The programme is centred around 7 modules: 6 are completed physically on our campus and 1 during an international field trip. The modules are not offered in chronological order, but are aligned with each other. During your study, you will act as a consultant for a real sport organisation. You will define a strategy to make this organisation more sustainable in terms of people, planet, prosperity, and (sporting) performance.

Module 1: Vision & Strategy in Sport 

Professional deliverable – for client as a consultant

• Report and presentation to lecturers, peers and client about the vision and strategy of a sport organisation
• Analysis of the sustainable positioning of the sport organisation: what is working, what is not and what is your advise about what should change and how?
• What steps are needed within and outside of the organisation 

Themes of classes

• Living purpose, culture (DNA), vision & strategy
• Sport ecosystem & partnerships
• Transformative sport business
• Finance (review and advanced)
• Strategic management (review and advanced)
• Marketing and branding
• Change management
• Sport governance, law, and ethics
• Consulting skills
• Value creation & business models in sport 

After completing this module you can:

• identify, formulate, and develop a vision for the sustainable positioning of a sport organisation
• communicate and translate the vision and strategy inside and outside a sport organisation 

Module 2: Value Creation & Business Models

Professional deliverable – for client as a consultant

• As a consultant you will identify how the organisation can be innovative with new business models and how it can create sustainable value in sport (financially and socially).

Themes of classes

• Business models and value creation
• Transformative sport businesses/economics
• Stakeholders and partnerships (media and key sponsors)
• Commercialisation and marketing of sport
• Funding of sport
• Change management
• Leadership effectiveness skills

After completing this module you can:

• create the conditions for value creation to occur in a sport organisation
• innovate business models into sustainable value in sport

Module 3: Stakeholders and Politics in Sport

Fieldtrip

During this module you will go on an international fieldtrip to Lausanne, Switzerland.

Professional deliverable – for client

• You will write and present an analysis of all outside stakeholders of your consultancy organisation, the power dynamics (inter)between them and how they can be best engaged.
• You will do a self assessment on how successful you have been in your stakeholder engagement.

Themes of classes

• Key stakeholders and decision makers in the sport industry
• The influence and role of politics at national and international level
• Conflicting interests among stakeholders and navigate political complexities in sport leadership roles
• Ethical considerations and social responsibilities in managing stakeholders
• Reflection on your own development and your (business) goals as a sport leader

After completing this module you can:

• connect stakeholders with each other and with yourself
• influence key decision makers in sport

Module 4: Operations Management in Sport

Professional deliverable

• In a simulation you will be presented with a real-world business case.
• Your will be assigned a unique role and specific tasks within a team.
• Throughout the game, new instructions will be introduced, presenting varying tasks and assignments tailored to each team member's role.
• Stay engaged, adapt to evolving scenarios, and collaborate effectively to navigate the dynamic challenges that arise in this immersive business experience.
• Before the game you will receive a scorecard with grading criteria. After the game the team with most points will be elected as winner.

Themes of classes

• Dynamics of (complex) organisations and management problems
• Understanding key (complex) characteristics of sport organisations
• Conduct Brown Paper session to visualise key processes and bottlenecks
• Create a process flow diagram that represents a process in your organisation
• Understanding change models and theories
• Identifying drivers for change

After completing this module you can:

• manage parts of business operations in a sport organisation
• structure the business operations of a sport organisation

Module 5: Human Resources in Sport

Professional deliverable – for client as a consultant

• You get to work on a real-life assignment.
• The aim is to promote, organise and implement competence development of (a group of) employees in the organisation where you work (or your client from module 1).
• You could, for example, think about the need in an organisation to implement a certain working method.
• You need to devise a strategy for the successful execution of this project. Based on this strategy, you consider how you are going to organise and then implement it.
• The assessment of this module consists of a written exam and a practical assignment. 

Themes of classes

• Follower needs
• Psychological safety
• Organisational politics
• Enhanced learning in organisations
• Shared leadership

After completing this module you can:

• demonstrate leadership behaviour in relation to the people in a sport organisation
• professionalise a group of people in a sport organisation

Module 6:  Master Thesis

Professional deliverable

• Research report (thesis)
• Presentation to lecturers
• Dissemination to stakeholders (whitepaper, conference talk, article, et cetera)

Themes of classes

• Methodology and scientific skills at master level
• Workshop 'How to write a research proposal?'
• Masterclass about methodology (applied to your proposal)
• Workshop 'Dissemination of your research'
• Individual supervision
• Peer review with fellow students

After completing this module you can:

• research complex issues for a sport organisation or the sport industry
• offer a solution to a complex real-world challenge in a sport organisation

Module 7: Personal & Professional Profiling

Professional deliverable

• You will focus on your development, both personally as professionally. How do you develop as a leader and type of leader?
• In the presentation of your thesis you will make it clear what your value is for a sport organisation and in what areas you are unique from others.
• You will identify which part of the world of sport and what sort of organisation suits you the best – where you as leader will be able to thrive and deliver the most value.

Themes of classes

• Leadership
• Coaching skills
• Presenting skills
• Psychological concepts of development
• Reflection theory and practice
• Mindsets

After completing this module you can:

• take responsibility for your own actions and the ones of others 
• direct your own personal and professional development

Title and Diploma 

After successfully completing the Master's programme Sport Business & Leadership, you will be awarded the title of Master of Science (M.Sc.), at the Postgraduate Level 7 of the Dutch Qualification Framework (NLQF).