Developing a youth organization : case Turku YMCA

Abstract

Small sports organizations in Finland find it increasingly difficult to recruit new players. There are many alternatives for the children to choose from and the addition of the internet and social media have limited to amount of free time that they have. It has become increasingly important for sports organizations to be more careful in identifying their potential consumers and recruiting methods. This thesis covers one such organization, the Turku YMCA. The sport in question, basketball, has a strong place in the Finnish sports scene. Like many of the sports in Finland, basketball has a loyal following, but it has not been able to challenge the more popular sports. Basketball organizations have focused more on creating temporary interest, and neglecting to create their own identity, values and put an emphasis on loyalty. The main objective of this thesis is to find different methods for the typical Finnish sports organization to develop without having to spend extra resources. Turku YMCA is one of those typical sports organizations. This thesis presents an overview of the organization and the tasks and responsibilities of the personnel. It identifies the actions that can be done to improve personnel satisfaction at Turku YMCA. Based on the findings this thesis looks at ways for the organization to recruit new players and coaches to the organization. Lahti YMCA was selected as a benchmark case for this thesis, because Lahti YMCA has the most homegrown players in the Finnish League. The thesis presents recommendations to Turku YMCA, which will focus on developing personnel satisfaction, loyalty, and player retention. This thesis was done in cooperation with Turku YMCA.