The Imposter Series: When expectations go South(gate)

Firstly, I want to say a big thank you for the feedback on my first article. It meant so much to hear your stories and know that I am not on my own. So much so, I think we should start a club - The Imposter Club.

I found writing about my experiences very therapeutic, so I was really humbled to hear that it helped so many other people too. It also inspired me for the topic of this article. I know I don’t fit into the traditional image of an MD, but there has been one man in recent weeks who's made a huge impact on the nation’s happiness, even though he isn’t what you would traditionally consider the right fit for the role he took on.

Nobody (including myself), had any expectations from Southgate or the England Team in this World Cup. There was very little build up, the team were seen as too young and inexperienced and Gareth Southgate wasn’t the 'traditional' England Manager. He had no top level managerial experience, and prior to the World Cup, England fans questioned his leadership qualities and personality. But two weeks ago, we found ourselves in the semi-final, the whole country under the belief that “It Was Coming Home!”

Unfortunately, we didn’t quite make it to the final. What struck me was that the feeling of pride and togetherness far outweighed the disappointment. It has been clear in the last couple of weeks that we have one man to thank for raising the spirits of not just the England squad, but the whole nation.

Gareth Southgate was looking like he could be a founding member of The Imposter Club, having previously been reluctant to take on the role. He didn't seem confident enough to take it on, even on a temporary basis, allegedly saying it was better suited to someone with more experience. The FA only considered him a “pretty obvious one to pick”, as a stop-gap in 2016, when Roy Hodgson resigned and the press repeatedly called him "too nice". The term 'nice' in the workplace is too closely associated with 'weak'. I am a firm believer in not having to beat others down to show your authority. I’ve never understood why you have to be aggressive or offensive to lead people. Southgate was a shining example of this; his managerial style made such a difference to our World Cup run. He brought a nation together, and sold a lot of waistcoats (M&S reported a 35% increase in waistcoat sales, with Google searches peaking on the 4th July after England’s victory over Colombia. Furthermore, online conversation increased by 2027% as England made it to the semi-finals).

What became clear, was that success wasn’t down to individual star players, it was a clear team effort. He believed in the team and so did we. More importantly, he taught them to believe in themselves, confirming my mantra that treating people like you want to be treated gets the best out of everyone.

Traditionally, it has been the expectation that businesses hire the most talented performers to compete and succeed. Many companies headhunt star performers from competitors to give them the advantage. For us, the more important aspect of recruitment is if this person would fit within our culture. Our culture is the thing that makes us special and has everyone who works for Social Chain invested in our future. We’ve said no to some really talented people, because we didn’t think they would work well with the rest of the team. In one of our interviews we were asked “What makes a person Social Chain?” and my Operations Director, Paul, answered it perfectly: “We are a team. Each and every member of the office gives a shit about the work we do and the people we work with. We help each other, even if you didn’t think it was your job to. We care about each other.”

The concept of teamwork strengthening performance is no revolutionary approach. However, it was positioned well by American academic, Boris Groysberg, who in his book ‘Chasing Stars: The Myth of Talent and the Portability of Performance’ examines the careers of more than a thousand star analysts at Wall Street investment banks. Groysberg discovered that hiring star analysts from other firms rarely went well. The individual's performance dropped, with these individuals missing the team and culture they were part of at their old job. It really does seem that a team effort is key to driving overall success.

Gareth Southgate’s leadership, building a team of stars working together as a collective, has raised the morale of the nation. He is no longer seen as “too nice”, rather the epitome of the modern man; calm, collected and caring, winning the hearts of men and women across the country. M&S summed it up superbly in saying “Not all heroes wear capes”. No, our hero wore a waistcoat. It’s not that long until the Euros in 2020 and I expect to see Gareth Southgate on stage discussing his managerial style in the near future.

If there are any topics you want to see me cover in the Imposter Series send me a message and I’ll see what I can do.

But more importantly, if you want to join The Imposter Club, keep an eye out, it's coming very soon!

Katy x