsightsintotherole ofpersonnelin decision-making,historicalrecordsofboardmembershipincludingitscomposition(gender,expertise,rationaleprovided forappointment), andtheprocess ofgovernance deliveryand structuralchange.Eighteeninterviewswereconducted between2016and2017withkeydecisionmakers:5fromtheAustralianSportsCommission¹,4fromAustralianInstituteof Sport,1fromAustralianOlympicCommittee,and8fromTriathlonAustralia(boardmembersandseniormanagers).

Theinterviewguidewasbasedonthesourcesofcomplexityandresponsestoitidentiﬁedbytheliteratureandadaptedto theroleandorganisationoftheinterviewees.Keyinformantsgavetheirperspectiveabout:dealingwithacomplexsetof stakeholders(Winandetal.,2012),managingafederation(Toubianaetal.,2017),deliveringadualmission(DeBosscher&

VanBottenburg,2010),strategy(Pache&Santos,2010),structure,(Battilana&Dorado,2010),organisationalpositioning (Greenwoodetal.,2011),andidentity(Kodeih&Greenwood,2014).

Theuseof multipledata collectionmethods (e.g., semi-structuredinterviews, annual reports, governmentpolicy), allowedformethodologicaltriangulationstrengtheningthereliabilityofastudy’sﬁndingsandconclusions(Eisenhardt, 1989; Yin,2014).Also, interviewees fromdifferenthierarchicalranksandfunctional areaswas undertakentoprevent

Fig.1.TriathlonAustralia’scentralpositionintheAustraliansportsystem.

1 Changeditsnamein2018toSportAUS.

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convergentimprintmanagementand/orretrospectivesense-making(Eisenhardt&Graebner,2007).TheAustralianSports Commission,theAustralianInstituteofSport,andtheAustralianOlympicCommitteearedrawnontocollectdataonthe externalenvironmentprovidingpointsoftriangulationofinformation/perspectives.

3.3.Dataanalysis

Theinitialstepinthecasestudydataanalysisinvolvedchronologicallyarranginginformationextractedfromtheannual reports,strategicplans,andinterviewsdatatoidentifypatterns.Preliminarycategoryanalysisforbothdocumentsand interviewswasinductivelyguidedbyopenconceptualcodingtoidentifyﬁrstorderthemes.Thenextstepwastosearchfor relationshipsbetweenandamongtheﬁrstorderthemesandcombinethoseintosecondorderthemes(Table1).Themesare supportedwithdatafrommultipledatacollectionmethodsinordertomitigatethepossibilityofretrospectiveaccounts (Gioia,Price,Hamilton,&Thomas,2010).

4.Findings

ThetimelineanalysishighlightsthecriticalpositiveanddisruptiveeventsthatinﬂuencedTriathlonAustralia’sdecision- makingand(re)actions.Thesewere:joiningtheOlympicprogramme(1995);debutingattheSydney2000OlympicGames;

andfacinginsolvencyonthreeoccasions(2002,2004,and2010).Fourthemes–externalcomplexity,interstitialcomplexity, internalcomplexity,andemotions;togetherwithassociatedorganisationalresponses’secondorderthemesarediscussed below.

4.1.Responsestoexternalcomplexity

Thepresenceofanarrayofcommercial,social,andgovernmentalinstitutionallogicsemergedasakeythemefromboth thedocumentandinterviewanalysis.Theselogicsaredifferentiatedbytheirdistinctstakeholdersandvocabulary(Table2).

TriathlonAustralia’sresponsestothecomplexandsometimesconflictivelogicpressuresencounteredareclassifiedas:(a) alignment,(b)diversification,(c)transcendence,and(d)negotiation.Eachofthefourclassificationsofresponsesisdescribed inturn,withillustrativequotesandcommentary.

4.1.1.Alignment

TriathlonAustraliarespondedtotheirstakeholdersthroughstrategicallyplannedgenericandcustomisedalignment.This wasachievedbyidentifyingcommongoalsacrosspartners/logicsandaddressingthesetogether,orbyisolatingunique requirements and tailoring actionsaccordingly.As a senior manager of Triathlon Australia explained:The difﬁcultyis reconcilingthetensionbetweenthedifferentstakeholdersandensuringthatwearealignedinrelationtoagoalofensuring thatwe’reprovidingthebestpossibleexperiencethatwecanforourmembersandparticipants.So,whenyouspeaktothe AustralianSportsCommission,theysharethatgoal.Whenyoutalktotheeventdirectors,theylikewisesharethatgoal,and whenyoutalktoourStateandTerritoryAssociations,andtheirboards,likewisethat’sagoalthattheyshare.

Customisedalignmentconnecteddifferentstakeholdersandlogics.Forinstance,TriathlonAustraliaworkedtogether withacommercialpartner(Ironman)togrowacommonmembershipbaseofregularparticipants.Thisresponsehasco- developedandtherelationshiphasmaturedovertime:“Sothedialoguehasprobablychangedinthelastcoupleofyearswith Ironmanastheystarttoappreciatethatwe’reallinthistogether,and,again,growingthebaseisimportantforbothofus” (TriathlonAustraliaboardmember).

TriathlonAustraliarecognisedtheneedfora ‘moreprofessional’workforceanddidsothrough boardmemberand employee recruitment, aiming to achieve alignment between government pressures for efﬁciency and commercial

Table1 Datastructure.

Firstorderthemes Secondorderthemes

ExternalComplexity Alignment

Diversiﬁcation Transcendence Negotiation

InterstitialComplexity Empathy

Formalisation Collaboration Specialisation

InternalComplexity Division

Balance Leverage

Emotions Connection

Harness

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demandsforabusinessmindset.AsaTriathlonAustraliaboardmemberexplained,thegoalwasto“ensurethatwehadthe rightpeopledoingtherightroles,andthatmeantgoing tomarket andgettingthebest possiblepeoplewecouldto maintainthoseroles”.

4.1.2.Diversiﬁcation

Strategicdiversiﬁcationthroughorganisinghigh-qualityeventsfacilitatedcommoninterestsfromtheAustralianSports Commission,eventcompanies,StateandTerritoryTriathlon Associations,andeventparticipants;andledtovalidation acrosslogics.Customiseddiversiﬁcationwastargetedthroughanincreaseinmembershipgrowth.Triathlon Australia’s membershipincreasestrategywasachievedinconjunctionwiththeAustralianSportsCommission,evententerprises,and eventparticipants,andpartiallyaddressedlogicrequirements.

