If At First You Don't Succeed...

Lessons from the sports field (Craven Cottage to be precise) on how to effect change.

Carlos Bocanegra. Remember the name? A character from ‘Breaking Bad’ maybe? Nope.

Mr. Bocanegra and his teammate, Brian McBride, were two US national team players who ended up playing soccer (hereafter called football so as not to cause offense to some of my English colleagues and followers) together for Fulham F.C. in the English Premier League in the mid-2000s. That’s what first drew me into supporting the club.

My affinity only became stronger when Clint Dempsey moved there. He had been the star player for the US and the Boston based MLS team, the New England Revolution. It was then solidified a couple of years later when Fulham had arguably their best-ever season, going to the Europa League final in Hamburg, Germany. I was there when they lost 2–1 to Atlético Madrid in extra time. I actually ended up staying in the team hotel and met a number of the players (including Dempsey) early in the morning while waiting for a taxi — but I’m afraid that story will have to wait for another time!

As some of my previous blogs have attested, football has been a major part of my life for as long as I can remember. That’s probably why I like to draw parallels between the sporting and business arenas. Both have a fundamental element of competition, different strategies and tactics to apply, and a requirement to keep practicing and striving to improve — you can’t stand still if you’re going to prosper.

Playing on the banks of the River Thames at a stadium called Craven Cottage, Fulham is actually London’s oldest professional football club, having been founded in 1879. In more recent times, being a follower of Fulham has certainly been eventful. They have been yo-yo-ing between the Premier League and the second tier of English football for the last five years — having been promoted in ’17–18, they went straight back down in ’18–19, only to come back up in ’19–20, with relegation confirmed again in ’20–21, before rising up once more in ’21–22. (Unlike franchised sport, the premise of promotion and relegation underpins the fabric of the game and gives every one of the 92 professional league clubs in England the chance to dream of the Premier League promised land).

So, to the ’22–23 season — and for Fulham, this year is different. They have never been in any serious danger of relegation, and until recently, were threatening to finish high enough in the league to push for a place in next year’s European competitions. So why now? What’s different from the last two times and are there any lessons that can be applied to business?

In their first attempt, Fulham eventually settled on a strategy of spend to survive — they spent over $110 million on 12 players in 2018 — which was more than the majority of the biggest teams in the league that year. They effectively dismantled the team that got them promotion and tried to replace them with — in theory — better technical, higher quality players. However, they settled on this approach late, there wasn’t time to create a culture, and the team didn’t gel as a result.

The second time around saw the start of the season delayed due to the late finish of the previous season caused by the Covid-19 pandemic. Having had their fingers burned on expensive purchases that didn’t work out, this time they tried to bring in a number of players on loan from other teams. But the end result was the same, in a condensed season with less time to practice and get everyone pulling in the same direction, there was an overall lack of cohesion on the field, and the team suffered the same result: relegation.

So, is this just third time’s the charm or has something fundamentally changed? Well, there has been time to implement ideas through an uninterrupted pre-season. The core of the promotion team has remained intact with new recruits targeted for key positions in a much more focused manner. In short, there is a synergy and shared vision that runs from the top of the club, through the recruitment strategy, down to the players — both new and old — and embodied through the training methods and instructions of the coach. Much easier to say, or reflect on in hindsight, than to do.

However, the truth is that learning lessons and effecting change is something every successful organization does. It’s a necessity because you can be sure your clients, your industry, and the world at large are not standing still.

I believe this starts with a One Team mentality. If you act as a collection of businesses and/or operational groups you will always be one step behind, or worse — a prime candidate for relegation. In my industry, to win consistently and be an effective team, I ask every member of my organization to take on board and live out a “Leadership Philosophy”. This includes:

• Embracing and leading change:?Every business goes through cycles and challenges. It is critical that you wake up every morning thinking about how to become more impactful in the future: How can I improve? What do I need to change?
• Managing risk, but not being paralyzed by it:?A ship that never leaves port has very little chance of sinking, but no chance of reaching its destination. Successful managers must always assume some risk as they will never have 100% of the facts. Good ones get more right than wrong and limit the downside by smart risk management.
• Fostering a climate of dignity and respect:?Every member of your organization must feel comfortable and have an opportunity to speak. This means being forthright and authentic in communication and feedback.
• Always learning:?At all levels you must always be in the mindset to learn, whether it be about new products, technology, or your industry in general. Managers have the added responsibility to ensure that team members have opportunities and resources to learn.
• Acting with the highest integrity:?I work in an industry where effectively everything we do is in support of someone’s life savings. We must make decisions through this lens while also remembering it is not just decisions themselves that matter, but also how they are made.
• Understanding your impact on all stakeholders:?Remembering that what you do and the decisions you make can affect shareholders, staff, clients, and the community alike. We must take all stakeholders into consideration when making decisions.

There is nothing revolutionary here, nor complex. That’s really the point. For a culture to be lived and breathed, it must be embodied and understood by every member of an organization. This can take time and requires perseverance and consistent actions, but when you’re all pulling in the same direction — as my beloved Fulham have demonstrated this season! — the results will take care of themselves.