Losing ‘yellow’ and ‘green’ and seeing ‘red’!

The last few stages of the tour have really lit the touch paper and stirred up some controversy and more interesting leadership issues

Firstly it was the sprinters, with one of the leading contenders for the green jersey, Mark Cavendish, winning an important sprint stage only to find his right hand man disqualified and thrown out of the tour. Sprinters stand the best chance of winning a stage if they have a well organised team who protect their rider through to the last few hundred metres. The team achieves this by creating a line of riders with the final sprinter positioned as the last man, peeling off as they get closer to finish until the sprinter makes the final dash for the line (they are at 60-70kph at this point ). Other teams try and disrupt the line, which can result in some physical contact. On this occasion Mark’s last man’s physical contact was deemed excessive by the race judges as they approached the critical point. As you can imagine this is a highly charged situation, with big stakes and huge amounts of adrenaline flowing! It’s often in these situations where the fine line between ‘acceptable’ conduct is defined. What tends to be the defining issue is the response of the team after a decision is made. It will be the emotional stability of the team leader and the ability to help the team return to ‘normality’ which will often determine not just the outcome of the stage, but also the performance of the team in the future, thinking strategically, regrouping after losing a key player and thinking of the bigger picture .

This mix of emotional response, behaviour and experience is also a critical determinant of leadership capability in the business world. How do you deal with highly charged situations and ensure that your team remains focused on the long term goals?

The next controversy surrounded the overall race lead entering the critical and defining stages of the race in the high mountains of the Pyrenees. The two main contenders, Andy Schleck and Alberto Contador, had been marking each other over the previous few stages, neither rider wanting to give the other an opportunity to gain time and just a handful of seconds separating them. On one of the toughest climbs, Schleck decided to make a move and accelerated to try to lose Contador. At the critical moment, Schleck’s bike suffered a mechanical failure, leaving him on the side of the road, separated from his team and team support car trying to fix his bike. There is an unwritten rule in cycle racing that if this happens then you don’t attack your rival, but Contador did and gained 40 seconds, putting him in the yellow jersey. A lot was said between the riders after the stage had finished, revenge being threatened and innocence pleaded.

A fascinating dilemma; do you behave in the way you where trained (Contador to race, business to make profit, lawyers to make logical sense of situations, accountants to add up the numbers, etc) or in stressful moments revert to your values and integrity and the impact this may have on the future, and then act accordingly?

Many leaders in recent dynamic times (and Mr Contador) will undoubtedly reflect on these paradoxes and the long term outcomes of their choices. Those working in a developmental environment might seek a deeper understanding of their orientations, and be guided through a coaching process. This can provide insight into when and where they might ‘derail’ in the future – in today’s business world, they are probably unlikely to get to many chances to get it wrong again.

Tour de France update

Since leaving the cobbles of Belgium we have seen three flat stages, a couple of high mountain stages and some interesting lessons in leadership.

Each stage requires team work that delivers a specialist to the front of the race just at the right time. The first of these specialists is the sprinter, and the guy reckoned to be the fastest man over the last 200m is a Brit called Mark Cavendish. His total focus for the entire three weeks of the event is to win the stages that involve a flat out sprint after his team has protected him throughout the stage.

It’s not too dissimilar to the situation in business when, as a leader, you have a technical or functional specialist who is only motivated when they are involved in their particular area of work. We often make the mistake of thinking their excellence will translate into leadership potential, only to be very disappointed when this doesn’t happen. To avoid that trap, a diagnostic tool such as the CHPD High Performance Motivator Questionnaire, can be very helpful in better understanding and focusing these technical experts.
In the case of Mark Cavendish, it takes five or six members of his team to lead him up to the finish line. They have to sacrifice any chance of winning for themselves to enable Mark to hit the final few hundred meters in the prime spot to execute his specialism. So the team tends to be built about the capabilities of one individual. This presents risk to the team (and their sponsors) and makes the reward structures and development of other team members challenging. We see the parallels in business – do you develop a strong pipeline of capability to support strategic intent or do you buy in people to fill specific gaps. As we know it’s probably a mix of the both and the cycling team managers struggle with the same dilemma.

