Management and Leadership in Sport still get it wrong - what we can learn from Cricket and Rugby

It is often surprising delivering management and leadership courses how experienced managers in 2011 still do not realise the vital importance of empowerment and appropriate leadership.

In our courses, depending on the level of delegate, or the needs of the client, we will either use the Blanchard SLII Situational Leadership Model, or more often, the competence model in order to explain how leaders need to adapt their style to the needs of the individual (or team).

After facilitating ideas with a group, the flipchart might look something like; (with competence/development level, and what they need from the leader).

Unconscious Incompetence
(people new to the job / role)

Information, Direction

Conscious Incompetence

Direction, Reassurance

Conscious Competence

Praise, Trust, Empowerment

Unconscious Competence

(experts and stars)

Challenge and Trust

Now, I would argue that anyone playing major sports for the country would be in the bottom two levels, although they might initially need information and direction about things they do not know about when they join the squad. However, the articles below really highlight the impact of inappropriate leadership and management strategies on the results of teams and individuals.

Sport is high profile, and the results are obvious. In business the results are usually less obvious, however be assured that if you use the right or wrong strategy, you will be responsible for their results, not your staff.

Cricket lovers will know Shivnarine Chanderpaul - rated 10^th in all time number of runs in all test careers, 16^th in one day internationals, the highest West Indian after the great Brian Lara. Shiv is 37 years old and just three years ago was ranked the best player in the world.

Shiv recently had this to say - reported on Cricinfo.com 5^th May 2011

 

When asked whether he was happy with his form over the past year before he was dropped, Chanderpaul - speaking to local Barbados radio station Line and Length - said he could have done better...

"I think, given the opportunity, I might have got bigger scores. Every time I settled in and started to get runs, messages would come telling what to do and what not to do, how to bat and how not to bat," Chanderpaul said. "I've been doing it for 17 years. When John Dyson was coach he never said anything to me. When Bennett King was coach he said, 'You go and do your job, we don't have to tell you what to do.' I had no problem then.

"Now we have people here, who are telling me how to bat. And when the game is over, I have to answer questions. I have to answer those questions and when I do, and it's not suitable, then I have to agree with whatever answers they want before the meeting is over.

He compared the present regime unfavourably to those of previous coaches John Dyson and Bennett King, under whom Chanderpaul felt this same West Indies squad had far better results.

England rugby also failed to impress some over the last few years, and a recent article reported in the press on the 10^th of March this year summed up what happened, and what had to change - and it wasn't the skill level of the players.

(UKPA March 2011)

Defence coach Mike Ford has revealed England are only on the Grand Slam trail because they eradicated a culture of fear and selfishness from the squad.

"After the autumn of 2009 the coaches decided the mindset and environment we created in the camp had to change."

Martin Johnson's management team reviewed England's dismal autumn campaign of 2009 and concluded something dramatic had to change. England had lost to both Australia and New Zealand, matches Ford now concedes they never had any chance of winning.

Johnson and his coaches were demanding England stick a pre-prescribed game-plan. They did not trust the players and so were unwilling to allow them any kind of decision-making control.

This eroded confidence, and created an environment where the players lived in fear of being dropped.

"We (eventually) encouraged the players to go at the opposition and not fear they will be dropped if they drop the ball or have a bad pass. It took players a bit of time to trust that we wouldn't hang players out to dry.

"It has been a two-way thing. The players have probably come here in the past and just looked after themselves thinking 'England are not playing well so what do I need to do to keep in for next week? I am going to be selfish and make sure my performance is all right'.

"But in rugby you need a team not 15 individuals playing well. We have set up five more meetings with player input and empowered the players a lot more whereas before we (as management) were probably 'tell, tell, tell'."

Conclusion

Your staff can be as good at their particular job as the sports stars of the world, and empower them and challenge them, without a culture of fear, otherwise they will have to look out for themselves, team work will erode, performance will suffer and when they get the chance they will jump ship and earn their living in better place.

VS Ramachandran: The neurons that shaped civilization | Video on TED.com

VS Ramachandran: The neurons that shaped civilization | Video on TED.com

Line Managers Central to government’s mental health strategy

Ensuring line managers are trained to promote workforce well-being will be crucial in supporting the government’s new mental health campaign, said Deborah Jamieson, the head of well-being strategy at the Department of Work and Pensions.
“Employers have a very positive role to play in the promotion of health, and the workplace is a great place to start by making sure that line managers have the right training.

“When people go off sick, there should be a line of communication. We want to return and retain people in work, and improve the health and well-being of the working age population.”

The government has outlined its campaign, which aims to detect and prevent mental health problems earlier in a bid to tackle the £105 billion cost to the economy and help the one in four people who suffer from such illnesses.