Triathlon Australiadeveloped specific agenda interventionsin response tocompeting logicsand to betterachieve stakeholderlegitimacy. For instance,when triathlonwas confirmedaspartof theOlympicprogram (1995), Triathlon Australiasignificantlyincreasedfundingforelitedevelopment.TriathlonAustraliasupporteditshigh-performanceathletes bydevelopingacommercialprofessionalraceseriesin1996.Thisprovidedavehicletomeettheneedsofthegovernment (medals)andcommercial(revenue)logics,whilealsorealisingpublicsportauthoritiesandsponsorvalidation.

However,in2002,anexodusofmajorsponsorstogetherwiththehighproductioncostoftheeliteseriesledtolosesof morethan$95.000AUD.Simultaneously,privateand publicfundingdecreasedafterthe2000OlympicGames,severely impactingTriathlonAustralia’sﬁnancialsituation.Inresponse,TriathlonAustraliafocusedonitsparticipationagendaand expandeditsfootprintaroundthecountrybyoutsourcingitseventdeliverytotheprivatesector,whilemaintainingthefocus onelitedeliverytosecurepublicfundingandretainalignmentwiththegovernmentlogic.

Inrecentyears,theintroductionoftheAustralianGovernment’s‘WinningEdge’²policy(i.e.,Australianelitesupport program)introducedfurthercomplexitybylinkingNationalSportFederations’fundingdirectlytohigh-performanceresults (Australian Institute of Sport, 2015a). Several interviewees from Triathlon Australia noted the challenge of financial sustainabilityinthefaceofgovernmentfundingcutsifperformancetargetswerenotmet.Nonetheless,TriathlonAustralia decidednottoexpanditsfinancialinvestmentinhigh-performance–choosinginsteadtoonlyexpendthedirectfunding from the Australian Sports Commissions and the Australian Institute of Sport and reinvest the remaining funds in participationsport.Toachievefinancialautonomyfrompublicauthorities,TriathlonAustraliafocusedondiversifyingits revenuesources,“tofuture-prooftheorganisation...weneedtogoouttothirdpartiesandsecurethird-partyfinances ... stillkeepingoneeyeonthefactthattheASC[AustralianSportsCommission]is...forallintentsandpurposes,ourbiggest sponsorandouronlysponsorofourhigh-performanceprogram”(TriathlonAustraliaboardmember).

Productdiversificationtargeted specificcustomersegments.In conformingtoitscommerciallogic,aboardmember explained:“Ifwe'retrackingparticipantnumberswell,we'realsodatatrackingwhatthat'smadeupof.So,thenwecanstartto makeinformeddecisionsaroundhowwetailorourproducts.So,it'sallpartandparcelofbecomingbetterequippedtotailorour offerings”.Assistingwiththeevententerprisetasksbydiversifyingthesportofferhasbeenbeneficialforbothparties:

Ithinkthebeautyofhavingadiversityofproductsisthatthere'sadiversityofattractionsforpeopletoo.So,youthink,see thingslikeyourwomen'sonlyevents,andyouseethingsliketheCorporateTri's[Triathlons]...thingslikethat,allthese differentattractionpointsforpeoplegettingtothesport.(TriathlonAustraliaseniormanager)

Triathlonhasalsoinvestedinduathlon(run,bike,andrun),aquathlon(swim,run),andmorerecentlytheaquabikeevents (swim,bike).Varyingdistancesandterrainareanothersourceofproductvariety(e.g.,crosstriathlons).TriathlonAustralia Table2

TriathlonAustralia’sﬁeldinstitutionallogics.

Commercial Government Social

Stakeholders Evententerprises,sponsors,media AustralianSportsCommission,Australian InstituteofSport,Stateandlocal governments

Stateandterritoryassociations,clubs, participants

Logic exclusive indicative vocabulary

De-risking,revenue,customers, monetising,service,third-party,retention, tracking,tailor,product,business,lobby, ecosystem,triplebottomline

Governance,reports,subsidising,programs, selection,world-class,officials,levels, standard,administration,informed decisions,model,unified,federated, national,pathways,profile,medal,enable, athletes

Givingback,lifeenrichment,passion, willing,embrace,community,people,joy, love,wellbeing,family,parents, contribution,essence,together,heart,life- long

Logicshared indicative vocabulary

Commercial+Government–Skill,stakeholders,CEO,professional,industry,expertise,management,duplication,inefﬁciency, international,strategy,expert

Government+Social–Partnership,volunteer,talent,reconcile,transparent,integrity,opportunity,health,development,vote,clubs, legacy,roles,championships,involvement,nationwide

Commercial+Social–Engage,fun,events,excited All–Participation,membership,elite,age-groups

2 Discontinuedin2018.

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hasimplementedseveralparticipationprogramstocaterfordiverseneedsandpopulationgroups.Notably,theirTrystars programissupportedbybothpublicandprivatefunds.TheAustralianSportsCommissionﬁnancestheprogramandithasits ownsponsorandithasaclubdevelopmentcomponentastherevenuegeneratedisdistributedtotheclubs.

4.1.3.Transcendence

TriathlonAustraliahasalsodealtwithcomplexitythroughtranscendence,whichis,goingbeyondwhatwasrequired.

Thisisevidentwhenaddressinggovernmentrequirements,inparticularwiththerecruitmentofahigh-proﬁleboardand executive,andin implementingthe‘one management’model.Tomaintainvalidationfromthegovernment,Triathlon Australiafocusedontranscendingthresholdgovernment requirementsfor‘professionalising’theworkforceandwere strategicallyastuteinensuringkeystakeholderinvolvementinthisprocess.Forexample,in2016theAustralianInstitute of Sport Director wasinvolvedin therecruitment andselection of Triathlon Australia’sCEO andHigh-Performance Directorpositions.

WhilepublicsportauthoritiesdirectlyintervenedinTriathlonAustralia’sgovernanceinresponsetoitssecondinsolvency episode (i.e.,2010), TriathlonAustraliareacted swiftlytoregaincontrolofitsagenda.Notonly didTriathlon Australia implementallofthegovernment’srecommendationsbuttheytranscendedwhatwasrequired,bydevelopingawholeof sportapproachandestablishinga‘onemanagement’model.TriathlonAustralia’shybridapproachwithcentralisedservices inafederatedsystemwassubsequentlyrecognisedas‘bestpractice’bytheAustralianInstituteofSport:Thisstructurehas beenimplementedbyTriathlonAustralia(TA)wherestakeholdersaregenuinelycommittedtoanimprovedorganisation and there is strongalignment acrossall layersof thesport.The organisationdemonstrates behaviours suchastrust, transparency,integrity,collaboration,andrecognition.SomeoftheresultsfromthealignmentatTAinclude:acollective targeted investment approach; shared services; one strategic plan for the sport; a more agile organisation; and a collaborativeapproachtobudgetingwherefundingisallocatedonmerittoprojectsalignedwiththehighestwholeofsport priorities(AustralianInstituteofSport,2015b,p.9).

