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Contents

Team Leadership: Oakland Falcons Football Team    3

1.0 Discussion of the Team    3

1.1 Purpose and Goals of the Team    3

1.2 Structure and Composition   3

1.3 My Role in Oakland Falcons  3

1.4 Successes and Failures  4

2.0 Critical Analysis of Falcons Team Leadership   4

2.1 Team Communication   4

2.2 Team Conflict 5

2.3 Team Leadership   6

2.4 Motivation   7

2.5 Team Culture  7

3.0 Specific Recommendations for the Topics Discussed   8

3.1 Team Communication   8

3.1.1 Philosophy of Transparency   8

3.1.2 Philosophy of Friendliness  8

3.2 Reducing Team Conflicts  9

3.2.1 Definition of Acceptable Behavior  9

3.2.2 Speedy Resolution of Conflicts  9

3.3 Team Leadership   9

3.3.1 Delegate and Empower  9

3.3.2 Develop a Vision   10

3.4 Motivation   10

3.4.1 Encourage Team Work   10

3.4.2 Eradicate Team Boredom    11

3.5 Team Culture  11

3.5.1 Fidelity to Team Values  11

3.5.2 Configuration of Objectives to Achieve Team Culture  11

Team Leadership: Oakland Falcons Football Team

Oakland Falcons is a football team currently competing in the American high school league category. The team is based in Oakland City, in the United States.

1.0 Discussion of the Team

1.1 Purpose and Goals of the Team

Even though tactics of team sports change from depending on the circumstances of the team, the most important motivations remain the same. It is usually acknowledged that every soccer team applies defensive and offensive goals. From this view, we understand that the main defensive style is meant to win the ball from opponents and is believed to be the first step in scoring of points for the team. This is achieved by limiting space and covering areas where opposing players are likely hurt most. On the other hand, offensive goals are achieved through forward movement and ends when the ball is scored in the opponent’s goal.

1.2 Structure and Composition

The Falcon team consists of the chairman, team manager, 4 team coaches, medical staff, and the playing unit. The team has 25 players of which 4 are goal keepers, 8 defenders, 9 midfielders, and 4 strikers.

1.3 My Role in Oakland Falcons

As the team captain, my most important role was to provide leadership on the pitch during games. It is important to note that apart from match day duties I also performed various duties as explained in the following discussion. First, I ensured that the team had the required number of goalkeepers and outfield players. This was necessary so as not to gift opponents’ free points through walkover. I also recommended substitute players according to the team’s policy. Together with the team coach, I participated in placing advance requests for changes on specific matches to the soccer league management according to league guidelines. In the same way, I was responsible for passing information to team members in regards to predetermined training times and changes, and training venues as fast as was practically possible. I also worked together with my vice-captain on match day duties. My role also extended to presenting team pictures before matches and at the end of matches as well. My role also included encouraging team members to take part in all training sessions, to inform team leaders of their preferences as may be met without breaking existing laws of the  within team’s structures.

1.4 Successes and Failures

In the last campaign, we took part in five competitions, three of which were cup competitions. It was observed that our team had longer winning streaks in cup games, which helped us to clinch the Governor’s cup last year. However, league games were difficult as the team maintained a win ratio of 0.5, the joint fourth lowest in the division.

2.0 Critical Analysis of Falcons Team Leadership

2.1 Team Communication

One of the persistent problems at the Falcons team when I captained the team was poor team communication. From the beginning, I decided to communicate mostly using group level communication. But, as I connected further with teammates, I changed my style and became more understanding. This helped me to put myself in the shoes of players and was additionally able to utilize goal-setting as a means of boosting each player’s performance. I have also been aware of the fact that there is no single correct approach to management of player. However, I find it right to use various strategies as it fits well with transactional features of contingent rewards. Through the use of unofficial discussions with team members, I have learnt to blend intellectual stimulation of players with the good rewards of personalized observation. The unstructured discussions are defined in terms of musical exercises and encouragement of players to employ creativity to tackle challenges, while the motivation of players was born out of through genuine concern in team members and adjusting to satisfy their needs over and above the process.

