Sports management professionals hold a number of different positions in their field. By combining their love for athletics with business and marketing savvy, they can provide a variety of services to athletes and coaches. Some of the opportunities available in sports management are sports information directors, athletic directors and general managers and sports agents or representatives. Some of the groups currently employing these positions are:

• Academic institutions
• Major and minor league professional sports franchises
• Independent sports confederations
• Sporting goods companies
• Independent sports marketing and management consulting firms

Sports management professionals ultimately need to possess an overwhelming need to succeed due to the years it takes to gain experience and establish contacts.

Sport management professionals are typically college educated. There are some universities that offer programs in sports management. Other course that would be beneficial to this career would be:

• Marketing
• Accounting
• Business management
• Business law

Sports information directors should look into majoring in journalism and consider working with the media before entering sports management. Sports supervisors or agents might have training as attorneys or carry degrees in business management. Pursuing internships and volunteering are other good ways of getting hands on training before entering the business.

As the sports business industry grows, so will the jobs within it. Since it is considered a somewhat glamorous industry to work in, expect tough competition and the need to have a plethora of education and experience under your belt to be considered for higher paying positions. Conditions for the sport management professional include:

• Long hours
• Attending sporting events
• Extensive travel

Salaries within the sports management industry can vary widely depending on the competition and the value of the team or athlete you are working for. However, the median salary runs approximately $94k per year depending on education and experience.

If you have the skills to promote and market an athlete and their product, then you have the makings of a Sports Agent. Aside from obtaining a BS in Sport Management, a sports agent will also need to know how to negotiate contracts, be comfortable speaking with other professionals in the sport and keeping abreast of current trends. Activities that a sports agent may encounter on a daily basis are:

• Constant networking
• Drawing up contracts
• Completing risk and financial analysis
• Traveling to different locations
• Recruiting and marketing
• Invoicing and collecting fee as outlined in the contracts

Salaries as a sports agent, can range anywhere from $48 to $60k per year, dependent upon degrees and experience as they relate to the industry.

A sports manager works to ensure that an athlete has the best career by providing the best training, playing and competing. Sports managers may work with professional athletes or at the local college with aspiring professional athletes. Managers need to have a strong network between players, coaches and trainers. Some of their common daily activities include:

• Assist in developing marketing and promotional ideas
• Working with trainers and coaches
• Handling play and coaching issues.
• Arranging and determining game schedules
• Hiring and training all support personnel
• Working with facilities managers and owners
• Setting and monitoring professional standards

Most sports managers will have obtained a degree or certification, while others work themselves up in the ranks over several years. Sports managers salaries can range roughly between $30k and $60k per year, based on training, experience and whether or not they are working with local college athletes or professionals.

Athletic directors typically oversee coaches and related staff involved in athletic programs. They are not just faculty members, but full time administrators. While these directors are typically in charge of the coaches, they tend to draw less attention and popularity. Directors more often carry majors in business administration or a related field as opposed to having physical education or sports administration degrees.

As an athletic director, you can expect to have typical duties and responsibilities such as:

• Ensuring coaches maintain inventory or equipment and materials
• Responsible for the development of a schedule
• Responsible for securing officials for sporting events
• Responsible for the orientation of all coaches
• Work with staff and the administration to develop and enforce an athletic/academic code of conduct
• Oversees the athletic department budget

A typical work schedule for an athletic director will coincide with the facility they are working for. Typically working standard school schedules along with required non-teaching service days. Salaries are equivalent to a teacher’s salary schedule and based on their training and experience.

As an athletic scout, your primary duty is to seek out top athletic candidates for the team you are representing. You must be able to perform your duties in secrecy so that other scouts will not pick up on your interest in certain players. Professionally, scouts can work for either an organization or as a freelance scout. Scouts at the college level seek out potential high school athletes by many means such as:

• Reading newspapers
• Contacting high school coaches and alumni
• Attending high school games
• Studying videotapes of performances
• Evaluating a potential players background via coaches, parents and teachers

As a scout, you should have a background as an athlete yourself in order to have a general idea of what a great athlete should possess. Your schedule will vary depending upon game times and travel is primary via automobile. Median annual earning range from $26 to $57k per year.