4.1.4.Negotiation

Triathlon Australiadeveloped a national strategy for membership,its main non-public revenue source,through a deliberatenegotiationstrategy.TriathlonAustraliareliesonexternalcompaniestoruntheirevents,butitsanctionstheraces toensuretheyaresafe,fair,andthatallparticipants(fullmemberandone-daymember)haveinsurance.Potentialtensionis evident in this situation as event companies want more operational freedom to increase participant numbers and, consequently,theirproﬁt.Avaluenegotiationapproachwastakentoaddressthistension,withracepromoterslowering registrationprice,butatthesametimeattractingmoreparticipants.Negotiationhasalsobeenusedtoreachcompromises betweencommercialandsocialinterests.Theracecalendarisanexampleofthis:

...whenwe'reputtingthecalendartogetherfortheyearthatwetrynottogotoaremoteplace,becauseobviouslyit'sone thingtoﬂytoPerth,ifyouthenhavetogofromPerththentoBroome,thenit'sanothercostaswell,so,youknow,weare tryingtomakesurethatitisaccessibleforpeople...wealsotryandmakeourqualifyingeventsforpeoplewhoaregoing totheworldchampionships,thatthere'senoughineachState,sopeopledon'thavetotravelinterstateforthosetypeof events.(TriathlonAustraliaseniormanager)

4.2.Responsestointerstitialcomplexity

There issigniﬁcantcomplexityin managingafederationand TriathlonAustraliarespondedtothisthroughamajor structuralrealignment.Thechangeinvolved,“athree-yearproject[‘wholeofsport’]forustobringour[9]stateassociations much closer tous” (TriathlonAustralia senior manager).Thisthemeis comprised of ﬁve responses: (a)empathy,(b) formalisation,(c)collaboration,and(d)specialisation.

4.2.1.Empathy

Triathlon Australiahasmanageda complexsetof stakeholderswithempathyandtrust via attentiveand frequent listening, relationship building, and dialogue invitations. When developing the ‘one management’ structural change, TriathlonAustralialistenedcarefullytoitsafﬁliatedassociations’needsthroughfrequentconsultativemeetings.“It'sjust reallyunderstandingthestakeholdersandwhattheirrequirementsareandwhatthey'retryingtogetoutofitinorderto facilitatedecentconversationswithpeoplearoundthoseparticulartopics.So,Ithinkitknowsyouraudience”(Triathlon Australiaseniormanager).Listeningisalsorecurrent:

everymonthwehaveanationalleadershipteammeetingandweallgetinaroom,wetalkabouttheNationalissues.

WhenItalktosomeothersportstheysaythatit'sverydifﬁcult;theycan'tgetpeopleinaroom;theycan'tgetallthe Statestotalktoeachother.WhereaseverymonthwesitthereandgothroughNationalissues,everyquarterwecatchup face-to-faceandsitinaroomtogetherandwehavealistedagenda,wehaveanactionplan,wehavethingswewanttodo onthestrat[strategic]planandtheops[operational]plan.(TriathlonAustraliaseniormanager)

TriathlonAustraliainvestedinbuildingpersonalrelationshipsinsideandoutsideofthefederationtocreatetrustand understanding.Forinstance,whendevelopingthe‘wholeofsport’approach,aTriathlonAustraliaseniormanagerrevealed

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that the‘goodwill’ of theStateand Territory Triathlon Associations toexecute this initiative was paramount, as was developing a good relationshipto createtrust among theStateand Territory associations’ board members. Triathlon Australia’sCEOreinforcedtheimportanceofestablishingrelationshipsinherreportforthe2010–2011annualreport:

Theestablishmentofrelationshipswithourkeystakeholdergroupswasapriorityformeduringtheﬁrstsixmonths...I travelledtoeachstate,exceptNT,tomeetthestaffandboardoftheStateandTerritoryTriathlonAssociations.Ialsomet withtheAustralianOlympicCommittee,theAustralianSportsAnti-DopingAgency,andtheAustralianCommonwealth GamesAssociationtoensureproductiveongoingrelationships.Eventorganiserswereinvitedtoameetingon19May 2011todiscussarangeofissuesofrelevancetothemandtofosteranongoingsenseofcooperationbetweenthenational associationandtheclubsandprivateeventorganiserswhoplanandconductraces(TriathlonAustralia,2011,p.9).

Theemployee-boardrelationshipwasalsocrucial.“It’snoteasy.Ittakestime.Ittakesconversation.Itisadrainonand sometimesitcanfeellikeyou’rebeingdrawnawayfromreallyyourcorebusiness.Butitisanessentialpartofmanagingthe process”(TriathlonAustraliaseniormanager).Theeffortspaidoff,theTriathlonAustraliaboardsupportedtheproposed methodandcourseofactionandwiththeboardbackingtheplan,thedirectorfeltempowered.

Triathlon Australiapromotedrelationshipbuildingand empathydevelopmentthrough dialoguewithstakeholders.

Notablyinvitationsto‘listenandunderstand’wereextendedtokeyorganisationswhendevelopingkeystrategies and important decision-making, such as Triathlon Australia’sstrategic plans and the‘whole of sport’ initiative. Triathlon Australiaactivelyconsultedwithnumerousandvariedstakeholders(e.g.,AustralianSportsCommission,eventorganisers), fundingthecostofconferencemeetingtravelandaccommodationforallclubs,andmakingregistrationfreeforgeneral public(seeTriathlonAustralia,2010b,2011,2015a).

4.2.2.Formalisation

After the second insolvency period, Triathlon Australia introduced formalisation to manage the federation more efficientlyandeffectively.TriathlonAustraliainitiallydevelopedaformalstrategicplanandthe‘wholeofsport’approach.To date,therehavebeentwostrategicplans:theStrategicPlan2010–2015andOurStrategy2016–2019(TriathlonAustralia, 2010a,2016b).The2010–2015strategicplanformalisedthevision,mission,andvalues(seeTable3).Italsoestablishedthe followinggoals:(a)organisationalexcellence,withafocusonthe‘wholeofsport’nationalstrategy,andfinancialandhuman resourcessustainability;(b)increaseparticipation,expandthenumberofopportunitiestotrythesport;(c)membership, growandretainthememberbase;(d)events,increasethenumberandtypeofqualityeventsthroughleadershipand collaboration;(e)high-performance,sustaintheeliteresultsviaaneffectiveandefficientcoach,andathletepathway;and(f) brand,developthebrandtoattractsponsors.