Deputy PM Nick Clegg announced an additional £400 million to extend personalized support to 3.2 million people across the country, by increasing access to psychological therapies such a counseling and cognitive behavioural therapy.
Addressing the CIPD’s well-being conference in February, Jaimeson explained that people really enjoyed better mental health when they were in meaningful work.
She said that employers should take on board that many line managers needed to raise their awareness of mental health issues and their understanding of how to respond confidently and effectively to staff affected by such problems.

Not recognizing the benefits of well-being initiatives and early intervention, plus a perception that employees needed to be 100% fit to return to work, were all barriers to change, Jamieson said.

“Line managers are often ill-equipped to handle sickness absence and health well-being issues”, she continued. “Unenlightened attitudes toward mental health and chronic pain, means that training is really crucial”.

Jaimeson said that improved access routes to psychological therapies were being piloted in association with health organizations, Jobcentre Plus and Disability Employment advisers.

“The sooner and employment adviser sees a client; the more likely it is that they will make a sufficient recovery to retain employment. The longer people are absent or out of work, the more likely they are to experience depression or anxiety.
Jamieson added that mental disorders now accounted for 30 to 40 per cent of early retirements across some EU member states, costing £295 billion.

She went on to say that the DWP itself had saved £20million in the past year through the introduction of well-being initiatives.

Itay Talgam: Lead like the great conductors | Video on TED.com

Itay Talgam: Lead like the great conductors | Video on TED.com

Inwards threats, outwards behaviours. Business choices when times are tough

Having spent many years working with various organisations of varying sizes, it is interesting to note that in the present economic downturn, organisations under “threat” exhibit two distinct symptoms, which directly affect their viability and even existence in 12 months time.

Symptoms: #1

Firstly, the top-level of management disappear from the face of the earth! They are in continual meetings, their secretaries say they are away from the office, they rush down corridors clutching sheaf’s of paper looking concerned, they can't stop to chat etc…. etc….

Secondly, the organisation suddenly gets obsessed by numbers. They go from quarterly reporting, to monthly reports, then to weekly and in extreme cases, daily “numbers” reports. Thus managers spend their time “fiddling” numbers as opposed to doing what they are paid for - which is running the business.

Thirdly, the organisation becomes totally inward looking. They start to preserve their own areas of the business and become very defensive of their own department. They “repel all boarders”, don’t help other areas of the business and play their cards very close to their chest.

Lastly, even down to departments and in many cases, individual members of staff, - they become insular, withdrawn, don’t contribute to the company objectives and protect their own department or job roles or functions.

That is when communication breaks down totally and managers have a real problem to improve inter-company communications, and the rest will be history…………

So what do we do?

Reverse it

Symptoms: #2

Firstly, the top-level of management are seen on the shop floor. They are in strategy meetings, they meet with their staff, they reassure their secretaries, who book time for staff in their office. They look calm and collected, assured and assertive in the corridor, and they sometimes might stop to chat.

Secondly, the organisation is focused on the future vision and long and short term objectives. They revisit the vision quarterly, and share the vision and objectives with their teams monthly, and the strategies and actions perhaps weekly in extreme cases. Thus managers spend their time empowering staff, as opposed to doing what they would in a panic - which is ruining the business.

Thirdly, the organisation becomes totally forward looking. They start to share ideas from their own areas of the business and become very open of their own departmental objectives and practices. They “open borders”, aid other areas of the business and play as a team.

Lastly, even down to individual members of staff, - they become open-minded, outgoing, contribute to the company objectives, care for their organisation, tell their friends how good work is, strive for better performance, buy into strategies, decisions, visions, tactics etc…. etc….

That is when communication is at it's best, and managers become leaders and staff become the most important asset of the business, and the rest will make history …………

Use behaviours and neuroscience in Leadership and Personal Impact training

We've heard it all before on communication training. Mehrabian, influencing skills, listening, open and closed questions, directive vs collaborative, team development stages, famous stories from Harvard, or was it Yale, about the need for writing down your goals. A lot of it is true and important. Some not so true -especially the last one? If you can find evidence that this actually happened in a lecture, please let me know!

The world of neuroscience, cognition and behaviours however is gaining ground and respect within the business community.

Self awareness and how you behave, the effect on others of what you do, the effect on your own performance of your consistency, drive for results, analytical skills or charm and innovation.

Why some people seem aloof, yet they are more likely to be insecure. Others are disorganized, but hugely inspiring. Yet others are analytical, but may be called anal.

Daniel Goleman, amongst a thousand other things, suggested that leaders need to develop their emotional intelligence, their self awareness. This is true.

Yes leaders need to understand themselves. Above all however they need to understand about other people. We are controlled by our brain. Left and right to varying degrees. It's not their fault - they are different.