Taking charge of a new team can be one of the most challenging aspects of leadership, particularly when it comes to building trust and establishing authority from the outset.
Addressing this common concern, a leading UK leadership expert has offered his perspective on how new managers can successfully integrate into existing teams.
Drew Povey, founder of Drew Povey Consultancy, believes that while industries may differ, the core principles of leadership remain unchanged, whether in sport, business or large-scale organisations.
With experience supporting England football figures such as Stuart Pearce and Gareth Southgate, Povey highlights the parallels between football management and leadership in other sectors, particularly the need to establish credibility quickly.
Drew, who has worked with England Football managers Stuart Pearce and Gareth Southgate, said: “You need to make an impact, and quickly. Those new to a job need to understand the culture they’re inheriting if they want to be successful.
“In modern football, managers just don’t get the luxury of time and we know that one poor run of results and literally, headlines will start writing themselves.
“The job is relentless. It’s public and, quite frankly, it’s completely unforgiving.
“But there is something fascinating about that environment, because when a new manager walks into any sports club, but particularly a football club, they’ve got to create an impact immediately.
“But they’re inheriting a culture. They’re inheriting a dressing room dynamic that they didn’t create, a history that they may or may not have been part of and this is all before they’ve even taken a training session or met the players.
“This can sound familiar to many other leaders. Because whether you’re managing a football team or you’re running a shop floor or you’re leading a FTSE 100 company, the same truth applies.
“Leadership is leadership regardless of sector, and the way that a leader resets an environment often determines everything else that follows.”
Here are Drew’s five leadership resets which can help any new leader make an immediate impact.1. Do your due diligence before you walk through the door
“Great leaders don’t start just by changing things, they start by understanding them. The best leaders don’t come in blind but will start by studying the squad, the club culture, supporters, the expectations of the board and the dynamics within the dressing room.
“They’ll have a view of that before they’ve probably even accepted the job, and definitely before they’ve started training.
“Regardless of sector, a new leader will understand that before you lead the future, you’ve got to understand the present. What’s worked, what hasn’t worked and what are people hoping will change?
“Clarity before action is never, ever wasted time. ”
2. Respect the past, but don’t be trapped by it
“When a new manager arrives, players already have experienced another leadership style and might have got used to it. Some won’t have liked it. Some will have been ambivalent. Some will have loved it, though.
“A new leader must avoid the temptation to rip everything up on day one, even if it’s been a low performing strategy, because that’s a journey the team has been on.
“Implementing too much change all in one go will be confusing and overwhelming.
“Authenticity builds credibility faster than imitation ever will. The goal isn’t to erase the past, it’s to build for the next chapter.”
3. Meet people where they are now.
“Every dressing room I’ve ever worked in is very different, but every workplace is very different, too. Some people are confident, some cautious. Some are motivated by challenge, others by stability. Some are ready for change, but others will be unsure.
“Great leaders don’t force people into their style, they meet them where they’re at. They ask questions so they can find out about their new team and take the time to understand what people care about, what they believe in, what drives them and of course, the things they might be worried about.
“Great negotiators find the common ground and the same goes for great leaders. The influence part of leadership rarely begins with instruction, but instead with understanding.
4. Reset expectations
“When a new leader comes in, it’s a chance to reset the rules of engagement. But the best leaders don’t just come in and deliver this diktat and announce what they want, they create shared expectations.
“There are three elements of this. Firstly, as a leader explain what you expect of your team members. This can be as simple as explaining what you stand for, and what you expect from them in terms of effort and behaviour.
“The second is to tell the team what they can expect of you.
“And then the final element is, what can we expect of each other?
“How does this look? It should be a conversation, not just a transmission. This allows you to build connections and build that trust which is the hallmark of the best leaders.
“Teams are going to succeed and fail together so it is essential to have conversations around those expectations and at an early stage, ensure you are all getting what you need from this relationship.”
5. Create belief in winning again
“In football, confidence can disappear quickly, but it can also arrive pretty quickly too. A team which expects to lose usually does because people are beaten before they’ve even begun.
“That’s the same in all organisations, whether it’s sport or someone delivering a new business pitch.
“New leaders must therefore do something psychological as well as practical – restore belief.
“This is not the same as blind optimism but believable progress which you can deliver by letting people understand and embrace the process.
“It’s helping people see the small wins. Even if you’re losing the game, where are the small wins happening? It’s about getting that clear direction of what’s important, and it’s helping them see that visible improvement, progress and growth.
“Because when people do start to believe again, performance almost always follows.”
