Majestic passion: Rick Mack, HR director for the U.S. Olympic Committee, is on a mission to preserve Olympic ideals

HR Magazine, Dec, 2004 by Ann Pomeroy

Mack is working on a number of new initiatives for the organization, such as developing a new health insurance program for the NGBs that will enable small boards to take advantage of the economies of scale. He's also looking to "turn up the volume" on a management development program for senior staff at the USOC and the NGB.

Overall, says Watkins, "Rick deals with the corporate interaction, the big picture. I just make it work."

A Complex, Troubled Organization

Making it work, of course, is where difficulties can arise. A complex nonprofit philanthropic organization, the USOC is one of 202 national Olympic committees worldwide. Although chartered and authorized by federal statute, it is the only committee that receives no government funding. Instead, 80 percent of USOC funding comes from corporate sponsors and broadcasting, Mack says. (The remaining 20 percent comes from investments and donations.)

Most Olympic committees in other countries are "almost a ministry of their governments," says Seibel, with substantial government involvement and funding.

The International Olympic Committee (IOC) owns the Olympic Games, but its biggest revenues come from the United States, Mack says. Fees for TV rights alone represent billions of dollars. Last year, for the first time, the USOC was involved in the negotiation process with the IOC and U.S. networks for coverage of the 2010 and 2012 Games. The total package awarded to NBC and its parent company, General Electric, is valued at $2.2 billion.

When the USOC was created in its present form in 1978, Mack says, it had more than 100 board members and many committees--with up to 500 committee members. In addition to the 45 NGB members, the board had representatives from the Athletes' Advisory Council, grassroots organizations such as the Native Americans' Sports Council, sports organizations for athletes with disabilities and the Special Olympics. However, a 20- to 23-member executive committee ran the organization, and the entire board met only twice a year. "A lot of business got done in the hallway," Mack says.

Political passions ran high, and a succession of presidents came and went. The past six years have been marred by political infighting and scandals involving ethical issues and drug-related problems. A power struggle between volunteer board members and USOC senior staff escalated last year into what Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., called "an Olympic-sized food fight." McCain chairs the Senate Commerce, Science and Transportation Committee, which convened hearings to consider overhauling the USOC governance structure. The USOC president resigned in February 2003, followed in March by the resignation of the CEO.

Seibel says the "ambiguity and lack of a clear delineation of responsibilities for professional staff and board members" was at the heart of many of the recent problems. Members of the large, unwieldy volunteer board had good intentions, but "the structure was faulty," he says. "It didn't allow us to fulfill our mission and be as responsive and efficient as we should be."