{"id":247,"date":"2021-07-15T00:00:00","date_gmt":"2021-07-15T00:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/leadersinsport.com\/performance-institute\/reports\/epp-webinar-how-organisational-dynamics-are-developing\/"},"modified":"2025-12-15T05:11:48","modified_gmt":"2025-12-15T05:11:48","slug":"epp-webinar-how-organisational-dynamics-are-developing","status":"publish","type":"article","link":"https:\/\/leadersinsport.com\/performance-institute\/articles\/epp-webinar-how-organisational-dynamics-are-developing\/","title":{"rendered":"EPP Webinar: How Organisational Dynamics Are Developing"},"content":{"rendered":"\n\n
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\n Jul 15, 2021 <\/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

EPP Webinar: How Organisational Dynamics Are Developing<\/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 Leadership & Culture<\/a> <\/div>\n
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https:\/\/leadersinsport.com\/performance-institute\/articles\/epp-webinar-how-organisational-dynamics-are-developing\/<\/div>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n <\/section>\n\n\n\n\n
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Exploring this shift across high performance with the England & Wales Cricket Board, Brighton & Hove Albion and Elite Performance Partners.<\/p>\n \n \n \n

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A Leaders Performance Institute article brought to you by our Partners<\/p>\n

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By John Portch<\/h6>\n

\u201cYes, winning is important, but the players have a higher purpose, which is how they can play their part in inspiring generations, how they can help to connect communities through the cricket they play and be respected for who they are and what they do as much as the way they perform.\u201d<\/h4>\n

Clare Connor, the Head of England Women\u2019s Cricket at the England & Wales Cricket Board [ECB], illustrates perfectly how the dynamics of a modern sports organisation extend beyond mere winning and losing.<\/p>\n

She was a guest on the latest Elite Performance Partners [EPP] webinar, Rethinking Organisational Dynamics<\/a>. She appeared alongside Dan Ashworth, the Technical Director at Brighton & Hove Albion FC of the English Premier League. The\u00a0host for the afternoon was performance specialist Meg Popovic.<\/p>\n

Also joining the conversation was Dave Slemen, a Founding Partner at EPP, a search, selection and advisory firm working across elite sport and specialising in performance.<\/p>\n

The panel addressed a series of questions, including a number submitted by an audience that consisted of 100 attendees drawn from members of the Leaders Performance Institute as well as a selection of high performance practitioners from across the globe.<\/p>\n

Here, the Leaders Performance Institute explores the main questions raised on the day.<\/p>\n

How to foster diversity within teams<\/strong><\/p>\n

Not only is cognitive diversity a valuable competitive edge, as Connor explained, it is essential for the ECB as it looks to diversify women\u2019s and girls\u2019 cricket and the range of its playing options without necessarily mirroring the structures of the male game.<\/p>\n

She said: \u201cWe know that it\u2019s a sport that, if we get it right, it can grow significantly amongst women and girls. We can grow in diverse communities in inner cities that don\u2019t have much green space. What does cricket look like to those communities? How do we serve those communities and take cricket to them when maybe they haven\u2019t had it before? How do we recruit people into our teams and organisation who bring with them experiences of other sectors or other sports who are going to help us see things differently?\u201d<\/p>\n

At Brighton, Ashworth adheres to a four-part process. \u201cFirst is diversity of people; building a team that\u2019s able to look at things differently and through a different lens. Some assume that it\u2019s age, gender, race diversity, but also diversity of experience and personalities \u2013 two 40-year-old white males can have totally different experiences and personalities.<\/p>\n

\u201cSecondly, without the right environment, people will not come forward with ideas and you won\u2019t have that constructive conflict, that ability to challenge. Good ideas can come from anywhere in your organisation and I try to\u00a0 encourage and set non-hierarchical environments.<\/p>\n

\u201cThird is time. We get snowed under in professional sport with the doing and don\u2019t spend enough time reviewing, planning and rethinking.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe final bit for me is clarity. It\u2019s about aligning your vision, getting everybody on track, getting everybody clear on what we\u2019re here to do and it\u2019s that different thought, diversity of thought, innovation, new ideas around what you\u2019re here to do \u2013 not what you\u2019re not. That sounds like stating the obvious but you\u2019d be amazed what some people think innovation and diversity of thought is.\u201d<\/p>\n

Slemen also raised a question about measuring potential. \u201cThat\u2019s a difficult thing to do when you\u2019re hiring,\u201d he said. \u201cDiversity of thought concerns what people think – not what they’ve done. People often assess candidates against their experience as opposed to how they think. Being able to figure out a way to assess potential is key. Then, how do you put support around those people who possess potential but need to learn on the job?\u201d<\/p>\n

Catering for both individual and team goals<\/strong><\/p>\n

For Connor and the England women\u2019s team, individual and team goals find alignment in the realms beyond performance. \u201cA weird silver lining of Covid is that it has enabled conversations with players and staff about life outside of cricket,\u201d she said. \u201cWe\u2019ve seen some personal and individual growth through those conversations that ultimately circles back and will have a benefit on the team performance and the team environment.\u201d<\/p>\n

