developing managerial skill is not merely a matter of digesting information or learning a particular set of strategies or tactics. Whether for the CEO of a large financial institution or the manager of a major league baseball team, the practice of management steers a course between art and science. Whether based on an analytical approach or some other approach, sue- cessful management cannot be totally reduced to a set of formulas and passed from one person to another. In this respect, consultants such as Tom Peters or academics such as Henry Mintzberg are on the mark. While they may carry the point too far, no amount of study of the brush strokes and use of color of Rembrandt will manufacture a painter equal to the Dutch master. Even painters of great skill who may imitate Rembrandt's methods cannot fully incorporate and imitate the creativity that made him a renowned painter. In the same way, becoming a skillful coach requires more than merely serving an apprenticeship under a highly successful coach. De- veloping into a successful CEO requires more than matriculating through a top-flight MBA program or reading the biography of a corporate mag- nate. The skillful use of "heuristics"—rules-of-thumb and other mental shortcuts—is valuable in solving all kinds of messy, complex problems. In fact, a small but growing field is emerging that considers such methods. The difficulty is using heuristics without overusing or abusing them.9 SPORT AS MANAGEMENT OR MANAGEMENT AS SPORT? Is this a book about sports or a book about management? The answer is both. In its specifics, this volume is a sports book through and through. The following chapters are filled with examples drawn from sporting events and related episodes involving players, teams, coaches, executives, and leagues. Sports fans who are interested in evaluating the decisions made by players, coaches, and general managers of sports franchises should find the material of interest. On the other hand, this volume is a management book. While it is cer- tainly not a management textbook in the usual sense, every chapter in the book and every section within these chapters covers topics that transcend sports venues. At its core, the organization of the book centers around com- mon issues and problems faced by managers regardless of setting. As a reader for current or aspiring managers or as a supplement to traditional textbooks, the following pages offer an opportunity for individuals who combine an interest in management with the fun of sports to explore im- portant management lessons. Not every conceivable management topic is included. Some fit with the sports emphasis better than others. Still, the breadth of issues included is considerable. Probably more analogies have been drawn between settings such as war 11
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