Centre for Fusion Learning Innovation and Excellence

This blog has been written by Corey Kemp a Faculty of Management Business Studies student who is currently working at BU within the Programme Management Office during his placement year, as well as providing support for Service Excellence.  Corey and I, Susanne Clarke, have had many interesting discussions about teams, leadership and football.  He discusses that here in this post.

Susanne’s article for CEL featuring Pep Guardiola, ‘Pep Talk’ really highlights what it is to make a group of individuals feel included and want to be part of something. As it is nearly Christmas, a time where people come together and a lot of football is played, I thought it would interesting to build on this theme and look into how managers can encourage individuals to seek teamwork, rather than shy away from it.

A couple of years ago, Leicester employed a man called Claudio Ranieri, a manager who had achieved relative success with different clubs. He placed a large emphasis on how the team conducted itself in its games. The team’s consistency in formation and understanding of what they needed to do meant they could compete in the upper echelons of the league.  However, it was also Ranieri’s management that helped to create a strong team ethos. He famously promised his defenders a pizza if they managed to not concede at the start of the season. He was also lenient on certain players like Jamie Vardy who, despite having an unusual ritual of drinking half a bottle of Lucozade (cherry aid flavour!) every night before a match, this is what made his players comfortable and prepared.

Eddie Howe, manager of Bournemouth AFC, takes a different approach. The youngest manager in the Premier League, a pro that retired early, he places emphasis on the way he wants the team to play. As such, players like Harry Arter and Steve Cook, relatively unknown before their promotion in 2015, have excelled in his system and under his guidance. Howe never panics when his team has a bad run of results. This patience translates to his players, who continue to perform in the manner in which they have been coached. Howe has developed a trust between his players and himself; they trust his tactics, and thus they work as a collective to meet his expectations.

Football is an interesting case study in managing people because it showcases a mixture of structure and team management. It’s the smaller touches that make a group of players want to work together and once they believe in something, who knows what’s possible?