Thoughts caretaker management

There has been much discussion on the BBS about the possible appointment of Paul Heckingbottom as caretaker chief coach until the end of the season. Most contributors seem to favour the idea. I do not want to see the club rush into making an appointment, because I believe it is important that the proper due diligence is done to ensure the next guy is the right guy. Nevertheless, I would like to see a permanent appointment made well before the end of the season, although I have no thoughts upon who the right man might be.

In my view, the major reason for our bad start to this season was our failure to attract the right players in the summer transfer window. The chief coach’s job does not end with the final game of the season, that is when it starts, and that will be especially true at the end of this season. There are two important players who are out of contract at the end of June. Four loan players will be going back to their parent clubs. At least two more of our important players go into the final year of their contracts in July and the club must decide whether to offer extended contracts at better terms or cash in and try to find replacements. By the end of this season, the new coach must be in a position that he has looked at all the players and has formed an opinion about their potential, both short term and longer term. He must have reviewed the way he would like to play, decided upon the formation and decided upon the players that best match that formation. He must have a list of players that he wants to keep and a list of players that he wants to bring into the club. He must design his pre-season fitness and bonding programmes that begin in July and he must prepare everything to be ready by August.

Much has been made of the need for continuity with most contributors understanding that word to mean the same coaching staffs, the same system of play and the same tactical analysis. In other words, that continuity refers principally to what happens on the field of play during the 90 minutes on a Saturday. I do not believe that the word, continuity, has been used just in that sense. I think that what happens on the field is determined by the individual playing staff and the way that the coach sees he can best structure playing systems to take advantage of the mix of skills of those players. I do not believe that it will always be possible to play in exactly the same way when the mix of skills of the playing staff changes. It is up to the coach to find the right balance and the right system. It is not easy. It often takes time and experimentation in order to find a mix that works. Lee Johnson took almost half a season before he found a system and a balance that worked, and he had to work with many of the players in order to improve their weaknesses so that they were able to play in the system that best suited the team. It is not something that comes together quickly, and part of the problem is that the players must be confident that the coach is right and that they will win matches if they do the things that the coach asks them to do. Team play, that indefinable intuition when players seem to read one another’s mind, only comes with time.

In my opinion, the word continuity refers to that indefinable thing which some management theory literature describes as “the way things are done around here”. It refers to the organisational culture. It is the way that an organisation works. When you start a new job, you are often used to doing things in a particular way with your old employer and have to change the way that you do things in your new job, even though the job title may be the same. I believe that Ben Mansford and Lee Johnson have changed the culture of Barnsley Football Club. The next manager needs to fit into that culture, be comfortable with the way things are done and must mesh well with Ben Mansford so that their competences do not overlap, which would cause friction and second guessing. The job is now that of Chief Coach, because some of the responsibilities of the Team Manager have been transferred to the Chief Executive. It is vitally important, therefore, that the two job holders can work well together.

The fans cannot hope to find the right man for the job, given their lack of insight into the requirements, and I am not going to speculate on who is the right man for the job. However, when Lee Johnson was appointed, there was evidence that some contributors to the BBS were determined that they would never accept him. For some it was because he had replaced a club legend, for others it was because they had their own idea about who was the ideal candidate might have been and they were determined to be proven right. Those within the game will know much more than we do about the skill set of their ideal candidate. There is always going to be speculation amongst the fans, but once the decision is taken, it is important that we all put it behind us and get on with supporting the new guy.

 

Good thread. Perfectly logical and leaves me wondering whi I might prefer. The head coach position is relatively new in this country although it is widely used on the continent. Most of the names I have heard would not accept the head coach role for reasons of prestige and ego. Perhaps it's time to go abroad for a head coach?

 

With the idea being that the head coach is merely a part of a team who would work with people like hecky, devaney and hassell I think the head coach should be somebody with ties to the club who would work well with them or bring in somebody with ties to replace heckingbottom in his role and promote him to the head coach role if successful. Foster would be ideal to bring into the coaching staff at some level. Loves the club, is well remembered by the homegrown players and very familiar with the coaching staff

 

Never thought I'd read about organisational culture on here. Big fan of Charles Handy myself. The BBS has certainly improved in recent weeks!

 

Why use one word when 500 will do. Only joking Red Rain , pretty much agree with all of that especially the last paragraph. People must understand that Ben Mansford and Patrick Cryne are in a far better position than any of us to recruit the right man. I must say that I am far more positive than I have been in a long time that we are going to find a Manager/Coach that fits with our 'Philosophy' rather than us fitting theirs.

 

A well thought-out and well-expressed post, Red Rain. I know you put these posts on here in order to debate the issues, so here are my views.

I think your point is very well made about needing to go into the close season with a good idea of the relative abilities of the current squad, and a good idea of who we would like (and who we will be able) to retain. I therefore agree that we could do to have some certainty regarding the Head Coach as we approach what could be an exciting coda to the current season. I was always a little bit wary of the "it's the way we've always done it around here argument" when I worked, but I think you are talking about a more sophisticated notion of 'continuity of approach', which I again wholeheartedly agree with. We have a setup with a chief executive, coaching staff and (at last) a team squad which looks a good blend of promise, ability and (in some cases) experience. I totally agree that whoever (notionally) takes the helm should be able to fit comfortably within that structure. This to me rules out any of the 'name' managers who have been bandied about on this forum. Indeed, it speaks to someone who is up and coming, and possibly taking up their first head coach position.

Paul Heckingbottom's profile is excellent. He has like Lee Johnson, much experience of the various leagues as a player. He has the badges, except for the coveted 'Pro' licence (something for the future?). He is already attuned to our desire to play in a style that aids the progression of the Academy graduates. He has Tommy Wright to further assist with the transition, and on top of all that, he has a passion and a connection with this town and this club as a member of the winning Playoff Final team in 2007. Before Lee Johnson came, our habit was to award the head coach or manager a twelve-month rolling contract. I think that Lee Johnson's existing terms at Oldham and our buyout of them dictated that a longer deal was required in his case. There is no such consideration with Paul Heckingbottom, and I think a twelve month rolling deal would afford Paul and the rest of the playing and non-playing staff some certainty about the medium term future. Should things go drastically wrong, then our downside risk would be limited.

I think that looking at where we are right now, the aim ought to be to address the situation in a way which causes least disruption, and which gives confidence that we can have some certainty about the short and medium term future. Let's get the deal done, and let's then get on with addressing the ongoing recruitment situation for now and next season.