2.2 Team Conflict

When I was appointed Falcons captain in 2019, I noticed a clear lack of collectivism which I later learnt were caused by poor communication skills. Today, I have come to accept the impact of the dangers of unresolved issues emotion and increased conflict on our team. By so doing my captainship engineered extraordinary change in the team. The changes included constant encouragement of team members to share their opinions and sentiments in respectful, civil and objective ways. This strategy put team interests first, mostly through promotion of team dignity, and promotion of tested conflict resolution strategies and team spirit were upheld. Similarly, I noticed an apparent lack of conflict resolution skills as a problem. I felt a strong desire to teach other players the importance of conflict resolution skills on overall team performance. But, I also understood that I did not have a natural capacity and skillset to resolve conflict. My own weaknesses, and lack of positive team culture of my team needed fixing and I grasped the chance to learn innovative approaches to team communication, thought, and action. In this way, I was able to weaken the impacts of conflicts, and was successful to arrest the same before they got worse. Correspondingly, I had the chance to observe and shape my team members on the basis of their attitudes to team tactics and leadership. Unfortunately, holding to the same line of thought, I realized that some situations required severe responses from me that could be intensified to get rid of team divisive players. My previous love of adjustment of environmental causes of conflict and promotion of people’s ability to deal with problems had failed, and I felt compelled to “weed out” members who had demonstrated continuous lack of desire to improve their skills. Under the circumstances, wayward members were declared as surplus to be liabilities and were promptly offloaded.

2.3 Team Leadership

Team leadership is identified as an important predictor of “leading from within”. It promotes team work as well as some degree of autonomous authority. In the early stages of my leadership, I endured opposition from some team members. I had to draw inspiration from inner strength to bypass present challenges by renewing my conviction that success had a lot to do with the pace at which I proved myself with superior skillsets and personal attributes that exceeded my predecessors. Rather than use force, I had decided to engage with the “remorseful” dissenters through persuasion. Therefore, as I moved towards inclusive leadership, my humane qualities started to commend me to the aforestated team members. This kind of selflessness has been defined as a leadership virtue which exceeds mere absence of selfishness and holds promise for higher ideals of seeing, comprehending, internalizing, and accommodating views of opposing team members. I have benefited immensely from other team players especially in physical training sessions in the absence of the coaching team. Working with difficult team members and initiating their turnaround offered me great lessons on the importance of rhetorically savviness in communication and I was appropriately rewarded in that respect. Communications skills are necessary for achievement of lifelong goals which extend beyond mere words. This experience, changed my perception of leadership as I made it a priority to explain my decisions to team members.  I learnt that part of my role as a team leader was to build trust among all team members to as a means of maintaining fruitful honesty, truthful opinion, and team flexibility.

2.4 Motivation

In the early weeks of my leadership, I proposed a motivational plan for my team. Motivation as an essential element of team performance encourages team members to sacrifice themselves to achieve overall group goals. I have always had an inborn belief that steady positive motivation will cause an improvement in team performance from members the same way negative motivation will reduce performance. In this regard, motivation is an important component of personnel management. With the benefit of hindsight, I can state with confidence that steady supply of motivation and complements is necessary after witnessing near-collapse of my team due to low motivation. In addition, it can be stated that both quantitative and qualitative research associate highly motivated teams with positive outcomes such as persistence, creativity and productivity. It still defies logic, how in a span of 21 days of consistent training and motivation, my team initiated a strong turnaround that led to the longest winning streaks in our history. From this experience, I realised that it did not matter whether the source of motivation was within the team or outside the team. The impact was palpable nonetheless. On the basis of the statements above, it is safe to conclude team leaders should not only issue heart to heart talks to their teams but should provide sufficient reasons as well.

2.5 Team Culture

Another reason for Falcons’ decline was a negative team culture, expressed through intense competition, never-ending partying, widespread slander, gossip and lack of understanding. I realised that I had to work harder in my role to redefine team culture as well. I am convinced that I needed to personify the phrase, “lead by example,” knowing full well that when people are not sure of what is right, they turn to their leaders for guidance. I needed to be that leader. For instance, when I extended my training ground periods, I realized that teammates followed my lead to a man. Before then, it was customary for team captains to skip training sessions, rave on the eve of matches, and spread the same pattern of recklessness into the field.

3.0 Specific Recommendations for the Topics Discussed

Our team characterized a work in progress. However I believe some recommendations are necessary for improvement. Two recommendations are made for each topic.

