The Nation’s Game – A test in resilience

I have to declare my lack of cricket knowledge up front. I’m sure the players are adorable but I am not paid to adore them. I attend the cricket on occasion and am learning the rules, but then I don’t need to know the rules of play to do my job. My husband is a sports nut which has kind of ruined it for me – he would truly watch equestrian if it was the only sport on television. I find myself tweeting about cricket, and posting on Facebook, and wonder sometimes what has happened to me?! 

So it’s even more surprising when I hear myself saying I’m here to talk about cricket. More importantly, I am going to talk about resilience, a skill often required in business today and especially in our trade.

Uniting communities

I never really appreciated what sport can do until I came to cricket and saw blind people being empowered through the game, people - boys and girls both - idolising female players not because they are female but because they are amazing at what they do, indigenous communities taking part. Whether you’re in the slums of Delhi or the hills of Adelaide, you’ll inevitably find a game of cricket – all you need is a piece of wood and a ball – or a rock as may be the case. It’s an incredible platform for uniting and inspiring people of all shapes, sizes and colours. We welcome diversity and celebrate inclusion.

Perhaps this is one of the secrets of our resilience.

World in flux

It’s been an incredible year for us, but then it’s been an incredible year, full stop. When you think about the state of play back in March last year, the Banking Royal Commission was kicking off, the state of the Catholic Church, the breakdown of Governments all around the world – Brexit, Trump, and politics closer to home – all in flux. Among those is cricket, the nation’s game. Part of our fibre – whether you watch it or not. We broke hearts, we brought shame upon ourselves, we outraged the nation. 

Whether or not you follow cricket you know the tale I’m here to talk about. The tale of three men who perhaps determined the state of Australian Cricket’s reputation as it now stands, or perhaps they just exposed the reputation for what it was. While many of you will assume I mean this to be negative, I will talk to you today about why it has also been incredibly positive.

We made headlines in countries where cricket was unheard of, for all the wrong reasons. Branded by the Indian media as the worst scandal in Australian cricket since Trevor Chappell bowled an under-arm delivery against New Zealand in 1981, sandpapergate threatened to define us. 

Australia’s response was extreme. There are few sports that unite and inspire communities like cricket does, even in its darker moments.

Perhaps this is one of the secrets of our resilience?

The bubble

Sandpapergate was the destructive result of declining player behaviour and a disconnect between Australian cricket and our many fans. 

You might have heard talk of the bubble relative to sports people. It’s true – at least for cricket but likely also for others - they are told where to be, when to play and what to wear. They are advised when to eat and when to rest, and how to train. They devote their lives to being the best and they give up the privilege of what you and I have – normalcy. Regular time with friends and family, a job, study, routine. 

What made things worse in this case, was that while the players seemed to be living in an age of entitlement, independent player and administrative reviews found that Cricket Australia was "arrogant" and "controlling" and embracing an ethos of "winning without counting the costs"

There can be no hiding from the extent of this crisis. 

Spoiler alert* 

More than a year has passed since the incident in Newlands. We have concluded the Banking Royal Commission, Pell is in jail, we are onto another PM, a new Royal baby has been birthed and Cersei is dead.

Importantly there was widespread agreement that you can’t talk yourself out of a crisis. You have to find and fix the root cause/s. This is not necessarily the role of corporate affairs but our role is to communicate the cause and the plan to ensure it can’t happen again.

Your people are key – when the proverbial is hitting the fan, they are the people who will help turn things around. Their morale is key and they are likely greatest impacted. Keep them informed, engaged and you’ll have advocates working for you. Give them a place to raise their concerns, ask questions and share feelings. Wrap your arms around them, and support them through the tough times – no one can do it alone.

Engage the media – the natural response might be to shut down but it is the worst thing you can do. The media can be your mouthpiece and can help restore your reputation or drag it down. Engaging them will deliver a positive result (provided your actions are genuine and intentions earnest). This doesn’t mean there will never be a negative story. You need to be prepared to take it on the chin when deserved. Sharing the good and the bad will, at the very least, earn the respect of your stakeholders and eventually, the trust of your customers.

Industry/partners – be they sponsors, government stakeholders or commercial partners, don’t forget them. Keeping them informed will also mean third party advocates – the most powerful of voices after employees.

Social – the latest election result is a timely reminder that the social sphere is not a reflection of the masses but an echo chamber for a small portion of the population. Don’t let it determine your strategy. Be mindful of it, and aware, but avoid the knee-jerk response to what seems like a noisy majority, but is not. Social is a great way to target audiences with specific messaging, demonstrate a human side of your organisation and irritate the irritable.

Talk to your customers – in our case it’s the fans. Don’t get so caught up managing crisis that you forget to serve your customers. They will be among the most forgiving because of your relationship, but you need to maintain the relationship.

A year of change for Australian cricket.

In the ranks:

We have a new Coach, a new Chair, a new CEO, a new Captain. We’ve had a 50 percent change in our executive and 30 percent change in the board. There has been further change throughout the organisation.

On field: 

Over the summer we hosted more than 600 games, not counting 300 indoor sessions.

We’ve seen a significant improvement in player behaviour, particularly among the Australian men’s team, which did not have a single code of conduct charge laid for the first time in eight years.

 We’ve seen a 74 per cent reduction in code of conduct charges from the national teams through to our underaged national championships and country and indigenous teams.

The women have won their fourth World Cup and the men have had successive one-day series victories on the back of eight match wins in a row.

 Off field:

We are working closer as an organisation, but also with our colleagues in the state and territory associations and with the Australian Cricketers’ Association (ACA). We are bringing our partners into the tent and have a more open relationship with the media and a greater focus on proactive connections

Moving on

Dave, Steve and Cam have done their time, arguably among the hardest sanctions in the history of our game. Some argue there are questions still to be answered. Perhaps biased, I’d argue that the answers matter little. What matters is how they rebuild themselves, just as Cricket Australia is doing, and show the world that they have learned from their mistakes. It’s also on the team to show it has learned from its mistakes. Just as the administration has learned too.

The warm applause the men received from a crowd of 1200 walking out to bat in their return to Australian colours during a low-key practice match against New Zealand in Brisbane two weeks ago suggests fans are moving on.

Just as we did in the summer of 1932/33 when the Bodyline series stole headlines and changed the game forever. Just as we did in 1977 when World Series Cricket did the same. Be it Shane Warne’s shenanigans or the introduction of Big Bash, cricket will always have its tales. We’ll never brag about those moments that have brought disappointment on our fans, but we can’t hide from them either.

So what are the key ingredients for resilience?

According to this very hard but worthwhile lesson:

Acknowledgement – you must acknowledge there is a problem

Understanding – understand the root cause

Change – be prepared to change

Listen – listen to your stakeholders, don’t assume your view is a reflection of everyone’s view

Engage – talk to different stakeholders, make sure your people are informed

Confidence – once decided, be confident in your decisions. People want to see good leadership in bad situations.

Support – no one can do it alone

Keep looking forward – it’s important to acknowledge the past without getting bogged down in that which you can’t change. Focus on what you can change and make it happen.

With most in Australian cricket looking forward rather than back, there is a very exciting year of cricket ahead – Cricket World Cup 2019, the Women’s Ashes, Australia A and the Men’s Ashes - and while we expect a tough crowd through the UK summer, we are up for it, we are resilient.