In2015,TriathlonAustralialaunchedanewstrategicplanwithastrongercorporateethos(seeTable3).“We'vegota nationalstrategicplan,soeverystateisusingonestrategicplan,sothat'smadeiteasier.Inthepastthey'dbeenstatespeciﬁc, sotheonenationalstrategythatyou'vereaddowngetsusedamongsteveryState”(TriathlonAustraliaseniormanager).

Another formalising initiative was the aforementioned ‘whole of sport’ project, corresponding to an internal formalisationtoimproveoperationalefﬁciencyandeffectiveness,buildinga‘onemanagement’model.Thismodel,which standardisedprocessesand structures,eliminatedduplicationbetweenTriathlonAustralia andtheStateand Territory TriathlonAssociations,begantodiffuse:“Increasingly,atanoperationallevel,thelanguagehasincludedtheterm‘wholeof sport’”(TriathlonAustralia,2013,p.30).Therewerethreefacetstothisplan:operational(e.g.,eventsmanual),management (e.g.,budget)and,morerecently,legal(e.g.,movingtowardsasingleorganisationinauniﬁedmodel).

4.2.3.Collaboration

Triathlon Australia established collaboration as a core response to the challenges arising from its stakeholders’ requirementsandthisisreﬂectedinitsstrategicplans.InternalcollaborativeeffortswereundertakenwiththeStateand TerritoryTriathlon Associations,andexternal collaborationwithboththegovernmentand theprivate companiesthat organisetriathlonraces.ThisresponsewasalsobuiltintoTriathlonAustralia’snewstructure.The2010–2015strategicplan includedcollaborationin two of theirkey result areas:‘organisational excellence’ aiming“tobuilda sustainable and prosperousorganisationbyenablinginnovation,collaboration,andexcellenceinthedevelopmentofitsassets”;and‘events’

Table3

TriathlonAustralia’sstrategicplansstatementsandcontent.

StrategicPlan2010-2015 StrategicPlan2016-2019

Vision:TobetheleadingtriathlonnationandgrowthesportofTriathlonin Australia

TriathlonPurpose:Toenrichthesportinglandscapebyissuingaunique challengeanyonecanaccept

Mission:Toensuretheexistenceofqualityparticipationopportunitiesand pathwayswithinthesportofTriathloninAustralia

TriathlonAustraliaPurpose:Tocontinuouslygrow,strengthenandconnectthe TriathlonfamilyandeverystartinglineinAustralia

Values:Respect,health,enjoyment,belonging,achievement Values:Respect,health,enjoyment,belonging,achievement,integrity Keyresultsareas:Participation,high-performance,organisational

excellence,membership,events,brand

Pillars:Participation,elite,passion Othercontent:Keyobjectives,keydrivers,keystrategies,keyperformance

indicators

Othercontent:Focusareas(engagement,access,pathways),enablers(clubs, partnerships,organisation),keyperformanceindicators

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“toensure that opportunities exist at all levels to competein events of the highest quality through leadership and collaboration”(TriathlonAustralia,2010a,p.1).

Thesubsequentstrategicplan(2016–2019)outlinedthepartnershipenablers:“Asportofcollaborativepartnerships, enhancingvalue”(TriathlonAustralia,2016b,p.11).TriathlonAustraliapresidentemphasisedtheteamworkinthestrategic plandevelopment:“OurstrategicplanwasdevelopedincollaborationwithourStateandTerritoryBoards(STTA’s)and numerousstakeholderswhohaveallplayedaroleinformulatingtheplanwhichwillguideoursportoverthenextthree years”(TriathlonAustralia,2017,p.6).

Internalcollaborationrepresentedaneffortthatwasasubstantialachievement.TriathlonAustraliacollaboratedwithStateand TerritoryTriathlonAssociationsinthedeliveryofgovernmentprograms.Forinstance,theseorganisationsgottogethertoinclude triathlonintheSportingSchoolsProgram(TriathlonAustralia,2015a).TheCEOatthetimedescribedthiscollaborativemindset:

Ifeelfortunatetoworkwithinoneofthefewsportswhere theboardandpresidentsoftheStateassociationssee themselvescontributingtosomethingmuchlargerthantheirownStateorTerritory.Itiswithaspiritoftruecollaboration thatthepresidentsmeettodiscuss‘wholeofsport’governanceprinciplesandinturntaketheseprinciplesandconcepts backtotheirSTTAboards(TriathlonAustralia,2014,p.9).

AnotherTriathlonAustraliaCEOnoted,“behavioursandcollaborationhavemadeustheenvyofmanyothersports” (TriathlonAustraliaAnnualReport,2017,p.7):

So,there’sthisrealcollaboration,webudgettogether,weprioritisetogether,wedoourstrat[strategic]plantogether,we havethesamestrat[strategic]plan,operationsplan,we’reonthesameaccountingsystem...we’reonthesameITsystem, we’rehalfwaythroughstoringourdocuments,afewhundredthousanddocuments,storingtheminonespot,inthecloud.

...So,that’samazing,othersports,noway,nowaywilltheydothatso,wehavecooperation,alotofit.

Internalcollaborationalsousedpersuasiontoconvincestakeholders,bydemonstratingtheaddedvalueofthecommon pathway.Thiswasessentialtomaintainstrategictrajectory.Persuasionhasbeenstudiedasameanstoallureactorsinto adoptinganewlogic(Tracey,2016).Changetotheboardmembership,eitheratnationalorstatelevel,cancreateissues.This meansthatalotofwork,time,andenergygointoconvincingnewboardmembersoftheimportanceof‘wholeofsport’ approach.ATriathlonAustraliaseniormanageremphasisedthisissue:

...ournationalbehavioursareprettywellingrained,buttheyareoptional.So,oneofthebigissuesthatwe'llalwaysface withinoursportiseveryyearwecouldlosehalfofourboardmembersonarotationalbasis,becausetheycomeupevery twoyearsforvoting ....EachyearyoucouldstartoffwithGroundHogDay[asituationinwhichaseriesoftedious eventsappeartobecontinuallyrepeating],soyoujustspentayeartalkingtoandinﬂuencingabunchofpeopleandthen halfthosepeoplenextyearcouldbechangedandthenyoustartagain.

