Human resource management in football

Lord, JD

Abstract

From recruitment to dismissal, football has generally managed to avoid investigation into its HRM practices with only a handful of high profile incidents being highlighted by researchers and the media.



However, HRM has always played a vital role in football, especially in the management of players and staff, the adoption of management styles and the use of policies and procedures to support the growing commercial nature of football clubs.

This chapter analyses the use of HRM in football from a historical perspective, observing that ‘personnel’ has always been unintentionally integrated into the world of football, and then will go onto evaluate the current intentional use of modern HRM theory, systems and processes. The chapter will focus on the different applications of HRM within football clubs, specifically how playing and non-playing staff are treated.

A key element of the chapter will focus on the reasons why normal HR practices are never questioned in football but are the subject of contentious debates in the field of HRM, particularly the public scrutiny of player performance. A discussion around whether these same practices would be effective in a typical organisation and whether HRM has been effective in supporting success on and off the field.

• Publication Date: Dec 1, 2018
• Deposit Date: Dec 11, 2018
• Publisher: Routledge
• Pages: 220-232
• Book Title: Routledge Handbook of Football Business and Management
• ISBN: 9781351262798
• Publisher URL: https://www.taylorfrancis.com/books/9781138579071