However solid and focused teams might be, they still need proper managerial communication for success. Savu (2019) supports this by postulating that team success relies on the team’s ability to embrace collaboration, able team leadership, and proper motivation. Aube and Rousseau (2011) further assert that teams provide a vital competitive advantage to organizations since they are very effective in achieving organizational goals in the contemporary business world. In this paper, I will talk about a soccer team that I am part of and how managerial communication and team leadership, in general, have affected our success.
I am a soccer player, playing for a men’s soccer team called Eagles United Soccer Club. The team’s primary purpose is to provide an avenue for nurturing and showcasing soccer talents through the development of competitive soccer culture. The team’s ultimate goal is to be the leading and most successful men’s soccer team in the whole of Atlanta. The team was established on the 29th of January, 2017 and has been operational for the past five years. The team comprises two board of directors; three staff members (including the club manager, assistant club manager and the club training manager); and twenty five soccer players. The board of directors plays a vital role in offering a sense of direction and facilitating the club with relevant resources. The team manager, assistant team manager and the trainer provide the appropriate leadership, training and motivation needed for team success, whereas the players collaboratively execute the team’s goal.
During the first year, Mr Jones, one of the two managing Directors, was the team manager. Mr Jones assumed the role automatically to fill a managerial void as an interim manager hiring a permanent manager. Mr. Jones was charismatic, highly focused, result oriented, principled, and assertive. His able leadership and effective communication laid a good foundation to the team. At the beginning of the second year, Mr Albert was hired as the new club manager, with six months probation before he was appointed the permanent club manager following his success on the job. Mr Albert must have been the best candidate for the role since he was selected ahead of ten other prospective managers shortlisted and interviewed for the same position. Having had a track good record in managing soccer teams, winning two major trophies for the past three years, every club member hoped that he would display the same at Eagles United Soccer Club. Mr Albert was vocal, emphatic, considerate, charming, assertive, influential, and result-oriented. He highly valued autonomy and feedback in his communication style.
The first and foremost task of the team at the arrival of Mr Albert as the club manager was to win a major trophy within two years with the available squad of twenty five soccer players. The club manager started by reorganizing the team and having every team member set their personal goals. The club manager effectively resolved any conflicts between and among the team members. He mostly approached conflict with an active-constructive approach, where he emphasized a win-win outcome in every conflict. As postulated by Le Nguyen (2011), this approach is very effective and efficient in resolving disputes where a win-win outcome is desired. In addition, the club manager was a great communicator, paying attention to detail in both verbal and non-verbal communication. Whenever anyone approached him with any issue, he would listen and keenly observe the body language while providing appropriate gestures and facial expressions and feedback where necessary.
Furthermore, the team manager clearly defined and assigned clear and definite roles to each team member, stating the expectations of the position. He provided accurate and timely information to all the team members, and he valued immediate feedback. Moreover, he was very principled and firm in his decisions. I remember a point during his first month of arrival when he suggested that I should transition from being a midfielder to a striker due to my phenomenal finishing skills. I thought about it, and through effective communication involving immediate feedback, we both arrived at a consensus, and I became a striker. We won two major trophies during the second and third season with Mr Albert as the team manager, thus accomplishing our first objective as a team before he willingly exited the club at the end of the third season. Mr Albert was an effective team manager who used his leadership and communication skills to deliver team success. He was the best individual for the team manager role.
Formed, managed and appropriately facilitated, teams have the capacity of making an organization gain a competitive edge. Team success requires an effective leader characterized by: properly executed managerial communication; and attention to detail in both verbal and nonverbal communication combined with immediate feedback. Further, a good team manager plays a central role in empowering, motivating, and directing team members towards achieving a common goal. Moreover, it is important to note that team success also requires collaboration of team members.
References
Aubé, C., & Rousseau, V. (2011). Interpersonal aggression and team effectiveness: The mediating role of team goal commitment. Journal of occupational and organizational psychology, 84(3), 565-580.
Le Nguyen, H. (2011). Partnership strategies: pro-active and pre-active approach in conflict management in international joint ventures. International Journal of Business and Management, 6(9), 38.
Savu, I. (2019). Amplifying performance in virtual teams optimizing communication strategies. Res. & Sci. Today, 17, 112.
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