What I learnt from Manchester United about Management & Succession Planning
What I learnt from Manchester United about
Management & Succession Planning
I
have been a lifelong fan of Manchester United and the life after Sir Alex
Ferguson
(24+
years in charge of Manchester United) hasn’t gone well for the club as well as
for the followers.
I
could relate many of the management lessons especially Succession Planning and
its impact with the recent failures of Manchester United.
Dont
always rely on your laurels:
Yes,
United have been the most decorated team in England and they have been the
driving force since the start of English Premier League but their dominance in
Europe has been inconsistent. United's trophy cabinet shows their stellar
record but it doesn’t guarantee them consistency in bigger competitions.
Similarly,
no matter how big your brand has been, it will take a small time to come down
to dust!
External
factors like market invasion through smuggled goods or maybe the competitor
just got better or the internal factors like change of management, change of
system/philosophy or employee turnover can have a strong and lasting impact. Therefore,
when you face such situations, it is time for you to re-evaluate your strategy and work on your weaknesses rather then relying on
your laurels and then finding the scapegoat.
As Alex
Ferguson famously said: "No one is bigger than the club".
This
was the crux of United's dominance and continuity even after number of players left/retired.Be it Cantona, Ruun Van Nistrooy, Beckham or Cristiano Ronaldo! The secret
for United's consistency was to create one star after another!
When
it comes to Management, the same philosophy should be followed.
Nobody
should be bigger than the company, company's philosophy and company's image. TOP
Management should be clever enough to work on succession planning from the
beginning and should work on delegating tasks rather than keeping it with specific
individuals. Developing systems and making it independent will make the
management stronger.
Succession
planning is an art not a magic
With
all the accolades and achievements on his side the only thing Sir Alex Ferguson
could not achieve at the end of his career is good succession planning. The
reason could be lack of funds (1 or 2 players a year for the last 5 years) or
maybe Alex Ferguson's personal intent to retire on high through instant success
purchases. Although he bought few good youngsters David De Gea / Smalling /
Jones to succeed in the longer run but the list of failures is a bit longer.
When
it comes to company's management, the basics remain the same i.e. succession
planning can’t be achieved over night. It’s a long process from hiring the
right candidate, training and developing according to the requirements and
crafting an individual that represents company's culture and philosophy and
takes responsibility like fish takes to water.
The
Winning attitude:
"I've never played for a draw in my life.”
Sir Alex Ferguson said.
That
was his philosophy, style of playing and his attitude towards the game. I
remember how United won number of matches in dying minutes of the game for
example the way United won the UCL in 1999 by scoring 2 crucial goals in the final
3 minutes to won the Europe’s most important trophy.
Similar
winning attitude and inner desire is needed in the whole team if you want to
succeed. The formula for winning attitude is: Whole team should be on the same
wave length, should be clear about the objectives and should have the burning
desire to succeed.
Plan
before it’s too late:
I am
a Sir Alex Ferguson fan by heart but to be realistic I mentioned how he couldn’t
plan for his departure and couldn’t plan for successors before the end of his
illustrious career.
Once
a very good trainer quoted something unusual and special:
“The
best leader is the one who develops a better leader in his sub-ordinate" or
in simple words the best leader is the one who develops a good successor!
As
they say failing to plan is planning to fail, this saying is true for both
football and management. Therefore I believe both Manchester United and a
company’s management should look at the bigger picture, go for strategic
solutions and should plan before it’s too late.
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