It is not
all that uncommon for a Manager/Leader/Coach to be “let go”.
Another
coach of a team in our other major football codes found himself
unemployed last week too.
There are
several common factors.
In both
cases, the team they coached is considered to have underperformed when results
are considered against expectations.
The
expectations set for each team were driven by the organisation, sponsors and
also media.
The other common
factor is location. Both are based in Queensland's beach holiday playground, the
Gold Coast.
In each
case, culture has been criticised and seemingly with some merit. Recreational
drugs have been evident, as have alcohol and general behaviours unbefitting elite
athletes.
The final
similarity is both have a high profile, highly paid player who has not lived up
to expectations over the last 2 years. In fairness, in one case performances
over the previous 5 years were outstanding.
What is
culture?
Behaviour,
values, common purpose, teamliness, work ethic, commitment?
It cannot be
purely behaviour. The highest achieving club in the AFL is credited with having
a great culture driven largely by its leader. Some years ago, this same leader
was prosecuted for (low level) driving under the influence of alcohol. They
went on to win the premiership just a few weeks later with his leadership
being hailed as a major contributing factor.
In the case
of one of our Gold Coast based clubs, having a few glasses of wine the night
before a game was considered a major sin. Arguably this is less significant
than illegal driving.
Culture, good or bad is something that is
almost always reflected upon after it is in place.
In my
opinion, a good culture comes from some very basic principles.
1.
Communication
2.
Decisions made in accordance with what has been
communicated
3.
Decisions are executed with total consistency
4.
Feedback is welcomed and respected, be it
positive or otherwise
Sporting
clubs and Corporates are often very good at communicating the big picture.
Where we want to be, how we will get there, how important “our people” are and
our commitment to their growth and development.
It is the
other areas that tend to fracture good culture development.
Decisions
are not made consistently in accordance with stated objectives, particularly
when under performance or financial pressures.
Person A has outstanding sales results so we will overlook their poor paperwork. Player Z is our
best goal scorer so we will forget that they presented to training hungover.
As for
feedback, all too often feedback is viewed as threatening rather than constructive.
This becomes self-fulfilling as team members (corporate and sporting) express
views and opinions within cliques, or feedback becomes non-constructive. This
usually leads to a blame mentality where everyone is looking for someone else
to take responsibility.
All
organisations want a good culture, but executing the four fundamental principles
to develop this takes discipline and above all, courage.
After all,
if it was easy, we would all have it.
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