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A common trait among many successful HR leaders is their competitive involvement in sports. Alex Scott, a renowned sports broadcaster and presenter, recently concluded the CIPD's Festival of Work Conference with a discussion on leadership. The key takeaway was that participation in sports has not only driven her to achieve remarkable success but has also been instrumental in her becoming a leader of courage and aspiration.
‘It’s ok to ask for help (as a leader)’
I’ve interviewed countless HR leaders and the thing that keeps coming back is that sport for many leads them to succeed in HR. It wasn’t lost on me that Scott is the very example of that – her own rise to fame began with football as a child - from living in a council house to becoming one of Britain’s most loved sports commentators and leaders.
Talking at the conference she said, “Constantly trying to fight for a place for women’s sport or being a female on TV and front and centre all the time – sometimes it's hard and sometimes it’s heavy, but it’s OK to ask for help and bring others along.” Proving that sport made her resilient, tough and hungry to achieve but she also needed support and authenticity to be really successful. She added, “I think because of the environments that I’ve been in it’s always been about having to be that tough and strong one and put up this wall, when actually I have to do so much work to say that vulnerability is OK.”
For Scott, football has been her talent but on her journey to leadership what she noticed too is not to ignore those that don’t ordinarily shine the brightest or shout the loudest. “Normally the quietest person in the room has the most important thing to say and it’s your job to create an environment to empower that person to feel that they can speak and share their views and, yes, you are the leader, and you then make the decisions, but it’s about being a team and getting there together,” she added.
‘Sailing gave me so many lessons in managing teams’
Steve Rockey has spent the last eight years as People Director for boutique hotel chain, The PIG hotels - in his spare time he sails competitively and has done so since he was 11 years old, from a local level to the World Championships around the world. At every event and race he has been taught new things – so much so that he says that every team in his opinion should go sailing because so much can be learned from it.
Here are his thoughts:
