Doing it Differently
by Miki Saxon
It’s the same whether in business or athletics.
Call it habit or tradition, when a new boss takes over she’s likely to bring in her own team.
This is especially true when the new boss is there to turn things around.
Common wisdom says the boss needs people who are loyal and know how she works.
But when Urban Meyer was brought in as head coach to turn Ohio State around he changed the standard game—and he’d started long before he got the offer.
Meyer figured he would eventually coach again, and he knew that his next head coaching job, his fourth, would be different. His staff would not be stocked with loyal assistants who understood the Meyer Way and its demands. (…) He wanted coaches with local ties, who understood the tradition at Ohio State. He also paid attention to the coaches’ wives. He had seen others “create conflict in our programs.”
Instead, he worked on a list and identified the people he wanted for his new team—relative unknowns as opposed to highly paid stars—and it worked.
To that end, he hurriedly assembled a group of relative strangers when he took over at Ohio State and then kept the group intact for a second season. Together, they have won 19 straight games, their next challenge coming Saturday against Penn State.
I hope you take time to read the story about this boss who brought in disparate people with disparate backgrounds, shared his vision and approach in detail, worked especially hard on strengthening the culture and avoiding previous mistakes.
Because, so far, all the stakeholders are winning.
Flickr image credit: Nina Matthews