The race has also now reached the ‘high mountains’ requiring another specialism – the ‘mountain climber’. Many of the hills are over 20-30km long with gradients of 10 per cent or more. This territory is where the overall race is won and lost, with massive time differences developing between riders, and the peloton often being split over many kilometres as the hills increase in their intensity and duration. The teams are then faced with a massive logistics problem. Racing cyclist can burn up to 8,000 calories during a race and are often riding close the edge of physical exhaustion. So a well developed behind the scenes back room staff is required to get food, water and energy gels to the right place at precisely the right time. It’s JIT logistics in sport.

The British ‘Sky’ team pays as much attention to the marginal gains in performance in this area of cycle racing as to the performance of the athlete. It’s often an area overlooked in business, in making sure the processes, systems and development of the back room keeps up with the guys on the front line. Success in this area can of course provide real competitive advantage.

Leadership lessons in the Tour de France

This year’s Tour De France has begun and already we find some valuable insights for those of us in the business world.

What’s particularly interesting from a business perspective is the team dynamics in this event. Competitive cycling is a team sport; an individual cannot be successful without the support of the other riders in their team. Each rider in a team of eight has a clearly defined role and the team is lead by the ‘director sportive’ who doesn’t ride a bike but follows around in a car, in radio contact with the riders. More than that, the riders are supported by a back room staff of mechanics, masseurs, and coaches and, in the case of the British ‘Sky’ team, a psychologist. Each element of the team has to be at the very peak of their profession; the best at what they do. They may not all be riding the bike, but they do have to operate in a completely cohesive way and with a total focus on ensuring the success of the team both on and off the bike.

Each team will have riders with specialist capabilities (sprinters, climbers, etc) and it will down to the director sportive to deploy these resources on a daily basis, depending on the terrain, the team strategy for the day and how the race unfolds with the tactics of other teams. So it’s a very dynamic and fast changing situation which will be impacted by external factors such as the weather, mechanical failures and crashes!

The story so far
Day one saw an individual time trial, where riders set out over a set course, this time through the streets of Rotterdam (not all TDF stages are in France). The riders with more power tend to do better in these stages, but it rained and cautious strategies prevailed. Reacting to the conditions of the day is a valuable lesson for us in business who can sometimes find ourselves operating in a bubble.

Day two showed just how powerful a group can be. It was another day of rain and a crash involving the peleton (the main group of riders) enabled one rider to get away from the group, gaining three minutes on the other riders. There was then a group protest (refusal to compete) in protest about the conditions and all the riders rolled over the line together. The collective will power of the group vs the organisation being very much in evidence and something that should not be overlooked by leaders in business.

Day three gave us the opportunity to value the whole team in the event. Riding over cobbles and very narrow roads meant the race split up, with punctures, crashes and bike failures. With this stage more suited to the powerful riders who can ride hard and fast over the cobbles, it’s the role of the team to get the ‘climbers’ through the stage. On day two, one of the most powerful riders found himself with a dilemma; he had broken away from the main peleton, but his team captain and potential overall winner was back in that group, so did he ride for himself and the glory of winning the stage or hold back to minimise the losses of his team mate? Team objectives rather than individual glory won the day. Once again the business learnings are clear, performing for the longer term good of the team rather than pursuing individual objectives and agendas will see long term business benefit.

More to follow as the stages and race unfold …

Phil Braybrooke, CHPD

Fabio as football leader - room for improvement?

The hype is over, the first game hangover is fading and we already have our scapegoat – it must be England playing at a major football (soccer) tournament!

While most of the British media has concentrated on Robert Green’s blunder, the slightly more concerning dip in form seems to be from a man who has, until very recently, put in a confident, no nonsense performance every time he has pulled on the shirt, or should I say the suit? Is Mr Capello’s halo starting to slip?

Managing any team can be tough, managing one in the glare of the national spotlight doubly so, which is why the appointment of Fabio Capello seemed like the perfect solution. Here was a man who had a proven track record as a winning manager, who believed in the psychological as well as the physical approach to the game, one who managed with authority and respect. And he’s certainly got many things right from a leadership perspective:

Discipline
Gone are the late nights, mobile phones, WAG’s (wives and girlfriends) and player cliques. By removing outside distractions and taking a firmer hand Capello has focused his players on the task at hand. This approach has obviously had a positive effect on the team as England uncharacteristically qualified for the World cup at a canter winning nine of their 10 games. Capello has, until very recently, been firm, fair and decisive and has not been afraid to make the tough calls or decisions. The players may not have liked the change this brought about but they have certainly respected it.

