‘The only person you can delegate tasks to is yourself’. Leadership challenges and turnover in national federations of sport

© 2023 The Author(s). Først publisert i "Scandinavian sport studies forum", https://sportstudies.org/2023/03/01/the-only-person-you-can-delegate-tasks-to-is-yourself-leadership-challenges-and-turnover-in-national-federations-of-sport/ / First published in "Scandinavian sport studies forum", https://sportstudies.org/2023/03/01/the-only-person-you-can-delegate-tasks-to-is-yourself-leadership-challenges-and-turnover-in-national-federations-of-sport/Between 2015 and 2019, 52 per cent of the Secretary Generals (SGs) of Norwegian sport federations left their positions. As this rate is significantly higher than in the Norwegian labour market in general and poses a further difficulty for a Norwegian sport system already facing many challenges, this article examines why this is the case. The topic is relevant because the working conditions of Norwegian sport leaders are under-explored given their important role in the way sporting federations shape society. As key representatives for the national federations under The Norwegian Olympic and Paralympic Committee and Confederation of Sports (NIF) umbrella, SGs and Presidents have responsibility for NIF’s 1.9 million members and are instrumental in managing a total worth of approximately 34 billion euros. Because SGs can be said to be more integrated than Presidents into the daily management of federations and into the human relationship responsibilities that comprise it, this article draws upon qualitative interviews with 16 Secretary Generals to present six reasons why working conditions challenges emerge. The article thus provides a contribution to sport leadership research and shows how the lack of continuity among SGs in national sport federations demonstrates the need for organisational change.publishedVersio

Danish PV prosumers' time-shifting of energy-consuming everyday practices

Consumer engagement in the energy system is necessary to ensure a low-carbon transition. However, this has proved difficult because consumers are engaged in pursuing everyday practices rather than focusing on abstract questions of energy. Recent studies have suggested that being a prosumer can make a difference. This paper builds on survey data from a representative sample of 2505 photovoltaic (PV) owners in Denmark combined with 12 qualitative in-depth interviews. The results indicate that PV owners consider that they have become more concerned about energy consumption and adjust the timing of their everyday practices to their production. Thus, 67% of the households ‘often’ or ‘always’ time-shift the use of washing machines to their production. The extent to which households time-shift is strongly related to their net-metering scheme. Thus, 75% of the households on hourly metering stated that they ‘to some’ or to ‘a great extent’ adjust their consumption, compared to only 26% of the households on annual metering. This financial effect is interpreted in an everyday life context where financial gain transfers meanings of self-sufficiency and sustainability, rather than primarily being viewed as rational economic behaviour. The conclusion discusses the policy implications of methods to engage the consumer

Smart home technology adoption in Denmark:Diffusion, social differences, and energy consumption

Smart home technology (SHT) is increasingly entering homes to provide services such as energy management, security, comfort, and convenience. However, research shows that adoption varies across social groups and that SHT might affect energy demand. Denmark is considered a frontrunner in the uptake of SHT and offers a unique opportunity to combine administrative household information with energy consumption data and survey responses on SHT uptake. This paper studies a representative sample of 1,468 Danish households to investigate SHT diffusion, social differences in SHT adoption, and correlations between SHT and energy consumption, divided into appliance use and heating. The results indicate that entertainment and home security are the most popular SHT services in Denmark and that SHT is more widespread among younger households, especially for entertainment and robotic help. In contrast, smart heating systems are more widespread among older households. Living in a detached house seems to increase the likelihood of having SHT, while the highest income group appears more likely to have security systems, and technical education seems associated with the adoption of SHT for heating management. Finally, smart security systems were associated with higher electricity consumption, and SHT for electricity management was associated with higher heating consumption and to a lesser extent higher electricity consumption, but there was no significant correlation between having smart heating control and heating consumption.</p