On this episode my guest is Gina Haddad, Gina is an expert and published academic in the area of athlete leadership and has worked with and researched leadership groups in many team sports. She has studied leadership groups within Super Rugby, NRL, AFL, Football and International rugby union and has previously held positions as a High-Performance Consultant and education manager with Equestrian Australia. She is a lecturer and leadership and culture facilitator. The main take points from this conversation for me were:
1)Setting up a leadership group needs to be authentic – doing it for the sake of it because that’s what the professional teams do won’t cut the mustard. Leaders need to be given a voice and be heard.
2)Leadership groups need to be diverse and cover a good cross section of the team so that everyone feels represented and included.
3)Leadership requires time and should be prioritised.
4)For athletes who have had little or no leadership training, providing some support around their roles and how leadership looks will assist them in becoming better leaders.
5)Embed and consistently reference team values and have these driven by the leadership group.
6)Do your homework around how you will select the leadership group and what their expectations and responsibilities will be.
For more information please feel free to connect with Gina on LinkedIn via her name Gina Haddad.
You are also welcome to contact myself to initiate a conversation via email or phone by emailing me at james@thecoachdoctor.com.au