Built a team spirit and given his players confidence
“The manager is a strong manager and none of us want to let him down” - the words from England’s forward, Wayne Rooney, but they could have been lifted from any number of interviews with England players since Capello’s appointment. The players clearly enjoy playing for Capello. Part of the change in the team under his reign has been the confidence he has built, especially with some who were struggling to make their mark at international level. In his own words “It's more important to train the mind, to find confidence, create a group, create a winning mentality.” Capello knows that a winning team is more than just a collection of talented players, they need a winning mentality as well.

Recognised his mistakes and then taken action
Playing an unfit James Milner in the game on Saturday was a mistake that even the most rose tinted of fans would acknowledge. Any manager can make a mistake, what Fabio did well was to recognise this and then take swift, decisive action to rectify it.

For all of these positives, I’m afraid there is still room for improvement. In recent weeks we have started to see a different side to Mr Capello :

Poor communication skills
The media hype surrounding the captaincy, the announcement of the final 23 squad players via ‘tweets’ and the ill advised ‘Capello Index’ do not seem be Capello’s style. He may not have full influence over some of the announcements but he does seem to have made some poor choices recently in his presentation and handling of the media.

Indecision
No team should start a project if its members are unsure of their role. England have had plenty of time to select a goalkeeper for the World Cup and yet Capello went into the tournament seemingly undecided. If reports from the training ground are to be believed then Capello’s indecision looks to have done more harm than good. Capello needs to make a clear choice as soon as possible to end the uncertainty in the team and get their confidence back again.

Even with these recent blots on his copybook, I don’t believe we will see Signor Capello slumped listlessly on the bench or alone under his umbrella as England crash out of yet another tournament. First matches in major tournaments are not a good predictor for performance (as Italy will attest) and the USA game would have been won but for an unlucky piece of goalkeeping and some timid shooting at the other end (and the USA are no ‘mugs’ when it comes to international football having ended Spain’s 35 game unbeaten run). Capello’s record in club management and during qualifying speaks for itself. If he can get his communication and decision making back on track and rebuild the confidence in his goalkeepers then England will still be in with a chance of lifting the trophy on July 11th.

By Gary Cook, Group Systems Director at CHPD

A lucky break for the English that first test

The bloody English weather – now I’m convinced the English wish a miserable summer upon themselves!! After six years in London, it stands to reason that I would have accepted the UK weather for what it is. But alas it continues to surprise and disappoint! Towards the end of the first test I started to get very smug with the knowledge that Australia had it in the bag and went about my merry way. Imagine my horror, disgust and all round cue for Australian whinging when the game was a tie because of the rain! Yet again foiled by the weather.

Considering the options
But of course what was heading to be quite a convincing win assured me that the second test would be more of the same. It appears the Australians did as well and this could have been their downfall. It’s worked before so let's not change our strategy. Clearly the wrong decision. The second test was a different ball game in more ways then one. Without reflecting on Freddie’s man of the match game, and my esteemed colleagues views on Strauss’ leadership during the second test; the Australian press seems to be pointing in one direction – the bowling of Mitchell Johnson. To blame the loss of the test on one person seems quite unfair in my opinion, in my amateur opinion I think there wasn’t any consideration of the different factors going into the match.

Firstly this is Freddie’s last test before retirement – after his spectacular contribution in the 2005 test (difficult for me to say even now four years on) he’s going to be playing at the top of his game to go out with a bang – and some pundits are saying that apart from his playing skills he is also having a major psychological impact on his team mates – simply building their confidence to inspire them to a win. Coupled with the threat of not beating Australia at Lords for 75 years – there was a lot at stake regardless of what was happening on the field. Whatever the reasons it worked for them and we didn’t seem to take that into consideration. And now after the Aussie win over Northamptonshire at the weekend with all-rounders Mcdonald and Watson’s good games there is more than one option to be had. The final line up is still a mystery, but the key here is how Ponting retools Australia for recovery.