ExternalcollaborationwithracepromoterswasoutlinedinTriathlon Australia’s2016–2019strategicplan:“Usethe NationalCalendar,StateSeriesraces,andITUracestodrivecollaborativerelationshipswitheventorganisers”(Triathlon Australia,2016b,p.16).In2014,TriathlonAustraliaandthenewlyformedAustralianProfessionalTriathlonRaceDirectors Association signeda memorandumofunderstandingtooptimisequalityracedelivery,aimingto“establisha basisfor collaboration,consultation,andcommunicationbetweentheparties”(TriathlonAustralia,2015a,p.42).Collaborationwas embeddedinTriathlonAustralia’sstructure,andaPresidents’Committee,includingpresidentsofallStateandTerritory TriathlonAssociationsandchairedbyTriathlonAustralia’spresident,wascreatedtomanagethe‘wholeofsport’initiative.

4.2.4.Specialisation

TheNationalSportFederationalsorespondedtointerstitialcomplexitythroughaspecialisationprocessfocusedonboard membersandseniormanagers’skillsandexpertise.Sinceitsinception,TriathlonAustralia’sboardmembercomposition, qualiﬁcations,experience,andbackgroundhaschangedtoadapttothechallengesthatthefederationfaced.In2009,when Triathlon Australia was almost insolvent, substantial changes were made to the board. The Australian government intervened,disbandedtheexecutivestructure,andrequiredachangefromastaterepresentativetoskilled-basedboardand mandatedanewboardtobeelected.

Morerecently,theboardofdirectorshasbecomemore‘corporate-like’,matchingtheskillsandexpertiseofnewboard membersandCEOwiththecurrentstrategy,increasingthenumberofboardmemberswithaccountingexpertise,and appointingaCEOwithexperienceinNationalSportFederationsandtheAustralianSportsCommission.TheCEOwascharged withre-organisingTriathlonAustraliaaftertheﬁnancialcollapse,developingthe2010–2015strategicplanandprogressing the‘wholeofsport’agenda.Thechangeintheboardmembersproﬁlewasalsorepresentedinthejobdescriptions,where managementorlawskillswereanessentialrequirementandpastexperiencewithintriathlonwassecondary(Triathlon Australia,2015b).From2016onwards,newboardentrantscamefromalegalbackgroundasthestrategy’snextstepisto simplifythelegalframeworkandreducethenumberofboardmembersinthesport.

InordertogetthebestpeopleacrossAustralia,TriathlonAustralianowoperatesfrom variousgeographicallocations.Within State and Territory TriathlonAssociations’theissueof specialisationis less straightforward. Employees“have rolesthat are made upof10%membership,10%participation,and15%ofthis,20%ofthat,sothesepeoplehavetobeexpertsacrossallsortsofﬁelds” (TriathlonAustraliaseniormanager).TriathlonAustraliarespondedtothesechallengesviathe‘onemanagement’model:

So,wehaveduplication,massiveduplication,wehavelackofalignmentandwe’reunabletobringinskillsets.So,wehave tohavelotsofgeneralistsso,there’snineCEOsandwe’vegotlotsofgeneralpeoplethathavetodolotsofthingssowe

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can’tbringinskillsetslikeanexamplemarketingpersonandthenadigitalexpert,whocanjustbethatamazingpersonin thedigitalspace,wecan’thavethatbecausenoorganisation’sbigenoughtohavethatamazingdigitalperson(Triathlon Australiaseniormanager)

4.3.Responsestointernalcomplexity

TriathlonAustraliamanagestwoclearlydefinedagendas,developingeliteandparticipationsport.AnAustralianInstitute ofSportseniormanagerexplainsthattheconnectionisgoodgovernance,aswell-preparedNationalSportFederationscan developbotheliteandparticipation.TriathlonAustraliaintervieweesstressedthedifferencesbetweenthesetwoaffirming thathigh-performanceismuchmoreexpensiveandspecificintermsofdedicatedpositions,tasks,andgoals,andisthemost importantagenda: “it’stheculture ifthat makessensetheculturewas moreas anorganisationdrivenaroundhigh- performance”(TriathlonAustraliaseniormanager).

TriathlonAustraliahasachievedsuccessasa‘WinningEdge’foundationsport(i.e.,amongthetopsportsineliteresults), performingabovetheexpectationsasmeasuredonmanagementandfemaleOlympicresults.Eliteperformanceisseenas the“sexysideofthesport”(TriathlonAustraliaseniormanager)andthemainmeasureoforganisationalperformance:

avery...funnydynamichappensinoursport,whichisprobablythesamewithothersportsaswell,wecanbeupin participation,wecanbeupinmembership,wecanbeupinsponsorship,ourracedirectorscouldbehappy,everything couldbegoingreally,reallywell,butifourleadathletesaren’tracinggood,thesport'sterrible.

Thehigh-performanceagendaisunderpressure todeliversuccess.Thereisanexpectationtohavegood resultsgiventhepast topperformances,theso-called‘goldenera’:“itis,kindof,hardforthembecause,youknow,we'vehadsuchabiglegacyinthe sportoftriathloninAustraliathat,youknow,it'sveryhardtokeepthoseresultsreplicatedyear-on-year”(TriathlonAustralia seniormanager).Albeitthis high-performance priority,most intervieweesstated thelow conﬂictlevelwhenaddressingdistinct agendarequirements.Respondingtotheseagendasencompassed:(1)division,(2)balance,and(3)leverage.

4.3.1.Division

TriathlonAustralia’seliteandparticipationoperationshavebeensegregatedintermsofstrategy,structure,andstaff.The 2010–2015strategicplanforTriathlonAustraliaseparatedhigh-performanceandparticipationintwodistinctkeyresult areas,fromatotalofsix.Thecurrentstrategicplankeptthesetwoagendasseparate,reducedthetotalnumberfrom6to 3and renamedthemas‘pillars’(Triathlon Australia,2010a,2016b).Triathlon Australia’sstructurereﬂectsthis agenda separation.Thehigh-performancecomponentishighlyspecialisedinthattheteamworkedinwhatwasdescribedasa

“silo ... lookingafterthisverypointyendofthesport”(TriathlonAustraliaseniormanager).Theeliteandparticipation agendasare two differentdepartments with almostno pointsof contact and are also physicallyseparate. Thehigh- performancedepartmentismainlybasedattheGoldCoasthub,whiletheparticipationsectionislocatedattheSydney headquarters.Thisagendasegregationcreatedtensionbetweeneliteandparticipationstaff:

