{"id":17369,"date":"2023-04-11T09:45:22","date_gmt":"2023-04-11T09:45:22","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/leadersinsport.com\/performance-institute\/?post_type=article&p=17369"},"modified":"2025-12-15T05:11:17","modified_gmt":"2025-12-15T05:11:17","slug":"the-current-challenges-facing-sports-leaders","status":"publish","type":"article","link":"https:\/\/leadersinsport.com\/performance-institute\/articles\/the-current-challenges-facing-sports-leaders\/","title":{"rendered":"The Current Challenges Facing Sport\u2019s Leaders"},"content":{"rendered":"\n\n
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\n 11 Apr 2023 <\/p>\n \t\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/span>Articles<\/a>\n\n\t\t\t\t\t\t

The Current Challenges Facing Sport\u2019s Leaders<\/h1>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\n \n\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\n\t<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
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Category<\/div>\n Human Performance<\/a>, Leadership & Culture<\/a>, Premium<\/a> <\/div>\n
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In late March, some of the industry\u2019s most respected leaders from across the globe gathered at Scotiabank Arena in Toronto to discuss the pressing performance matters of the day.<\/p>\n \n \n \n

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By John Portch with additional reporting from Luke Whitworth<\/h6>\n
The Leaders Think Tank is at once a network and a knowledge platform.<\/h6>\n

It is designed to connect people with responsibility for performance at the highest levels of world sport with each other and the ideas that have served their peers best. The top jobs in elite sport are often lonely places and always comprise unique challenges. The following is a record of the Think Tank meeting that took place on 28 March at Scotiabank Arena in Toronto. A behind-closed-doors event, the account that follows is a general one and aimed at presenting the lessons learned from the conversation.<\/p>\n

Attendees<\/strong><\/p>\n

General Manager, Toronto Maple Leafs<\/p>\n

Head Coach, Toronto Maple Leafs<\/p>\n

Senior Basketball Advisor, New York Knicks<\/p>\n

Performance Director, Manchester City<\/p>\n

Head Coach, Scotland Rugby<\/p>\n

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  1. How leaders can create environments for their people to be successful<\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

    How can the leader of the team reduce both the pressure and distractions faced by coaches and athletes? The first and most important step is to create an environment that enables athletes and staff to be at their best.<\/p>\n

    Key points:<\/strong><\/p>\n

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    • External noise and distractions can be reduced if you are laser-focused on the processes that underpin your standards of performance. When it is clear what the procedure is, the leader can assure that athletes and staff are supported in a suitable fashion.<\/li>\n
    • Communicate expectations and give athletes and staff an understanding of the resources available to them. The leader can also enable people to share feelings, learn from the past and, ultimately, remove pressure.<\/li>\n
    • Anxiety is normal is any high performance environment. Normalise people\u2019s experience of anxiety by identifying hidden stressors and understand the roles in the team where people are always close to the edge.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
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      1. Replacing an iconic coach<\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

        Sir Alex Ferguson, Ars\u00e8ne Wenger, Mike \u2018Coach K\u2019 Krzyzewski, Joel ‘Coach Q’ Quenneville. These were some of the longest-tenured and most successful coaches in sporting history when they left their highest profile roles. Replacing figures of such stature can be daunting and fallow periods are almost inevitable as teams seek to fill the vacuum. What can be done to ease the transition from a legacy coach?<\/p>\n

        Key points:<\/strong><\/p>\n

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        • An internal successor may or may not be the way to go. The key is to communicate that a playing style is a collective philosophy and not beholden to one individual. Reassure athletes and staff while reducing fear of the unknown.<\/li>\n
        • A team must be aware of the mechanics of its system, as it is all but sure that a successor will not enjoy the same power and influence. It will take a collective effort to bridge that gap.<\/li>\n
        • Can you be intentional in engaging your long-time tenured coach in a handover (circumstances permitting)? \u2018Centennial\u2019 companies \u2013 those who have survived and thrived for in excess of a century \u2013 are particularly adept at managing these transitions.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
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          1. The best approaches to load management in performance<\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

