I was knee deep on a piece on the dominance of German football when the news of Sir Alex Ferguson's retirement broke. Tabled it. 'Our Sir' as Jose Mourinho likes to call him takes precedence.

Last year, Ferguson was featured in a case study by Harvard Business School.

As an MBA candidate, this development marking the 25th anniversary of his tenure of Manchester United piqued my interest. This level of analysis by a highly esteemed University such as Harvard speaks volumes (at least, one volume, as it were). Buy the case study here. Read the Daily Mail's cliff notes here.


The Economist illuminates the numbers juxtaposing Sir Alex's accomplishments with nine top clubs over the same period of time. The results are quantitatively staggering.

Last year, The Telegraph displayed the manager's accomplishments in the trophy cabinet...

...and the win rate...

...in relation to spending in the transfer market.

However, the HBS case study is keen to highlight the quality of methods; the individual, human decisions through the lens of a business manager. Of course, now that the Glazer family has taken Manchester United public on the New York Stock Exchange it is an altogether fitting evaluation of an executive guiding the club's success on the field with a gestalt approach to the whole club under his administration.

Time and again, the striker who cut his teeth on the frozen pitches of Scotland - scoring 170 goals in the process - was able to successfully navigate his way out of difficult situations with his players and their agents. He's a tough son-of-a-bitch with a sense of humor. He oft handled the media like a puppeteer, and showed poise in the stewardship of United's resources.


After 15 years of filling up the coffers and trophy cabinet at Old Trafford, he intended to retire.

Fortunately for the Glazer family, his ability to figure out how to delegate responsibility and thus, elongate the club's stretch of success and his own career.

All relevant news outlets had their front page columns 80% written and ready to publish so the fact that his name and face emblazon 80% of tomorrow's UK rags is no surprise.

There is one question that the authors of the HBS case study posed which remains half-answered. How could Ferguson lead his team to another victory and bring the next chapter in United's illustrious history to a successful end?

It may be a year late by his standards, but he did guide United to its record 20th league title, his 13th. That wraps up the first half of this two-part query. The second part indicating a successful end is not so clear if you take into account the new beginning.

Just like only he knew when it was time to hang up his boots, the successor to carry his mantle forward is at the moment unconfirmed. If the Glazers shun Jose Mourinho's slash-and-burn management style in favor of the economical and reliable mainstay at Everton David Moyes, they'll need to avoid Wall Street's poisonous obsession with quarterly results in favor of setting long-term goals and an extra dose of patience.

If Moyes is their man, journalists won't need a new interpreter to translate Scottish to English press conference commentary. And, don't gasp, but the future may look much like the past. In today's sports business landscape, a sped up version of Sir Alex's first decade might not be enough to keep Moyes employed. Yet patience and a careful evaluation of the direction of the club long-term could yield great rewards analogous to the Pittsburgh Steelers' success in the NFL. When you can count the number of coaches hired on one hand, you know you've trusted your own decisions and fully vetted those decisions. At the right time, Manchester United will know if the personnel decision was a success or failure.

Fortunately, Sir Alex will continue to have a role with the club. Hopefully, he will have enough influence and involvement to impose his will and wisdom to that end. Because he knows its never too late to pull out a victory. He's demonstrated such a strong grasp of the American phrase, 'timing is everything'.

Clearly, it's Fergie's time.