The Opsimath

Management lessons from the Beautiful Game

Football management is a very visible form of management in action. Because of our obsession with the game in the UK (and increasingly most of the world), we read daily of the exploits of major football clubs. As a result, we can learn a number of lessons from how football clubs are led and managed.

Here are three recent ones.

Managers need time
Chelsea Football Club have an interesting recent history with their managers. Recently they 'parted company' (lovely phrase) with their latest manager Andre Villas-Boas (known fondly as AVB). AVB had managed the club for less than one whole season, and although the club are in the top six of what is considered the top league in the world and they are still in two cup competitions, including the European Champions league, this was not enough.

The most successful club in recent British history is undoubtedly Manchester United. Yet their manager, Alex Ferguson, spent several seasons in charge before winning anything, but the club gave him time. Time to adapt, time to influence, time to build his team. Managers need time.

Managers need to focus
Managers must lead with a  sense of purpose.They must single-mindedly focus on the goal (no pun intended there).

Under Harry Redknapp, Tottenham Hotspur Football Club have enjoyed their most successful spell for a long time. Just recently they were in 3rd place in the Premier League, with a significant points advantage over the team in 4th place. Until a major distraction.

England's national football coach, Fabio Capello recently resigned. Since that event there has been non-stop speculation that Harry Redknapp is the red-hot certainty to replace him. Except that no decision has been made, leaving a very uncertain situation.

The result? Tottenham's form has dipped, their results have been poor and they have just lost their once seemingly unassailable third position in the league.

Distractions are so unhelpful - managers need to focus.

Managers need rational, not reactive, leadership
Wolverhampton Wanderers were having a poor season, and with a 5-1 defeat at home to their local rivals, it did not look like it could get worse. So, in what seems like a 'knee-jerk' response, they dismissed their manager, Mick McCarthy, the day after that embarrassing defeat.

But, worse it has got. The club, in the four games that have followed, have seemed to go into free fall. Conceding goals at an alarming rate, and unable to score a goal in 3 out of the 4 games, their fate - relegation - seems sealed.

Which makes you think - was Mick McCarthy actually doing an impressive job with the team? Before he left they were outside the relegation zone, now they lie in last place in the league.

Was the decision reactive? Should the club ownership have allowed themselves a little more time to rationally assess the situation? After all, they dismissed him with just a few games left in the season, they had no replacement in mind, and they have had to temporarily appoint the assistant manager - a man with no experience of managing, and hardly any time to make a difference.

Managers need rationality not reactivity.

The beautiful game, but sometimes the management and leadership of it is anything but!

Shirt of Hurt

As part of the "Shirt of Hurt" campaign for Sport Relief, Match of the Day 2 pundits Lee Dixon and Martin Keown, together with presenter Adrian Chiles donned the football shirts of their arch rivals. So here's a classic, never to be repeated photograph...

The England Football team and business justification

When England lost their recent game against Ukraine, it was not entirely a surprise, as, by winning their previous game, they had already secured a place in the World Cup finals.

So when the 'first-choice' team was picked, their lack of motivation was understandable. These players expect to be chosen for the trip to South Africa next summer. They have little to prove. For them, the game had no purpose.

It is purpose that gives direction and meaning. In project management terms we would call this 'business justification' or the 'project business case'. It explains why we are doing what we are doing. For the first-choice England players, there was no reason, no justification. They had no good answer to the question 'Why?'

So last night, in another meaningless game (for both teams this time), England beat Belarus. How come?

Two main reasons I believe.

• Belarus had no 'business case', where as Ukraine last weekend needed a win to stand a chance of a play-off position. Belarus were making up the numbers.
• England had a changed team, containing enough players who were not sure of their places on the plane to South Africa to ensure that those players brought their own 'business case' to the game. They needed to impress. They had 'business justification'.

It just remains to be seen whether the ultimate decision maker was impressed enough...

Perseverance rewarded

This is  Harraby Athletic from Carlisle, Cumbria. The under-14 squad - dubbed ‘Britain's worst football team’ – were thrashed 19-0 in their first ever game and they went on to record an amazing 90-game losing run.

Every season they would finish bottom of the table.

The team regularly conceded more than 10 goals a game and their luckless keeper has picked the ball out of the net more than 400 times in three seasons.

They have collected just one point in the Longhorn Youth Football League since their formation -  and that was only because the opposing team didn't turn up for a game last year.

But the team, and coach Brett Preston refused to give in.

Preston said, ‘When we lost our first game 19-0, it could have even been a higher score as the opposing manager tried to help us by playing their goalkeeper up-front and a striker in goal.

Yet their perseverance finally paid off last Saturday when they won their game 3-2.

Brett said: ‘The boys have been prepared to stick at it and been willing to learn. They turn up for training in all weathers and really deserve a win at last.'

Perseverance rewarded - what a great story!

Carl Baker and Stockport County - an example to us all

A really good blog here from Paul Fletcher at the BBC. He writes how "such a worthy cause chimes with what made me first fall in love with football." I can only agree with him.

Good writing - great story

New season - new dreams

It comes around very quickly, but the new football season will soon be here, and this season sees Wolverhampton Wanderers back in the Premier League (their rightful place etc etc).

Just time to say thanks again to the Wolves for the football kit that they donated to our charity Roots, and worn here with pride recently in Sudan. After all, who wouldn't be pleased to get a Wolves kit...