...thestaffthatwork[sic]inparticipation,alwaysfeelthathigh-performanceismoreimportant,andthattheygetmore money,andtheygetmoreproﬁle.Theygetmuchmoremedia.So,there’salwaysthissenseof,thepeoplethatworkin participation,andmembership,andevents,arekindof,theydon’tfeel,it’sreallyhardtomakethemfeelasvaluedasthe high-performancepeople.Butthehigh-performancestaffarealwaysgrumbling.So,they,theyhigh-performancestaff neverreallyfeellikethey’vegotenoughresourcestodowhattheyneedtodotowingoldmedals.Andtheyhaveasense, almost,ofentitlement.Thatthey’rethepeoplethataredoingtheimportant,high-proﬁlework;andthat,theyneedto keepeverysingledollarthat’sgiventothem.(TriathlonAustraliaseniormanager)

4.3.2.Balance

Triathlon Australia has sought to achieve balance in the development of both agendas through strategy,funding allocation,staffandboardmemberbackground.BothagendasarerepresentedequallyinTriathlonAustralia’sstrategicplans andthebalanceeffortishighlighted:

Thesethreepurposepillars[passion,participation,andperformance]willguide,direct,anddisciplineourdecision- makingandoureffortsascustodiansofthesportoftriathloninAustralia.Theyrepresentthebalancewewillrequireifwe aretomaintaintheuniqueessenceoftriathlonattheheartofathrivingsportingecosystem.Theyarethetriplebottom lineofourstrategyfor2016–2019(TriathlonAustralia,2016b,p.6).

TriathlonAustraliahasalsotriedtobalancetheagendaviafundingallocation.Aspreviouslystated,TriathlonAustraliais highlydependent onfundingfrom theAustraliangovernment, which prioritises elite sportover participation. While TriathlonAustraliahasinvesteditsownrevenueinparticipationsport,thebudgetforeliteisstillmuchhigherthanfor participation.

MostofTriathlon Australia’sstaff isdedicatedtoelite performanceactivities.However,when takingtheState and Territory Triathlon Associations’professionalworkforce into consideration,the majorityof employees areinvolved in participation.However,thecentralleadershiprolesreﬂectthe‘importance’ofhigh-performancemanagement.Forinstance, theelitedepartmenthasaDirectortitlewhiletheparticipationbranchisheadedbyaManager(TriathlonAustralia,2017).

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TriathlonAustralia’sefforttobalancetheorganisationalagendascanalsobeseenintheboardmembersbackground.

Longitudinaldatashowsthatthishasshiftedfromanexecutivecommitteedominatedbyhigh-performanceexperience,to onemorebalancedbetweeneliteandparticipation,and,morerecently,towardsamajorityofboardmembersbeingactive age-groupparticipants.Still,asaTriathlonAustraliaseniormanagerpointedout,high-performanceremainscentraltothe organisationandtheboardasawholeisalwaysveryconcernedwitheliteresults.

4.3.3.Leverage

TriathlonAustraliahasleverageddifferencesbetweentheeliteandparticipationagendasthroughstrategy,agegroups, andevents.Directandindirectlinksbetweenhigh-performanceandparticipationsporthavebeenembeddedinthestrategic planstoleveragethedevelopmentofbothagendas(seeTable4).

Age-groupsprovidethebasisforTriathlonAustraliatoleverageeliteandparticipationsport.Athletescompetenationally throughaqualiﬁcationsystemthatallowsthebesttorepresentAustralia,thesameaselitecompetitors.Performancedriven age-groupsrepresentedaround1000ofatotalof21,592members(season2015–2016)(TriathlonAustralia,2016a).These participantshaveadedicatedcommitteelookingaftertheirinterestsandafocuseddepartmentwithspecialisedstafftotake care ofallthelogisticsinvolved regardingtheirraces.Internationalage-groupsresults arehighly valuedbyTriathlon Australia. For instance, Triathlon Australia’sannual reports communicate podium classiﬁcations alongside withhigh- performanceresultsaseveryage-grouphasmedalsandaworldchampionawardedbyITU.

Triathloneventscombineandleverageeliteandparticipationraces.Eventstakeplaceinthesameplaceonthesame weekendandthissynergeticstrategyactsto:(1)optimiseﬁnancialresources,(2)concentratetheorganisingteamand facilities,(3) reduceorganisingactivities(e.g.,roadclosures),(4) providemoreracecalendarweekendslots,(5) create additionalsponsoropportunities,and(6) furtherconnectthetriathloncommunity.Inaddition,TriathlonAustraliahas focusedonorganisingmajorinternationalcompetitionstorespondtotheAustraliangeographicalisolation,improvinghome competitions and reducing cost of sendingtheir athletes abroad (Australian Sports Commission senior manager and AustralianInstituteofSportseniormanager).Theseinternationalcompetitionsarecomplementedwithcomprehensive participationoftheperformanceage-groups,contributingfortheﬁnancialsustainabilityofthisstrategicchoice.

Leveragingeventsbyconnectingeliteandparticipationhaschallenges.Eventpromotersdeliveringtheracesstillneedto makeaproﬁt.Whileadultage-groupsareproﬁtable,juniorathletes,amajorconcernofelitedevelopment,arelessso.Thus, TriathlonAustraliareliesonlinkingtheseage-groupstogenerateacross-subsidy:

...membershipservicebecauseyouwereservicingyourmembersbyputtingonanopportunityforathletestorace.So, thinkthechallengeinthatspaceforthesportistotryandunderstandthatdynamic...butIthinkalso,thattheState associationsandthesportneedtorealisethatjuniorracing...inOlympicdistance,isnotjustabouthigh-performance outcomes.It’saboutprovidingopportunitiesforathletesofthatagetoengageinthesportandthenbecomemembersof thesportforlife.(TriathlonAustraliaseniormanager)

4.4.Responseswithemotions

Morerecently,theappearanceofemotionsisanotablefeatureofTriathlonAustralia’sorganisationalrhetoricandhas beenembeddedititscommunications.‘Passion’appeared24timesinitslaststrategicplan.Twoemotionrelatedresponses emergedfromthedata:(1)connectionand(2)harness.

4.4.1.Connection

TriathlonAustraliapointedlyhighlightstheconnectiveroleofemotions:“tocontinuouslygrow,strengthenandconnect thetriathlonfamilyandeverystartinglineinAustralia”(TriathlonAustralia,2016b,p.4).The‘passion’strategicpillaris

Table4

Strategicleveragingdirectandindirectlinksbetweeneliteandparticipationagendas.

