·
They are essentially the CEO of the high
performance side of sports
·
It is a very high profile position
·
They need to be able to develop and foster a
high performing and challenging environment within their sport
o
Doing this requires excellent planning skills
and the ability to develop in depth strategic plans for high performance
programs and athletes
·
They need to be ruthless! – this position
requires tough decisions to be made on many different aspects within the sport
and structure and the performance director needs to be steadfast in doing what’s
best for the sport and the programs
·
Thus, their ability to lead and be a leader is paramount
o
This also entails being able to surround
themselves with and select the right people who they will be leading
o
These key staff members and managers tend to be
difficult, but highly valuable to the; sport, director and team
o
They need to be able to develop solidarity with
those who are answering to them the create a cohesive environment to make
things work
·
More commonly the position of national
performance director entails managing a team of high performance managers who
in turn manage and are responsible for different high performance areas; i.e.
o
Science and medicine
o
Coaching
o
Athlete development and talent identification
etc
·
The national performance director will generally
report upwards to the sports executive director and the board of the sport
o
In some countries the overarching funding body
of the sports play a major role in the selection and management of the sport
and of the national performance director too
·
Important
requirements of the high performance director include;
o
establishing the vision, mission and culture of
the organisation
o
strategic planning
o
effective management and governance of the sport
o
development and implementation of the national
programs and establishing KPI’s
o
performance monitoring
§
Both of staff and athlete (how are the programs
going?)
o
liaising with and management of partnerships and
stakeholders
§
government, media, international and national
regulators of the sport etc
o
the professional development of the staff they
oversee
o
competition and training camp programming
o
and the management of facilities and resources
·
The
high performance director needs to possess excellent personnel management
skills
o
they need the ability to recruit highly skilled,
high performing staff who are committed to the sport and the organisation – it is
essential
§
with this they need to be able to recognise the “soft
skills” of the person they are interviewing for a particular position
·
soft skills = interpersonal skills – these are
critical in staff selection
o
being able to attract the best athletes and
staff to your organisation is key, but then also being able to encourage and
develop them
o
ensuring group dynamics and cohesion is
essential, along with the ability of dispute resolution
o
ensuring staff don’t burn out is also critical
to making sure the sport and programs run optimally as well as looking out for
the welfare of the staff you manage
·
the high performance management role is very
labour intensive
o
tend to work a lot of extra days (overtime) and
take very few days time off in lieu
o
very few days are spent supporting the athletes
at training camps and competitions
o
they need to also keep track of how
long/often/much their staff are working
§
due to potential legal issues and to prevent
burnout
·
LTAD
pathway
o
National performance director is primarily focussed
on the podium level athletes
o
But, they also will oversee and have
responsibility for a talent development pathway and to also ensure there is a
program in place for it
o
Utilisation of the long term athlete development
model
·
Athlete
development team
o
Key staff in high performance senior management
group which leads the performance strategy of the sport
o
Their operational responsibilities include;
§
Athlete selection – termination, conditional reprieve,
based on criteria matrix
§
Agreeing on the athletes personal development
plan
§
Monitoring and implementation of the athletes
professional development plan which will be based on
·
Case conferencing of athletes
·
Coaches reports of athletes progress and
potential for further development
o
Objectives of the ADT include;
§
Bringing together key support staff to share
expertise and support athletes in their pursuits of performance and medals
§
Ensure excellent communication between the
members of the team so everyone is aware of each other’s activities
·
Provides clarity and transparency concerning
what each team member is saying/doing with each athlete. This ensures
o
Best practice
o
Team unity
o
Openness in working practices
o
Not sending mixed messages
o
No unsanctioned actions or opinions
o
And that responsibility s appropriately
delegated
·
Allows athletes to voice concerns/ requests
o
The members of the ADT are decided by the performance
director and will be formed by key professionals in the following roles;
§
Performance director
§
Head coach
§
Sport doctor
§
Team manager
§
Science staff
§
Performance directors admin
§
Any other professionals might attend meeting
when additional expertise is needed; e.g. sports scientists, strength and
conditioning coaches etc
§
Strict confidentiality MUST be observed by those
in these groups/gatherings
§
Athletes can attend for the duration of the
meeting concerning their own development, they may also request a mentor attend
as well
·
Competition
planning
o
Performance directors have to maintain an
strategic overview of major competitions for their sports
o
A primary KPI that must be met is all the medals
targeted as being a possibility of winning must be won
o
Performance directors need to work closely with
sporting organisations and associations to ensure athletes, coaches and support
staff have the best possible
§
Travel plans
§
Acclimatisation strategies
§
Training facilities, medical support
§
Accommodation
These dot points are just a brief summary of some of the
aspects faced by a person in the role of a high performance sports
director/national performance director. The level of commitment and planning
required for the position is phenomenal and respect must be shown to those
people who successfully occupy these positions. I was not previously aware how deep and multifaceted this position actually was and these weeks lectures have engrained on me the level of sophistication, specialisation and professionalism required to perform a job of this calibre.Having enrolled in this unit and been shown some of the greater depths of the sporting industry, it makes me very excited to see where my career can potentially head in my current sport.
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