As current women\u2019s world champions, the England team are motivated by winning but they are also concerned with growing the game. \u201cThey\u2019re very conscious about where the sport has come from and they\u2019re quite grounded, humble and grateful for their opportunity to be fully professional athletes. They feel connected and grateful to those who have come before them, knowing that this is their chance to take that forward. How do they remain connected to all of the good stuff of the past, while also driving future standards and rights and opportunities for female cricketers in the future?<\/p>\n

\u201cWhile those conversations aren\u2019t about performance, they sort of are. They\u2019re important threads around trust and having a common purpose and a common goal that sometimes is more powerful than talking about some of the performance elements.\u201d<\/p>\n

Strength in vulnerability<\/strong><\/p>\n

Open vulnerability has been a source of strength to Connors as she and the ECB seek to grow the female game. She said: \u201cThat\u2019s constantly uncomfortable because there\u2019s a real pace of change behind that and sometimes you feel like you\u2019re leading that change and then you\u2019ve got it by the reins. Often I don\u2019t feel like I am and I feel the pace of change and navigating the politics of sport \u2013 sometimes you feel out of control with that.\u201d<\/p>\n

In a similar vein Slemen cited EPP\u2019s work with the ECB\u2019s new Regional Directors of Women\u2019s Cricket. \u201cAt one meeting, someone said, \u2018I don\u2019t know the answer to this\u2019 and another person said, \u2018thank god, neither do I\u2019. You could sense a big sigh of relief. That it\u2019s OK not to know.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe idea formed in the group that if they talk openly, they\u2019re probably going to be able to figure it out together and that\u2019s what happened. They\u2019re all going through their own challenges in their own areas and they probably feel very isolated, yet most of their issues were linked and they could help each other. I think it gives them a better chance to be successful.\u201d<\/p>\n

Fast-tracking trust<\/strong><\/p>\n

The panel agreed that effective communication stems from a leader\u2019s authenticity. \u201cThere\u2019s a real link between effective communication and trust and how quickly you can establish both,\u201d said Slemen. \u201cIt is better if you can earn those quickly, partly through character, partly through showing competency. When you\u2019re speaking to the real leader and they\u2019re not trying to be something else, it is easier to trust them and believe in them.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cDiversity is your representation point, inclusion is your involvement,\u201d said Connor. \u201cHow does everybody, regardless of background, age, rank, language capability feel equally included to communicate and put forward their ideas and solutions? Ultimately, that does come down to leadership with connections, emotional intelligence and taking time to create the environment for that to happen.\u201d<\/p>\n

She cited the example of England captain Heather Knight. \u201cYoung players coming into that environment with other players who have played for England 150 times and won World Cups and Ashes, she makes them feel equally involved and valued. She does that in the way she constructs meetings, the way she does things formally and informally. She\u2019s got an exceptional skill in listening and letting people feel that their voice matters.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ashworth speaks in similar terms of Brighton Manager Graham Potter. \u201cPremier League dressing rooms are highly multicultural now,\u201d he said. \u201cTo be an effective leader Graham\u2019s got to be able to connect and communicate the technical and tactical detail as well as hold general conversations about their lives. He\u2019s an outstanding connector and communicator and that\u2019s probably the most important attribute of being a leader.\u201d<\/p>\n

Balancing wellbeing and the pressure to win<\/strong><\/p>\n

The need to win and the wellbeing of players and staff are not mutually exclusive. Connor has observed, particularly during the pandemic that when players feel the ECB\u2019s duty of care, they are more committed to their performance goals. She said: \u201cWe found that because we\u2019d taken that time to show that we care about them, they are engaging even more deeply and collaboratively across other problem-solving areas of performance.\u201d<\/p>\n

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Exploring this shift across high performance with the England & Wales Cricket Board, Brighton & Hove Albion and Elite Performance Partners.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"featured_media":248,"menu_order":0,"template":"","categories":[20],"pathway":[],"topic":[],"sport":[],"class_list":["post-247","article","type-article","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-leadership-culture-performance"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\nEPP Webinar: How Organisational Dynamics Are Developing - 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\/epp-webinar-how-organisational-dynamics-are-developing\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"EPP Webinar: How Organisational Dynamics Are Developing - Performance Institute\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Exploring this shift across high performance with the England & Wales Cricket Board, Brighton & Hove Albion and Elite Performance Partners.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/leadersinsport.com\/performance-institute\/articles\/epp-webinar-how-organisational-dynamics-are-developing\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Performance Institute\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2025-12-15T05:11:48+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/leadersinsport.com\/app\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2021\/08\/GettyImages-1208739485.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"2040\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"1093\" \/>\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\/epp-webinar-how-organisational-dynamics-are-developing\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/leadersinsport.com\/performance-institute\/articles\/epp-webinar-how-organisational-dynamics-are-developing\/\",\"name\":\"EPP Webinar: How Organisational Dynamics Are Developing - 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