3.1 Team Communication

3.1.1 Philosophy of Transparency

On team communication, I believe that the philosophy of transparency is necessary. Maximum benefits are achievable through open door policy from which an atmosphere of transparency is cultivated. By the same token, this policy prevents gossip as well as accompanying trends f secrecy around details of work day programs and benefits.  Transparency also promotes equal access to information. Depending on the magnitude of concerns, it may be necessary for employees to wait for answers from their leaders. Whatever the case, an open door will encourage team members to seek clarifications on urgent questions as necessary.

3.1.2 Philosophy of Friendliness

Besides transparency, a friendly atmosphere has been linked to self-controlled leaders. These leaders also support active engagement with team members. Consequently, the approachable leader will consistently drop in on teammates for queries, evaluations, and productive discussions.

3.2 Reducing Team Conflicts

On reducing team conflicts, it is necessary to outline acceptable behavior as well as tackle conflict expeditiously whenever they arise.

3.2.1 Definition of Acceptable Behavior

Numerous works suggest that mere definition of the ingredients of acceptable behavior could reduce costly team conflicts. For instance, a clear delegation of authority statement could encourage team work by instilling a sense of direction; team work, leadership training, and talent management will drastically reduce conflict. In football teams, it is important to define tasks for players to realize team expectations; well-articulated chain of command, operational communication structure to avoid conflict. Team members should know who the vice-captain is, who handles spot-kick duties, who takes dead balls, and every other tasks.

3.2.2 Speedy Resolution of Conflicts

Conflict avoidance has been identified in several publications as the curse of team collapse. While it helps to acknowledge that team conflicts cannot be totally eradicated, there is concurrence that the solution to continuous conflict is deliberate identification of areas of potential conflict and pre-emptive measures to prevent their occurrence in the first place. However, when conflicts arise, it is advisable to thwart their intensification through quick interventions. In football teams, bust-ups in the training ground may instigate sentimentality and enmity, which may hurt team progress.

3.3 Team Leadership

3.3.1 Delegate and Empower

Power struggles within groups are fast defining modern teams. One strategy for empowering teams is through delegation of power and responsibility as may be appropriate. A leader should find ways of encouraging team members as a means of acknowledging their worth to the team pursuits. In many settings, delegation of tasks is synonymous with a sense of responsibility which prevents team members from waiting to be instructed on mundane tasks. It also displays a vivid ambitious leadership approach that focuses on innovative pursuits.

3.3.2 Develop a Vision

It is also recommended that team leadership should be guided by an executable vision from which team activities are anchored. Indeed, it is argued that visionless leadership gives rise to role confusion, conflict, and failure to meet most important goals. It may also lead to team losses in dollar terms. So, the vision transforms activities into a common goal and forms the basis of team fulfilment and satisfaction. In executing the vision, it is also necessary to provide graphical representation of the desired future state of the team.

3.4 Motivation

Sometimes teams experience low levels of self-esteem. Such undesirable situations usually result from burnout or frustrations from a string of losses. Whatever the cause of the low morale the team captain has a huge task of encouraging team work and accommodating all views.

3.4.1 Encourage Team Work

Innovative leaders should try to remove bureaucratic and hierarchical barricades within the team structure. It has been suggested that this can be achieved through a philosophy of honesty and accommodation of ideas from every employee. The team leader should appreciate the unique skills and attributes of every team member. They should also take keen interest in individual desires of team members, and devise ways of integrating individual interests and group goals. The leader should communicate to all team members that no single strategy will yield good results all the time.

3.4.2 Eradicate Team Boredom

In team sport, the leader should be keen to spot variations in attention span of team members. Some members are known to exhibit high work rates over extended periods while efficacies of others are experienced irregularly. The team captain should understand such dynamics and determine how best to obtain the most from every team member.

3.5 Team Culture

Positive team culture demands that the leader should demonstrate to members that their contribution is valued and crucial to overall team success. Therefore, the team captain should regularly invite members to express their views on day to day training and strategic sessions. 

3.5.1 Fidelity to Team Values

To achieve this, it is recommended that the team captain should ensure that team activities do not contradict stated values. It is worth noting that if the team captain is not “walking the walk,” other team members will be inspired to do likewise.

3.5.2 Configuration of Objectives to Achieve Team Culture

Finally, the team captain should embrace the role of ensuring that team departments, namely, defense, midfield, and attack are aligned to support team culture. Team culture in this respect reflects the style of play, recruitment strategies, and mannerisms. Every team member should be encouraged to support team culture through collaboration and innovation. Crucially, the captain could be an instrumental source of information during periodic cultural audits.