A Management Criterium?

When the outgoing President of the United States first uttered the words “Fake News” everyone chuckled. Then the more he used the expression the more it became a part of our every day speech.

What is a concern is how many sporting organisations are coming unstuck in recent times, not due to the impact of Covid 19 but due to appointing the wrong people to key positions; however no doubt they will try and push the blame onto the pandemic.Which of course would be “Fake News.”

Three years ago we raised the issue of appointments in a piece entitled “Who’s Hiring?” One of those referred to in that piece has since regained another job within the sporting industry and again finds themselves in hot water.

So what is the real issue here? Is it that those on the board given the responsibility to find the correct person simply lack the skills to do so? Or as we have seen with Queensland Football they have a conflict of interest? To be fair this is not the only organisation where those given the task of appointing a CEO or senior staff member have been compromised due to their relationship with the chosen candidate. So is it time that the selection panel was made up of more independent people who can recognise such conflicts of interest, and as a result ask the Board member to excuse themselves from that interview if they are not prepared to do so themselves?

In the business world many senior managers will look to surround themselves with people that they trust and who they have worked with before. However in the business world they would soon be found out if they lacked the skills to carry out the role.

The same happens in sport, but unfortunately not all sports are the same. They are not all run along the same lines as many businesses are, and many do not adhere to good business practices. This is where the ‘mates club’ approach frequently falls over.

Yet speaking to someone involved in recruitment in Government they felt that the biggest problem facing sport, and why they continually end up with the wrong people in key positions, is the process.

They expanded on that comment by stating that the criteria put into the market when it comes to a CEO’s or a senior manager’s role in sport is restrictive. It is aimed at limiting the field so that they do not have to wade through a pile of applications. Yet what it does is exclude many who would be better suited for the role. The reason we see so many senior managers recycled in the sporting world is because of the criteria laid out for candidates to meet the requirements of the role. Irrespective of whether the candidates have carried out a similar role effectively and successfully, simply because they have held a similar role puts them in a strong position to gain the new role. It becomes a vicious cycle, and that is why we see the same people popping up time and again.

The explanation makes sense. How else can we explain this recent phenomenon?

So essentially once you have held such a role you will be rewarded with a similar role, irrespective of your performance. This is akin to a coach only picking an athlete who has played in a World Cup or gone to an Olympic Games for the next event, anyone else does not have the required skill.

We see a similar patter with many coaches in football. A club will give a coach an opportunity, they fail miserably at that club, but will be given another opportunity, and another before after about four or five clubs people realise that they are not cut out for such a role. Why is it that sport takes so long to realise that its employees are not good enough?

The person that we spoke to stated that unfortunately when it came to sport the various Board’s have a habit of selecting people based on an impressive resume – which as stated three years ago can be professionally produced – and the roles previously held rather than looking at the person’s actual performance in that role. They stated that more research into their actual successes rather than claimed successes, as well as what they failed to achieve in that role needs to be looked at.

They claimed that in most cases sporting organisations request that an employment agency short list the candidates. Therefore the employment agency, which relies on revenue from them selecting one of their candidates will do everything to make all of their candidates look perfect for the role. They of course are paid irrespective as to whether the candidate makes a success of the role or not. Maybe such payments should be made in yearly instalments based on the CEO’s performance?

Unfortunately in our expert’s experience very few Board members on selection panels are prepared to invest the time to try and read between the lines of the candidate’s resume. Often by the time the candidate is sitting in front of the panel they have already made up their mind based on their resume.

Background checks are not what they used to be. In the past prospective employers would call previous employers and ask for more information on the person applying for the role. Today privacy regulations prevent much of that and if the call is made the previous employer has to be guarded with what they say. This is why the selection panel is so important. It needs to have on it people who can discreetly carry out the required checks or ask the right questions.

In cycling one of the popular events is the Criterium. This is where competitors ride a number of specified laps on a closed course. Is this not exactly the same situation, where CEO’s go around in one job for four years before moving on to the next sport and another Olympic or World Cup cycle? (The Four Year Cycle, Is It Holding Back Sport?)

The sporting environment is becoming tougher and more competitive. Government funding is drying up, so more so than ever it is important that the right people are employed. People that have the actual work and business experience to carry the sport forward, rather than just being able to tick off a point on a list of selection criteria. If opting to use an employment agency check that they understand fully what your sport does, and what it is trying to achieve. Then before heading into the interview process ask them why they have short-listed the people that they have. Better still do it yourself and bring in the right people to assist in the selection process and vet the applications, after being careful not to exclude potentially perfect people when outlining the criteria for the job.

Very few successful teams pick players based on a narrow set of criteria. As we all know athletes are put through a rigorous amount of tests to see what their capabilities are from a physical point of view. Imagine if selection was based purely on that criteria… You would be missing vital issues, such as can they actually play the game, how do they work in a team, do they have the ability to change a game by backing their instincts. By listing a fixed set of criteria for the senior roles are we not missing out on candidates with the true attributes to lead? .

When it comes to high performance sport and also the development of the next generation of athletes surely they deserve to see an equally comprehensive recruitment process similar to the one they are put through, as after all their careers are often in these people’s hands.