Seven coaches from Michigan State University, including Mark Dantonio and Tom Izzo, will join faculty from the school’s Eli Broad College of Business for a collaborative educational program to teach business professionals about successful management from an athletic perspective.
“In today’s business, there is a clear need for managers to develop skills in leadership and team effectiveness,” says Stefanie Lenway, dean of the business college. “Members of our management faculty are leaders in the field of team development and management. Combined with the winning cultures our athletic coaches have created here at MSU, the result is an exciting and innovative learning experience.”
The event, Building Winning Teams: A Quest for Excellence, to be held June 3-5, will include discussions led by coaches, team activities, and research lectures about teamwork and coaching philosophies.
“When we teach about leadership, it’s about team leadership, which is what athletic coaches are doing on team sports each day,” says David Frayer, director of the executive development programs in the business college.
Frayer says the program will teach participants about leadership in relation to recruiting, management conflict, and dealing with change.
Izzo and women’s basketball coach Suzy Merchant will share their philosophy and experiences in team management by taking participants through different basketball activities and concepts that emphasize teamwork and teambuilding. Likewise, Dantonio will focus on identifying and nurturing talent through the football team’s recruitment efforts, Frayer says.
Other coaches participating in the program include Tom Anastos (hockey), Jake Boss (baseball), Cathy George (women’s volleyball), and Stacy Slobodnik-Stoll (women’s golf).
For more information about the program — which has an enrollment cap of 50 people — click here.
