In Pursuit of Excellence: Learning from Elite Sport on Developing Talent Effectively Dr Bill Gerrard Professor of Sport Management and Finance Leeds University Business School

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In Pursuit of Excellence Learning from Elite
Sport on Developing Talent EffectivelyDr Bill
GerrardProfessor of Sport Management and
FinanceLeeds University Business School
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Session plan
1. Lets Go 2. Ideas session 3. Group
discussions 4. Report back 5. Where are we?
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Who am I?

• Professor of Sport Management and Finance, Leeds
• University Business School
• Research focus performance and value
  management in the
• pro team sports industry
• Recent teaching portfolio
• Corporate finance (MBA)
• Value and performance management (MBA)
• The football business (2nd Year U/g)
• Qualified football coach (UEFA B License)
• FA psychology for coaching (Level 3)
• Assistant coach, University of Leeds Mens
  Football

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You cant be serious!
What can we learn from elite sport on developing
talent effectively?
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Ideas session in pursuit of excellence
Alternative World Views
Re-creating the Street
Holistic Approach
EXCELLENCE
Winning
Coaching
Goal Setting
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Whats your coaching/ teaching paradigm?
Transactional Paradigm
Transformational Paradigm
Knowledge Transfer Detachment
Capability Building Involvement
Coach-Led Command Style
Player-Centred Guided Discovery
Instrumentalist Efficiency
Expressive Excellence
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Performance outcome or process?
Performance as process Long-term perspective Get
the fundamentals right Formative assessment Being
mode
Performance as outcome Short-term
perspective Quick-fix solutions Summative
assessment Having mode
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Total football or 4-4-2?
Tactical systems top-down command
Total football player empowerment
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Four corners model of talent development
ABILITY
AWARENESS
SKILLS
CO-ORDINATION
ELITE PERFORMANCE
WELL-BEING
MOTIVATION
ATTITUDE
ATHLETICISM
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Mental skills training concentration
Close your eyes. Focus on your breathing. Count
each breath until you are distracted. How far can
you get?
Mental skills training Motivation Confidence Sel
f talk Professional attitude Goal
setting Imagery Relaxation Focus and
concentration
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Coaching

• Individual-focused
• Coach as teacher, mentor, motivator, facilitator
  
• Holistic approach to understanding the individual
• Emphasis on positive and forward-looking approach
  who do you want to be

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The GROW model of coaching
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The coaching process

• Preparation
• Session plan
• Objectives
• Fail to prepare.
• Prepare to fail

• Guided discovery
• Create problem situation
• Give players freedom to explore options

• Typical structure
• Warm up
• Drills
• Conditioned games
• Free play
• Cool down

Coaching formula STOP-DEMO-REHEARSAL-LIVE Tell
me and I forget. Show me and I remember. Involve
me and I understand.
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Effective coaching
ASPIRE
INVOLVE
DEVOLVE
INSPIRE
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SMARTER targets
Specific
Measurable
Attainable
Relevant
Time-bound
Exciting
Recorded
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Choose your goals carefully
CONTROL THE CONTROLLABLE
OUTCOMES ARE UNCERTAIN
TASK-ORIENTED INTRINSIC MOTIVATION
EGO-ORIENTED EXTRINSIC MOTIVATION
PROCESS GOALS
PERFORMANCE GOALS
OUTCOME GOALS
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Target specification
COULD
SHOULD
MUST
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But be aware of the language of targets

• You MUST achieve this performance level
• Transactional
• Extrinsic
• Compliance

• You CAN achieve this performance level
• Transformational
• Intrinsic
• Collaboration

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Its not about winning and losing. Dont judge
yourself or the team by something you cant
control. What matters is that you and the team
strive to give of your best and to improve.
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Dealing with failure

• Pro team sports has high failure rates
• Average teams lose 50 of their games
• Football managers get sacked every 2 years on
  average
• 85 of full-time football trainees exit
  professional game within 5 years
• But few support mechanisms
• Excessive focus on winning even in youth
  development.
• But winning is not a controllable

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Re-creating the street environment
Structured coaching can stifle creativity
10,000 hours required to develop expertise
The street taught us. Messi grew up like this.
Messi taught himself instead of a coach saying
run from cone to cone with the ball, do this,
do that. Johan Cruyff
The street real-life, uncertain challenges
Streetwise shrewd practical experienced
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Group discussions
Question 1 Is there a role for the coaching
approach in university degree programmes?
Question 2 Should we be concerned with all four
corners of talent development?
Question 3 Could small-group teaching be
structured as a coaching session?
Question 4 How could we do more to ensure that
graduates are streetwise?
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Wrap up
Group discussion report back
Where has the journey taken us?
Thank you