Special Olympics Essays

Special Olympics Essays Special Olympics Essay Special Olympics Essay Before I begin my paper I wanted to give a little history on the background of the Special Olympics. The first International Special Olympics Games were held at Soldier Field in Chicago 1968. It was originally started by a woman named Anne McGlone Burke, who was a physical education teacher with the Chicago Park school district. She began with the idea for a one-time Olympic-style athletic competition for people with special needs. Burke then contacted Eunice Kennedy Shriver, who was the head of the Joseph P. Kennedy Jr. Foundation to fund the event. Mrs. Shriver loved the idea and encouraged Ms. Burke to expand on the idea and the JPK Foundation gave a grant of $25,000. More than 1,000 athletes from all over the United States and Canada participated in the first game. At that game Mrs. Shriver announced the formation of the Special Olympics and it has continued to grow from there. (Http://specialolympics. org) Describe the nature of the organization, its size, and any specific HR challenges it faces. The nature of the Special Olympics which is held every year, is to provide the visitors and the participants from all parts of the world a sporting event for people to have fun and excitement and also to get to know their own sport talents. Whether the sport is swimming competition, basketball, bowling, or golf a person gets to take part and enjoy the game more than he or she may have expected it to be. The Special olympics is growing, increasing at a rate of 10. 5%. It has grown so large that over 9000 additional competitions take place. Since there is such a growth in competitons there has also bee n a growth with the need for coaches. Currently, there are over 260,000 coaches working for the organization, and 700,000 volunteers supporting the Special Olympics training competition and sports related activities. (Http://specialolympics. org) Those are huge numbers, the ratio is 12 athletes to one coach! I think one of the biggest challenges HR faces with the Special Olympics is with that many people involved, how do you keep everyone focused to work effectively and stay on task to maintain the mission of the Special Olympics. Describe major legal concerns of the organization and recommend how they should be addressed. Legal concerns of the Special Olympics is complicated. There are many issues to be considered such as contracts, fund-raising matters along with drug use. When the Special Olympics deals with contracts they need to have a HR department familiar with contract law. In a binding contract even if important terms may have been left open for a later date or agreement, there can be issues if the party attempting to enforce the contract can prove that there was a genuine agreement, not a proposal or intention to continue a negotiation. It must be apparent that an offer and acceptance was present. Fund raising matters can be an issue if there are people involved that are not honest and working against the mission of the Special Olympics. To deter this from happening I am sure they must have an accounting person overseeing all donations that are given and verified. I think a good way to foster this is to encourage credit card and check donations, not cash. And lastly drug use, athletes using substances to alter their abilities can be traced back to Olympics of Ancient Greece. While they obviously weren’t injecting themselves with steroids, the Ancient Olympians were said to eat exotic meats or drink special concoctions with hopes of performing better. This is not the issue today, so regular drug screening is needed. (Http://nonprofitprofessionals. com) Describe how the organization should address current HR issues concerning expanding into international markets. A concern with the Special olympics is issues with growth management and finance. Since the early 1990s Special Olympics has invested increasing financial and human resources in expanding its international presence and number of athletes. Special Olympics has grown from 1 million athletes in 2000 to 3. 5 million in 2011, with ambitious plans laid out in its five-year Strategic Plan to reach 5. 3 million athletes by 2015. While increasing geographic reach and athlete participation will be a priority, Special Olympics is committed to the principle of sustainable quality growth, acknowledging that rapid growth must be matched by quality in service and support. (www. sonc. org) Make recommendations concerning how the organization can leverage its human resources to come out on top in a highly competitive environment. The primary responsibility of the Special Olympics is its most important asset, its people. The organization needs to continue to coordinate human resource activities toward management, planning, performance, career development, and training. The Special Olympics is fueled by a growing base of athletes, their families, hundreds of thousands of coaches, volunteers, fans and philanthropic supporters, and dedicated staff, all operating within a network of 230 accredited programs globally. Each program is an independent entity, with its own governing body, professional staff, opportunities and challenges. The trans formative power of Special Olympics comes from building powerful communities of change around its athletes, not only through training and competitions but also through healthcare services, athlete leadership and empowerment, family programs, educational outreach, school and youth initiatives, and global human rights advocacy. (www. sode. org) Special Olympics has grown from the idea of one woman, basically a backyard summer camp one day event into a global movement. Providing year round sports training and competitions for nearly 3. million children and adults with intellectual disabilities in over 170 countries. The Special Olympics gives them continuing opportunities to develop physical fitness, demonstrate courage, experience joy, and participate using skills and friendship with their families, other Special Olympics athletes, and the community. Much more than any event in history that I can think of, the Special Olympics is also an effective catalyst for personal and so cial change. References Http://specialolympics. org Http://nonprofitprofessionals. com www. sode. org www. sonc. org