Creating and maintaining a positive, unifying culture in the face of a fast-moving business environment isn’t easy, but getting it right offers significant returns.
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Culture & Leadership
We can remove most sins if we have a witness standing by as we are about to go wrong. The soul should have someone that it can respect, by whose example it can make inner sanctum more available. Happy is the person who can improve others, not only when present, but even when in their thoughts.
In science there are no wrong answers, right? Wrong! With the help of Gareth Walton, a performance consultant, CONQA unpacks why the first step in dealing with the unambiguous world of sports science it is crucial to start with the ambiguous variable of culture.
As head coach or manager, your job is to get the best out of your team. If that means playing your most talented player in an unfamiliar position then so be it. Right? Wrong. Convincing elite athletes to fulfil a role that may be uncomfortable is a much tougher task than it may appear but with deft management, even the most stubborn star can be swayed.
We can all relate to being the new member of a team. Whether it was your first day at a new school or your first day at a multinational corporation, the same principles apply. But what of the teacher, manager or coach whose job it was to ensure you slotted in seamlessly to your new surroundings? CONQA delves in to the unique facet of leadership
Are hierarchies inevitably formed whenever a group of individuals unite for the purpose of a common goal? Do they represent key structural components for a successful organisation or do they hinder progress and lead to cliques and discontent amongst the ranks? These are just some of the answers we tackle with mental skills coach Tom Dawson-Squibb.
Do superstar athletes truly relate to the struggles most people have to endure to reach the peak of their sport? After all, these once in a lifetime athletes perform seemingly impossible feats with apparent ease. If not, can superstar athletes skipper a team filled with less talented individuals? CONQA explores the challenges of captaincy and how talent can often get in the way of good leadership.
When dealing with people from different cultures, it is vital that a leader is able to bridge the cultural divide when delivering his or message. Whether it is the CEO of a multinational company or a football manager in charge of a multinational team, the basic principles apply. With Dr Graham Woolford, CEO of Unisure, a life insurance company with a presence across 5 continents, CONQA explores this modern challenge.
It takes guts to be a leader. You need to be ruthless in your decision making, confident in your strategies and bold when managing individuals under one unified ethos. But what of the bravery required when admitting that you may not have all the answers? Is this a sign of weakness or is this in fact what separates the good from the very best? With the help of two of our speakers at the 2017 Elite Sport Summit, CONQA explores the benefits of seeking the advice of external influencers.
Change is an inevitable part of life and either you are shaping the world around you or you're being shaped by forces beyond your control. Astute leaders know this and not only disrupt the environment they inhabit and bend their surroundings to their will. But change is scary and if a leader loses control there can be dire consequences to face. With the help of Mark Fitzmaurice, a 30 year veteran at Dale Carnegie, CONQA explores the challenges that change brings.
We’ve spoken before how the modern style of leadership requires a nuanced humanist approach where an individual is emboldened to make mistakes. In this ever changing world, obtaining collective buy-in from the every member of the team is crucial to creating a winning environment. But is there still space for a more hard-nosed, authoritative style of leadership? We asked two of the leading minds in world sport, both of whom presented at our Elite Sport Summit earlier this year, to share their thoughts on the subject.
After our conversation with Professor Jennifer Chatman from the University of California, Berkeley, we have become entangled in the complexities a leader faces when confronted with a multi-cultural team. With the help of two of South Africa’s greatest sports leaders, we unpack the conversation even further to get to the heart of this unique challenge.
In these modern times, it seems the best teams have every basis covered when it comes to backroom staff. There’s the obvious strength and conditioning expert alongside a mental coach, but rosters are swelling at an alarming rate that we won’t be surprise when teams start employing a designated hairdresser or dog walker for their pampered stars. More people can mean more headaches for a head coach as managing different personalities is a challenge all on its own. With the help of Terry Condon, a man with experience managing teams within teams, CONQA unpacks the unique skillsets required to be a modern manager.
The world might be hurtling towards a hegemonic global village, but it’s not there yet. Multiple cultures, worldviews, identities and philosophies permeate throughout every facet of society and sometimes, coalescing individuals under a unified ethos can be a challenge for even the most astute leaders. With Professor Jennifer Chatman at the University of California, Berkeley, CONQA explores the challenges of managing a diverse team.
Another global tournament, another humiliating early exist from South Africa as the Proteas once again succumbed to pressure and played far below their usually high standards. But fear not; this will not be an exploration of that crushing defeat to India but rather a viable solution to any athlete or team struggling with the vice grip of pressure.
Who’d be an elite coach? The merry-go-round at the top can be a daunting prospect for any manager and in this line of work, even the very best get the axe. But as we see time and time again, appointing a new manager often has an immediate positive impact on the team. Maybe there is some logic behind the madness. Two experts in their field with decades of experience help CONQA unpack the effect new managers have on teams and find ways to replicate that for those who are trying to keep their job.
The South African Blitzboks need at least a Cup quarterfinal appearance in each of their remaining two tournaments to be crowned champions of the 2016-17 World Rugby Sevens Series. However, such premature talks of titles can prove derailing and in an exlusive interview with CONQA, coach Neil Powell explains how his team is maintaining their focus.
After making history with Leicester City last season, Claudio Ranieri is now out of a job after the Foxes parted ways with the Italian manager after a woeful defence of their English Premier League Crown. Half a world away, a cricket coach offers a sympathetic voice. Paddy Upton, coach of several cricket sides around the globe including the Sydney Thunder, helps CONQA unpack the struggles a championship winning coach can go through.
The true test for any elite athlete is bouncing back from adversity. For the Lions half back pair of Elton Jantjies and Faf de Klerk, the climb up from last season’s poor showing with the national side will be an arduous journey. With high performance coach, Tim Goodenough, CONQA explores the process of rebuilding confidence to return to the top.
Modern day sport is a monstrous machine that is driven by money in order to churn out results. That is an inescapable truth. So why then has there been so much pushback from traditional powerhouses of football at the rise of RB Leipzig in the German Bundesliga and the exorbitant amount of money being spent in the Chinese Super League. CONQA explores the hypocrisy in modern sport.