Link ExemplaryquotesfromStrategicPlans(SP) Inspiration

(indirect)

“...thattheperformanceofAustraliantriathletesatanelitelevelhasacriticalroletoplayininspiringAustraliansofallshapes,sizesand ambitionstoembracetriathlonandapproachthatﬁrststartingline”(2016-2019SP)

Passion (indirect)

“WeareauniﬁedtriathlonbrandandcommunityinAustralia,anchoredinasharedtriathlonidentity”(2016-2019SP) Age-groups

(direct)

“Aclearlydeﬁnedpathwayforperformancefocusedagegroupathletes,includingdraft-legaloptionsforsprintdistance”(2016-2019SP) Clubs

(direct)

“Tocreateacultureofuncompromisingsuccessthroughoutthesport,supportedbyaworld-classnationwidenetworkofhigh- performanceenvironmentsandfacilitiesandpathwayfocusedclubs”(2016-2019SP)

Education (direct)

“Developcoachesandofﬁcials’educationinitiativestobetterservicealllevelsofthesport”(2010-2015SP) Events

(direct)

“UsetheNationalCalendar,StateSeriesracesandITUracestodrivecollaborativerelationshipswitheventorganizers”(2016-2019SP) Partnerships

(direct)

“Usethepurposepillarsofpassion,participationandperformancetobuildandexecuteacommercialpartnerengagementstrategy”

(2016-2019SP)

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describedas: “everyonebecomes partofthetriathlon family,whetheran eliteathlete,anagegroupcompetitor,or a volunteer”(TriathlonAustralia,2016b,p.7).TriathlonAustraliaCEOnotedthatoneofTriathlonAustralia’saimsis:“building andconnectingthepassion,allowingotherpeopletoexperiencethejoysofthesportIfellinlovewith”(TriathlonAustralia, 2016a,p.7).Healsoexplicatedwhyhetookupthejob:“Theanswerformeisasimpleone,‘passion’,it’sinmyblood,andI wantedtogivebacktothesportthatgavemesomuch,andexciteasmanypeopleaspossibletoatriathlonstartline” (TriathlonAustraliaAnnualReport,2016a,2016b,p.7).

Thisemotionalbondofthesportalsocreatesanorganisationalchallenge.Itdrivesastrongsenseofentitlementamong somestakeholdersincreasingthedifﬁcultytoaddresstheirrequirementsand,consequently,increasingcomplexity.

So,there'salotofcompetingneedsandeveryonethinksthattheirconcernisthemostimportantthing,that'sgottobe ﬁxed.So,itdoesn'tmatterhowproactiveorreactiveyouaretobothissuesacrossarangeofstakeholders,whetheritbe withinmyorganisationorwithexternalstakeholders,orwithclubsandmembers.Thosepeoplewillallthinkthatthe thingthey'recomingtomeaboutisthemostimportantthingintheworldandhastobeaddressednow,andIthinkthat comesbacktothepassioninsportinAustralia.(TriathlonAustraliaseniormanager)

4.4.2.Harness

Goingbeyond emotionasaconnector, anAustralianOlympicCommitteeseniorexecutive suggestedthat, Triathlon Australia“couldbeneﬁtfromconvertingsomeofthatpassionintocommercialopportunities,monetisingthatinwaysthat willthenhelpfeedparticipationprogramsandtheeliteprograms:Howisthemillion-dollarquestion?”.

TriathlonAustraliahasharnesseditsemotionalbond,internallyandexternally.Withintheorganisation,emotionshave beenleveragedwithstaff,committee,andboardmembersanditisperceivedasadistinctiveandimportantrequisiteinthe sportsectorworkforce.AccordingtoaTriathlonAustraliaboardmember:“sportsadministrationatanylevelisnotanine-to- ﬁve,MondaytoFridayjob,soifthosepeoplelackedthepassionthenthey’regoingtogetoutofthesportsindustrypretty readily”.Inarecentjobvacancy,the‘desirable’selectioncriteriawas:“passionandcommitmenttothedevelopmentofthe sport”(TriathlonAustralia,2015b,p.2).

Moreover,TriathlonAustralia’snextharnessingstepistoexpandthroughtheuseofvolunteerspecialists:

Howdowebestemployvolunteers?Becausethere’sawholehostofspecialistvolunteers...So,youknow,uni[university]

studentsdoingsports-relatedstudieswhowouldlovetobeinvolvedinanOlympicsportliketriathlonandwouldbevery happytodoworkforusonavolunteerbasistogettheexperience.(TriathlonAustraliaboardmember)

TriathlonAustraliahasharnessedstaffaffectionandcommitment,andlocateditwithinaspeciﬁcobjective:“Developa wholeofsportHR[HumanResources]strategythatcreatesemployeepassion,engagementandinternalloyaltytoourbrand andvalues”(TriathlonAustralia,2016b,p.17).TriathlonAustraliahasalsoharnessedtheemotionallinkofhighlyskilled triathlon participants to establish and accelerate its the new Paralympic committee (Triathlon Australia, 2012). The commitmentanddedicationofitsmembersisaconsistentmessagethroughoutTriathlonAustralia’sannualreports.The followingextractfrom2012isindicativeofthisallegiancetotheorganisation:

Thesecommitteeshaveprovidedanexcellentmeansbywhichtobringtogetherspecialistexpertiseandresourcesfrom ourmembership.Wehavemanytalentedandpassionatemembersverywillingtovolunteertheirtimetofurtherthe goalsandobjectivesofoursport(2012,p.9).

Inthe2015–2016annualreport,theCEOstated:“IwouldliketotakethisopportunitytothankthestaffatTriathlon Australia,whoaresmallinnumbers,butbigonpassionforthesporttheyworktirelesslytowardinmeetingourgoals” (TriathlonAustralia,2016a,p.7).

Atboardlevel,TriathlonAustraliahasappointedmemberswiththecombinationofskillset,passion,andcommitment.

Oneofthe2006–2007boardcandidatesstressedthathehad“plentyofdemonstratedpassionfortriathlon”(Triathlon Australia,2007,p.23).SeveralTriathlonAustralia’spresidentsandCEOshavevaluedpassionandprofessionalskillsthrough theirexecutive messages intheannualreports. Oneexamplecame fromtheCEO report:“I seethis skilland passion demonstratedinourregularboardmeetings”(TriathlonAustralia,2012,2014,p.9).

