A P IE CE OF TH E AC TION
which I mean commercially. If the commercial aspect works, the club generates good revenues, and from that flow better facilities, better staff , better players and then again better revenues for the club. Then it’s important that the technical part is there too – and this is also based upon very good human relationships. I think that a good club is a club that looks after its players, looks after its people, looks after its employees, its staff and everything. Its human atmosphere is to me the foundation for success. And it is the manager who is at the centre of that.’ The familiar lesson of putting people first translates directly to organisations in just about every sector and industry; the leader who can focus on his people even in the whirlwind of wider stakeholder relationships is set up for success. The Man in the Chair
‘The single most important thing for a manager is the relationship with the owner of the football club.’ So says Tony Pulis, former manager of Stoke City. Is this simply a case of ‘The man who pays the piper calls the tune’? Or is it that the owner has the potential to disrupt the smooth running of the club? Either way, if the manager can win the trust of the owner, then he will be given the space and resources to pursue his philosophy. If not, then the owner is likely to intervene. It is, after all, his club. If the authority of the manager is tested, then it is his relationship with the chairman/ owner that will most likely present the greatest challenge. The rise of the powerful owner
The acquisition of Chelsea in 2003 by Roman Abramovich triggered across a decade a series of high-profile football club takeovers. The emergence of Manchester City as a new footballing power in
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