The legacy of great teams
The impact of the 2004 Swifts remains strong in 2021
I love netball and that love affair started in 2004 when I was introduced - by chance and courtesy of a trivia night - to the Sydney Swifts. In that year, the Swifts won the grand final in one of the greatest sporting events I have witnessed live including an incredible last quarter comeback. The way that the Swifts stayed resilient and overcame the challenges at hand to win got me hooked.
I realised recently that the influence of that team on the current game is quite remarkable. Of the team (netball has seven players in the team and ten in a squad) that played in that game, the ongoing involvement at the highest level is impressive. The members of that team include:
Two of the eight head coaches of the current Super Netball competition
Three prominent TV broadcasters on the game - an important part of growing the game's commercial appeal and sustainability. Of these, the person with the highest profile is Liz Ellis who has extended her presence beyond netball to include sport more generally and occasionally news/current affairs
The 2004 coach is still coaching one of the other teams!
That means that of the seven players on court in that great grand final and the coach, six of them continue to have an impact at a professional level nationally.
This is a point worth reflecting on. Quite often, great teams have an impact that goes beyond simply their performance or the experience within the team. By virtue of the way that they operate, great teams will impact others beyond their boundaries. In a business setting, this can be internal stakeholders, suppliers or customers who benefit and are often inspired by a great team's work.
Great teams are often also a great setting for leadership development. Being part of a strong team offers individuals the opportunity to observe and identify patterns that contribute to sustained high performance. For those paying attention, this provides a platform to adopt and adapt practices that allow them to demonstrate leadership in other settings - with other teams or at other times.
Sport is not always a great parallel for other domains of life.
It's worth noting that this pattern can be seen in other settings - both sport and commercial. I recently read that Melbourne Storm coach, Craig Bellamy, has had a total of 25 other head coaches or assistant coaches as a part of his coaching staff over the past 20 years! Commercially, companies like GE and Procter & Gamble regularly see (and celebrate) their leaders moving on and up to other companies. It seems like many great chefs can be traced back to working in another world class kitchen under a leading chef like Marco Pierre White.
A focus on your team's legacy - across boundaries and over time - is another way to frame up the team's success. Keeping one eye on the bigger picture and the longer game can be a way of driving performance here and now.
Here are a couple of questions for you to consider this week:
What is the legacy that you want your current teams to have?
Have your previous teams left a legacy with you that you can carry on?