“San Francisco believes in stability on the mound, in the dugout and in the front office. Everything else is malleable.” – Tom Verducci
Have you have ever worked in an organization with constant employee turnover? If so, then you know the insecurity that will exist among the employees in this type of environment. You also know the low morale and decreased productivity that will be there.
What is even worse is when there is constant leadership transition. Constant leadership transitions rob the organization of vision which results in a lack of confidence and long-term emotional investment in the organization. If a leader voluntarily leaves feeling “the grass is greener” somewhere else, then why should the employees be expected to remain? If the leadership transitions are due to poor performance, it creates a complete lack of faith in leadership.
I have recently done a lot of thinking on the subject of stability. It may surprise people but the Cincinnati Bengals are my favorite football team. I am absolutely pumped they are playing the Houston Texans today in the play-offs. Their future looks very bright.
Today on ESPN’s NFL Countdown, Tom Jackson pointed out that 31 of the 53 players on the Bengals roster were drafted and developed by long-time General Manager Mike Brown and the team’s head coach for 10 years Marvin Lewis. They are doing a tremendous job identifying, retaining, and developing talent. The team now has organizational stability.
Listening to Jackson’s words reminded me of an article I read in the November 5th, 2012 edition of Sports Illustrated regarding the World Series champion San Francisco Giants. The great baseball writer Tom Verducci noted, “San Francisco believes in stability on the mound, in the dugout and in the front office. Everything else is malleable.” Notice the tenure and stability of the team’s leadership:
- Head Coach Bruce Bochy – 6 years
- General Manager Brian Sabean – 16 years
- Vice President of Player Development Dick Tidrow – 19 years
- Vice President of Baseball Operations Bobby Evans – 19 years
- Director of Player Development Fred Stanley – 13 years
- Pitching Coach Dave Righetti – 13 years
Sports, football in particular, provide a great model for having a successful organization. If you have alignment and atunement from your ownership to your general manager to head coach down to your quarterback, you will likely have sustainable success.
I once heard it takes 5 years for a pastor’s vision to become reality in a church. Therefore, if pastors are constantly transitioning, then vision never fully takes root. The church then never gains momentum. Just in case you are wondering, changing pastors is rarely the answer. Many times it simply takes the church back to square one beginning the 5-year cycle all over again. Stability is a gift, whether on a sports team or in a church or business.
From the Browns to Marvin Lewis to quarterback Andy Dalton, my beloved Bengals now have stability. They should be very good for the foreseeable future. What about your organization?
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