Building confidence
As it is in the business world, outstanding leaders inspire and excite. They encourage people to achieve or exceed challenging performance targets through their passion, pride and belief in their people and their organisation. Both Ricky Ponting and Aussie coach Tim Nielsen are standing behind Johnson - "We have had the last two years where we have played some pretty good cricket and Mitchell has been at the forefront of all of that. There have been a lot of times when batsmen and bowlers have been out of form and we have stuck with them and shown some faith unlike what seems to be the public or the press's point of view." They both know the importance of building the bowler back up from his less than perfect start to the season – help him to get his confidence back, which will in turn build the optimism of the team. Playing cricket in England is much different for us then it is at home – we don’t have the support of the crowd which can be a massive factor in our team’s confidence, so we need that extra confidence and inspiration from within the team. Ignore the press and listen to your leader, coach and team. And, as is the Australian way, we love to get behind the under-dog and build up their confidence so they can beat the odds and win.

Teamwork
The focus on one player or another in particular takes away from one very important point - there are 11 players! Sometimes it’s easy to forget that when one person does particularly well or particularly badly, but it’s the job of the leader to pull everyone back together. As we know the best results are achieved when we collaborate together and promote teamwork – capitalising on their strengths, using their collective knowledge to strategically respond to the challenges. The third test is an historical game for Ponting – he is on the verge of overtaking Aussie legend Allan Border’s mark of 11,714 runs to put him third in the all time list of highest test run scorers. And in 22 fewer test matches than Border himself. But Ponting is putting it aside - "I know about it," Ponting said of the record. "I have known about it since the beginning of the series … I have bigger fish to fry than that right at the moment.” His focus is putting the best team possible together, keeping the spirits up and making sure we don’t go into the fourth test 2-0.

And, as has been written better than me before, whatever happens we the Australian crowd will always be behind the wearers of the baggy green –

“Night or day, they're out to make us proud

To keep our flags a-wavin' in the crowd

Even gettin' zeroes

They'll always be our heroes

And keep us signing' come on just as loud

COME ON AUSSIE, COME ON, COME ON!”

Posted by: Rachael Gulliver, Client Partner at CHPD

Home cooking the recipe for Strauss and England

With the Third Ashes test approaching and the ‘Fred’ appreciation society finally nursing its hangover, it is important to recognise a key factor in England’s turnaround: Andrew Strauss. The vultures were circling after Cardiff but the performance at Lords was down to Strauss’ leadership more than Flintoff’s hostile bowling. From the end of Cardiff through to the end of Lords, Strauss exhibited key leadership qualities that were vital to England’s success. These qualities ensured the team did not ‘dine out’ on the Cardiff escape and are great examples for any leader, especially within the current turbulent environment. Let’s have a look at the vital qualities that Strauss exhibited:

Confronting the brutal facts
After Cardiff Strauss was quick to highlight the underperformance of England’s specialist batsmen. He talked of pride not self-congratulation, with the plaudits going to the people who made the vital contributions. This put the onus on England to make the necessary changes for Lords rather than live in hope that the Aussies would under-perform.

Building on a core competence
As much as there was a post-mortem after Cardiff it did reaffirm England’s core competence under Strauss of being difficult to beat (the recent tour to the Windies apart). The application displayed by Collingwood, as well as Anderson and Panesar, on the final day in Cardiff demonstrated that Strauss has instilled the will and capability to get through a crisis. This galvanised the team for Lords as the players knew they had a platform to build upon.

Being the predator not the prey
As much as Cardiff may have been an escape Strauss talked of momentum for Lords and the need to play positive cricket. The opening session of Lords set the tone with Strauss leading by example in a very positive display. His 161 was the cornerstone of England’s first innings and ensured that England took the role of Predator not Prey for the remainder of the Test.

Considering the options
On the morning of the third day at Lords many thought that it was certain England would enforce the follow on. However, the weather conditions changed and the pitch became benign: Strauss then opted for England to go back in to bat. His ability to think flexibly and alter the plan based on new information ensured England was able to build a healthy total from which the Aussies could not respond.

Deploying the talent
The fifth morning of Lords was a great example of Strauss ensuring England played to its strengths. He allowed a fired up Flintoff to bowl continuously with a new(ish) ball and deployed the guile of Swann at the other end to provide uncertainty in the minds of the Aussie batsmen. Strauss’ ability to see how to best use his bowlers ensured that victory was swift and convincing.

The challenge now for England and Strauss is to ensure that these qualities are built upon for the third test at Edgbaston. Ponting was quick to take a leaf out of Strauss’ book after Lords: confronting the brutal facts and not dwelling on some questionable umpiring decisions. All is set for an engaging remainder of the series.

Posted by: Kieran Colville, Client Partner at CHPD