Building competence identification framework of volunteers in sport mega events: a grounded research during the Beijing 2022 Winter Olympics

Organizing a sport mega event not only boosts a city's profile, but also stimulates the development of related industries. Volunteers play a crucial role in these events as they are an essential human resource and embody the passion for participating in and serving the community. Successful delivery of such events relies heavily on the effective recruitment, selection, and management of volunteers. This study aims to identify the core competencies of volunteers in sport mega events to support team building, ensure volunteer satisfaction, and maintain motivation. Based on competency theory and Spencer's generic competency dictionary, an interview guide was developed, and in-depth interviews were conducted with volunteers and their managers from the Beijing 2022 Winter Olympics. Using grounded theory analysis, the study explored volunteer competencies and constructed a four-layer competency framework encompassing motivation, identity, personal characteristics, and interpersonal skills. This framework, extending from internal to external dimensions, serves as a reference for selecting, motivating, training, and evaluating volunteers in future sport mega events. The research promotes their practical application and contributes to the theoretical development of competency models in volunteer management for sport mega events.