Management School holds inaugural horseracing industry conference
The inaugural horseracing industry conference, organised by The University of Liverpool Management School and sponsored by The Racing Foundation, took place on 30th January 2018 at The Barbican Centre, London.
Attended by key figures and organisations from across the horseracing industry, along with academics from the University of Liverpool and students of the Thoroughbred Horseracing Industries MBA (THIMBA), the conference focused on how evidence-based research should be used to inform decision-making, address key issues and support the growth of the industry.
Nick Rust, CEO of the British Horseracing Authority, gave the keynote speech which looked at strategy, staffing and equine welfare as well as the need for a consumer based strategy which is underpinned by data and research. He discussed how the BHA is working to increase diversity within horseracing and said that recent progress, “gives a window of opportunity to build a vision for the future that allows us to grow the sport and meet the competitive threats from other sports and leisure activities.”
Dr. Babatunde Buraimo, Senior Lecturer in Sports Management, and Prof David Forrest, Professor of Economics, presented an investigation into the importance of demand analysis to help formulate policy. The study uses data from across 61 racecourses from 1989-2016 to provide insight into a declining demand in horseracing and the factors that may contribute to this. The need for evidence-based decision making was highlighted throughout.
The afternoon consisted of two breakout sessions which were categorised into separate themes of ‘People’ and ‘Equine’. The sessions looked at brand new research from a number of students and graduates of the THIMBA programme which prepares students for senior management and leadership roles in the horseracing industry. Areas discussed included ethical opinions around the use of animals for sport, best practice for equine health, retired racehorses, staff retention, and multiskilling. Also featured was the highly topical issue of jockey gender with Vanessa Cashmore’s recently completed study, ‘Jockey Gender Performance’ which asserts that female jockeys are as good as males and has attracted considerable media attention, with coverage from BBC News, Sky Sport News, CNN, The Guardian and The Times.
Neil Coster, Director of Studies for the THIMBA programme, commented on the event, “The immediate feedback from senior industry delegates has been very positive, with a real interest in engaging with the findings from a number of projects.”
Rob Hezel, CEO and Director of Racing Foundation, commented, “"It was great to see so many people attending and to see how engaged they were with the event. It clearly demonstrates a desire from those working within the sport to better understand it and a determination to improve it. The fact that everyone embraced a varied and challenging agenda shows a confidence within the sport that issues can be tackled and improvements made."
Elaine Eades, Associate Dean and Director of the MBA programmes, commented, “The conference was an excellent experience for all who attended. It is evidence of the real business impact that our MBA programme and graduates have, and also of the genuine engagement between the University and all the key sectors of the Horseracing Industry.”