Jim Abbott is the Founder of Collegiate Resource Management, LLC and the Business of Small College Athletics.
Abbott spent 20 years as the Athletic Director at Oklahoma City University, guiding the department to unprecedented levels of success before his retirement in December of 2021.
Abbott is the founder of the Business of Small College Athletics, an annual workshop that provides professional development sessions geared toward NCAA D2, D3, NAIA, and NJCAA athletic administrators. The workshop, which started in 2011, is the only professional development gathering that focuses entirely on small college athletic departments. In 2023, Abbott expanded BOSCA's reach by creating regional workshops that made gaining professional development more accessible to administrators.
In 2022, Abbott created the BOSCA Leadership Academy, a structured mentorship program designed to facilitate growth for relatively new and aspiring small college athletic directors. Later that year Abbott created the BOSCA Revenue Generation Academy, a virtual training program that provides the tools necessary for small college athletic departments to build sustainable external revenue generation programs.
Abbott also provides campus consulting expertise in the areas of marketing, strategic planning, career development, maximizing external revenue opportunities, culture and administrative leadership development, and departmental reviews among other areas.
Abbott served as the chief development officer for Oklahoma City University Athletics. Under his guidance, OCU completed more than $19 million in athletic facility construction and renovation projects including the Ann Lacy Softball Stadium, the Devon Boathouse, the Knight Strength and Conditioning Facility and the Jim Wade Athletic Office Suite. Abbott’s tenure also consisted of new facilities and renovations for OCU baseball, soccer and wrestling. Abbott spearheaded efforts of the Champions Club, OCU’s athletic booster club, and the department's largest annual fundraising event, the Sports Spectacular dinner and auction.
Academically, student-athletes thrived during Abbott’s tenure, achieving an annual cumulative grade point average above a 3.0 each year. Abbott also created the first chapter of Chi Alpha Sigma, a national student-athlete honor society, in the state of Oklahoma to recognize the academic achievements of OCU student- athletes.
Oklahoma City University enjoyed significant competitive success under Abbott’s leadership winning an astonishing 48 team National Championships during his tenure. The department also won three Learfield Sports Director’s Cups, recognizing OCU as the most successful NAIA athletic department in the nation.
Abbott has been actively involved in national organizations throughout his career. His service includes stints as President of the NAIA Athletic Director’s Association, Chairman of the NAIA Hall of Fame Committee, member of the NAIA ADA Board of Directors, member of the NAIA Membership Committee, two terms as a member of the NAIA National Administrative Council, member of the NAIA/NACMA Advisory Committee, member of the NACDA Executive Committee, and member of the Greater Oklahoma City Sports Consortium.
Abbott has been inducted into the NACDA Hall of Fame and the Oklahoma City University Athletic Hall of Fame. He has been selected for induction into the NAIA Hall of Fame which will take place in April, 2024. Abbott has also been recognized as a distinguished alumnus at his alma mater, Huntingdon College.
Abbott and his wife, Annetta, have two children (Kyle and Katelyn).