Business Lessons from the 29th Olympiad
Website design By BotEap.comEven if you’re not a sports fan, it’s been hard to avoid NBC’s unprecedented coverage of the 29th Olympic Games in China. Despite the fact that many skeptics wondered if NBC was crazy to broadcast 3,600 hours of television and webcast coverage of the Olympic Games, the Peacock Network has struck gold. The Nielsen ratings of these Olympics have far exceeded the viewership of the previous Summer Olympics in Greece, and their numbers are second only to this year’s Super Bowl. These Olympic Games have not been disappointing for a variety of reasons; here are only two.
Website design By BotEap.comFirst, the Beijing Olympics remind us of the value of competition. Although some select events have been easily won by a dominant individual or team (see Usain Bolt in the men’s 100m dash), the victor has often been unknown until the final seconds of most events. Arguably the most enduring image of these Olympics is Michael Phelps, winner of eight gold medals in Beijing, celebrating with his teammates as the US men’s swimming team came from seemingly certain defeat to edge out France on the wall in the men’s 4 x 100. freestyle relay. In short, the competition gives its participants the ability to definitively measure one’s performance.
Website design By BotEap.comSecond, the Beijing Olympic Games remind us of the value of cooperation. Name any other event in existence today where 202 nations come together and follow the same set of rules for two weeks. you can’t As Baron Pierre de Coubertin, the French enthusiast who helped resurrect the modern Olympic Games, said in 1896, “The most important thing in the Olympic Games is not to win, but to participate” (Uschan, 2000, p. 8). In fact, each Olympics provides a snapshot of what can be achieved when nations choose to agree, rather than disagree. (As a reminder, these events occurred in the context of the Russian invasion of Georgia.) In short, cooperation is the basis of progress.
Website design By BotEap.comCompetition and cooperation: two reasons why these Olympic Games have drawn an unprecedented audience and two powerful tools for any CEO or manager focused on increasing company production and profits in these challenging economic times.