A focus on harnessing emotions mayalso lead to unintended consequences. Board members can be passionate about a particular componentofthesport,asitresonateswiththeirbackgroundorskillset,butnotcareaboutotherorganisationalrequirements:

Ifyoubringonsomeonewhohasamembershipbackground,that'swhatthey'repassionateabout.So,you'lltendtoﬁnda lotofworkloadcomesoutofthatnow,becausethosepeoplewanttoleavetheirlegacyinthatareathatthey'repassionate about,notsoworriedabouttheotherissues,that'ssomebodyelse'sspeciﬁcskills.(TriathlonAustraliaseniormanager)

5.Discussionandconcludingcomments 5.1.Respondingtoexternalcomplexity

TheenvironmentalturbulencefacedbyTriathlonAustralia,includingperiodsofinsolvency,governmentintervention, andinclusionintotheOlympicprogram,forcedbothradicalandincrementalchangestostrategy;boardcompositionand background;andorganisationalstructureandprocesses;anditalsoledtoawideningcommercialisationofparticipation

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sport.Thehybridorganisingandtheinter-relationshipsbetweenthethreedifferentlogicsinoperation(i.e.,commercial, social, andgovernment)created differentdegrees ofcompatibilitybetweenlogics.Dealingwitha crisissituation(e.g., pendinginsolvency)coalescedtensionandcompatibilitybetweenlogics.

Carlsson-Walletal.(2016)foundsituation-speciﬁcbehaviourwasrelatedtothesportsorbusinessperformanceofa football club. Theyalsoargued thatnon-linearity is typicalfor sports where thewinnersreceive additional rewards.

Likewise,wefoundthatthe(re)actionsofTriathlonAustraliaweresituational,whetherthiswastomeetthedemandsofthe commercial,socialorgovernmentlogics,oracombinationthereof.Suitableresponsescansuppresscomplexityandleverage someofitsaspectsfororganisationalbeneﬁt(Toubianaetal.,2017).Forexample,theverticalandhorizontalintegration changeinorganisationalstructurenecessitatedbygovernmentdemandsandcommercialimperativeswereachievedby exploitingthepassionthatboundandmotivatedeveryonetogether.

Thewayinwhichorganisationsrespondtodifferentdemandshasimportantconsequencesfortheirsociallegitimacyand accesstocriticalresources,andindealingwiththreatstotheirexistence(Greenwoodetal.,2011).Ashighlightedinthis research,NationalSportFederationshavetodealwithacomplexarrayoftensions,challenges,andenablerswhichmay requireactionsorcompromisesthatfavouronelogicoranother.

5.2.Respondingtointerstitialcomplexity

Triathlon Australia’sresponsetointerstitialcomplexity was totransitionfroma federatedmodel, toa hybrid ‘one management’model, throughimplementing a ‘wholeof sport’ approach. Triathlon Australia actioned this through a sequence of responses(i.e.,empathy/ formalisation /collaboration /specialisation) that createdthe conditionsfor a voluntary,collaborative,andgood-willbasedapproachtodevelopingcommonnationalbehavioursthatavoidedduplication andimprovedefﬁciencyandeffectiveness,whilestillmaintainingtheautonomyoftheafﬁliatedassociations.Thisstrategy allowedTriathlonAustraliatoleveragecomplexitybyintegratinganddifferentiatingprocesses(Toubianaetal.,2017)with itsStateandTerritoryTriathlonAssociations.

5.3.Respondingtointernalcomplexity

TheinsolvencyperiodrelatedtoitseliteseriespressuredTriathlonAustraliato investinparticipationtoaddressthe commerciallogicrequirementswhilemaintainingsomeelitefocustoachievethegovernmentlogicapproval.Thisshowsthat agendapluralismcanbeanadvantageinaddressingdifferentlogicneedsandinreorganisinginstitutionalsettlements.Italso demonstratesthatanagendaisnotnecessarilyconnectedtoaspeciﬁcinstitutionallogic(Skirstad&Chelladurai,2011).

Triathlon Australiautilised adiverse repertoireof strategicresponses: dividedtheagendas’structure;balanced its fundingandstaffallocation,aswell asitsboardbackground;partiallyintegratedtheagendasviatheage-groups;and leverageditseventsandmultisportcomponent,byreducingcostsandincreasingrevenue.Despitethedifferencesbetween themission’sembeddedagendas,thereisnowaperceivedlowlevelofconﬂict.

5.4.Respondingwithemotions

Thecentralityofemotionsindecision-makinginductivelyemergedasathemefromthedata,andmostnotablyitwas described byTriathlon Australia andnumerous intervieweesas‘passion’. Passionwas positionedas thecommonlink bringing together everyone in triathlon;and it was harnessed toattract highlyskilledstaff and board membersand enhanced theircommitment.Thisnew‘passion framing’allowedforvalidationof thesociallogic.It alsoconcurrently leveragedcommercialandgovernmentlogicattributes,resultinginhavingemotionallyinvested,committed,andskilled employeesanddirectors(Mair,Martí,&Ventresca,2012;Toubiana&Zietsma,2017;Vaccaro&Palazzo,2015).

5.5.Conclusion

Thetheoreticalcontributionsextendknowledgeonthelocationofcomplexityandresponsestoit.Thisstudyisamongthe firsttoexaminemulti-levelcomplexityandresponses.Mostcomplexitystudieshavefocusedoninstitutionalcomplexityasan externalcomplexity,whichoccurswhenconflictiverequirementsofseveralinstitutionalfieldlogicsareatplay(Greenwood etal.,2011;Ramus,Vaccaro,&Brusoni,2017;Raynard,2016).Thefindingsofthisinvestigationsuggestthepresenceofother levelsofcomplexity:interstitiallevel,whenaffiliatedorganisationswithinthefederationpresentdifferentinterestsfromthe mainorganisation;andinternalcomplexity,whendifferentorganisationalagendashaveconflictiveneedstobesolved(Fig.2).

Thisinvestigationhasshownthatenvironmentalturbulencecausedbycriticalevents,includingnearinsolvencyand entranceintotheOlympicprogram,necessitatedanorganisationspecificresponsetoanincreasinglymulti-levelcomplexity (Ramusetal.,2017).Wearguedthatmulti-levelcomplexityrepresentschallengestomanagementandrequireappropriate responsestoit.Todate,literaturehasbeensilentaboutorganisationalresponsestomulti-levelcomplexity.Theresponses incorporatedcentralising(cf.Besharov&Smith,2014)andpartiallyaligningagendas,models,andlogics(cf.Ramusetal., 2017). Thus, the research findings revealed that the centralisation process amplified complexity but also created opportunitiestoaddressitbyopeningtheavailablerepertoireofcreativeandhybridresponsestoretainlegitimacyand accessresourcesfromexternalstakeholders,internalaffiliatesandtobesuccessfulinaddressingitsmission.