            In some elite sports, there is an underdeveloped understanding of when athletes are conditioned or deconditioned. Moreover, this does not always align with training-to-game models. Where should the emphasis be placed in this continuing challenge?<\/p>\n

            Key points:<\/strong><\/p>\n

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            • Do you truly understand the demands of the game? Yes, there are physical components but there are also emotional considerations, perhaps linked to your people, style of play and intensity \u2013 understanding those is critical.<\/li>\n
            • Prioritise recovery. Educate your people and insert recovery practices into your processes. Consider how you can take what you do at home on the road. What are the recovery opportunities on the journey home?<\/li>\n
            • Decisions around training and programming should be made independent of results. Emotion is removed and the health of the team is not compromised.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
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              1. How to be your organisation\u2019s greatest-ever team<\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

                A lofty ambition, for sure, but a noble goal for all teams regardless of their pedigree. At the very least, all teams can strive for their pinnacle.<\/p>\n

                Key points:<\/strong><\/p>\n

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                • At what can your team be the best in the world? Consider: what are your super strengths and where might your weaknesses prevent your progress? Contextual training is another critical component.<\/li>\n
                • Resilience is a characteristic of all great teams and shared experience of previous failure can help you to better understand where support is needed at moments when your team is under pressure. Equally, people in your environment need to feel safe when displaying vulnerability and, with time, connections and relationships develop as you become battle-tested.<\/li>\n
                • Shared belief should come right from the top. There needs to be an input from senior management or ownership in developing the right strategy.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/p>\n <\/div>\n \n \n \n <\/div>\n
                  \n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n <\/section>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"","protected":false},"featured_media":17370,"menu_order":0,"template":"","categories":[21,20,2],"pathway":[295],"topic":[308,334,338],"sport":[],"class_list":["post-17369","article","type-article","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-human-performance","category-leadership-culture-performance","category-premium","pathway-leadership-development","topic-influence","topic-leadership-of-self","topic-listening"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\nThe Current Challenges Facing Sport\u2019s Leaders - Performance Institute<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/leadersinsport.com\/performance-institute\/articles\/the-current-challenges-facing-sports-leaders\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"The Current Challenges Facing Sport\u2019s Leaders - Performance Institute\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/leadersinsport.com\/performance-institute\/articles\/the-current-challenges-facing-sports-leaders\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Performance Institute\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2025-12-15T05:11:17+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/leadersinsport.com\/app\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2023\/04\/GettyImages-1245466065-scaled.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"2560\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"1808\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/leadersinsport.com\/performance-institute\/articles\/the-current-challenges-facing-sports-leaders\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/leadersinsport.com\/performance-institute\/articles\/the-current-challenges-facing-sports-leaders\/\",\"name\":\"The Current Challenges Facing Sport\u2019s Leaders - Performance Institute\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/leadersinsport.com\/performance-institute\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/leadersinsport.com\/performance-institute\/articles\/the-current-challenges-facing-sports-leaders\/#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/leadersinsport.com\/performance-institute\/articles\/the-current-challenges-facing-sports-leaders\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/leadersinsport.com\/app\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2023\/04\/GettyImages-1245466065-scaled.jpg\",\"datePublished\":\"2023-04-11T09:45:22+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2025-12-15T05:11:17+00:00\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/leadersinsport.com\/performance-institute\/articles\/the-current-challenges-facing-sports-leaders\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/leadersinsport.com\/performance-institute\/articles\/the-current-challenges-facing-sports-leaders\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/leadersinsport.com\/performance-institute\/articles\/the-current-challenges-facing-sports-leaders\/#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/leadersinsport.com\/app\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2023\/04\/GettyImages-1245466065-scaled.jpg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/leadersinsport.com\/app\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2023\/04\/GettyImages-1245466065-scaled.jpg\",\"width\":2560,\"height\":1808,\"caption\":\"TORONTO, CANADA - DECEMBER 8: A general view of the exterior of Scotiabank Arena prior to action between the Los Angeles Kings and the Toronto Maple Leafs in an NHL game at Scotiabank Arena on December 8, 2022 in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. 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