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Hello everyone, and thanks for clicking through to the High Performance Digest – your definitive monthly sports performance newsletter from Leaders. Matthew Stone here getting ready for the tennis’ grass court season, while the Leaders team prepare the cucumber, orange, and strawberries as Pimms O’Clock approaches…
Next, a reminder that we’re embarking on our second year supporting the NBPA with their Performance Summit at The Sanctuary in Andalusia, Spain. It’s on 22-24 July, and free to attend for our members, so enquire here if you’re interested.
Please do keep sharing this link so all your peers and colleagues can sign up to receive this in their inboxes each month.
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🧠 5 THINGS WE, AND OUR MEMBERS, EXPLORED LAST MONTH
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1. To influence, you need to listen
Jeff Pagliano of Management Futures hosted an ‘influencing skills’ session for Leaders Performance Institute members as part of our Leadership Skills Series.
He introduced the topic of ‘listening well’, which supports influencing in two specific ways.
“It helps the intimacy part of the trust equation and it gives you the context for a person’s point of view,” he said. “You’re more prepared when the time comes for you to share your knowledge and suggest a course of action.
“Active listening is when you’re not only tuned into what someone says but also what they feel and believe, picking up on both their verbal and non-verbal communication is the foundation of intimacy and the antithesis of self-interest.”
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2. Top tips for leading in complexity
In May, we launched a new Learning Series on adaptability in high performance. In the first session, Tim Cox from Management Futures shared seven key tips—one of which was to prioritise time for analysing change.
Key points included:
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- Scan your environment: We're wired to notice change, but teams need structured ways to track shifts—like morale, performance trends, policy updates, or tech developments.
- Use existing mechanisms: Player leadership groups or liaison roles often already gather valuable insights—leverage them.
- Think upstream: Inspired by Dan Heath’s Upstream, Cox urged teams to move from reacting to problems to preventing them—asking not just what went wrong, but why it happened in the first place.
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Read all seven tips here.
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- Culture & Communication: Success depends not just on systems, but on fostering a culture open to change. One manager noted their team is cautious with new tech—not due to disinterest, but to protect core operations.
- Generational Divide: Younger staff embrace digital tools; older staff may need more support. Bridging this gap requires empathy and smart change management.
- Leadership Gaps: Unlike other industries, sport often lacks roles like CTOs or innovation leads—key to aligning tech with strategy. Without clear ownership, teams risk chasing trends without direction.
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As one participant put it: “We need someone who can sit above the noise and guide us forward.”
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4. Coach development cannot be separated from athlete development
Another virtual roundtable explored how to better support athletes transitioning from youth to senior levels.
A key takeaway was the vital role of coach development. Coaches need the skills to recognise and respond to different types of transitions across varied contexts.
One Olympic programme credited its junior performance gains to a consistent, decentralised approach to coach support—benefiting both current and emerging athletes.
Coach-to-coach exchanges also proved valuable, offering space to share insights on common and overlooked transitions, such as injury recovery.
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5. What’s the best leadership skill?
Just being present.
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Virtual Roundtable: Our next VRT is on Tuesday 17 June 2025 and is part of our Learning Series, specially exploring ‘Leading in Complexity’ All the info here.
Events: We have our flagship North American event, The Sports Performance Summit, in Philadelphia on (30-31 July), which is in partnership with our Main Partners Teamworks.
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📖 OTHER THINGS WE'VE DIGESTED THIS MONTH
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🤝 GOOD PEOPLE, GOOD PLACES
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- Tom Harley has left his role at Sydney Swans to become Chief Operating Officer of the AFL
- New Zealand Cricket have named Rob Walter as their new Head Coach, and Daryl Gibson as their new Chief High Performance Officer
- Simon Hayes has been appointed Sport England’s new Chief Executive.
- Stuart Lancaster has been appointed Head Coach of Connacht Rugby
- Damien Comolli has joined Juventus as their new General Manager
- Jordan Ott is the new Head Coach of the Phoenix Suns
- Mal Melinga has been unveiled as a the Head Coach of new NRL franchise Perth Bears
- Seattle Kraken have appointed Lane Lambert as Head Coach
- Marco Sturm has been named Head Coach of the Boston Bruins
- Joe Montemurro has been appointed Head Coach of the Australia Women's Soccer Team
- Pep Ljinders and James French have joined Manchester City as Assistant Manager and Set Piece Coach respectively
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EXPAND THE LIMITS OF PERFORMANCE - JOIN OUR MEMBERSHIP TODAY
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Membership provides access to resources that give organsiations the confidence their teams are developing the knowledge, network and skills that lead to more impactful performance solutions.
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Tuition House 27-37 St George's Road, Wimbledon, SW19 4EU, London, United Kingdom |
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