Aspire in the World Fellows Book - 2023

/60 I have sport science background, having worked in professional football now for 26 years. I think the area of recruitment and retention is one you’re not really trained for until you start making such decisions, which I believe is a failing of our education processes. My background was studying for a PhD, looking at injury epidemiology. So, having a focus on the risk management of players took me into a role within the Football Association, where I worked for 8 years before finally making the leap into club football. I spent 3 years at a couple of different clubs before joining Manchester United in 07/08 season. So, I’ve been at the club nearly 16 years, where I’m now in a role involving performance insights. You’re looking at information that can help decisions in the front office in terms of recruitment and retention, but also in the back office supporting the medical team, performance staff, coaching staff; any information that can help make more informed decisions. We also have a research and innovation arm to the work we’re doing; trying to be proactive and finding ways that we can get a competitive advantage on the pitch. Recruiting your staff is one of the most important decisions you make because if you get it wrong then it can lead to a lot of heartache and disrupt your operation. Nowadays, a manager may bring seven staff with them, and you understand why, because their longevity might only be 18 months. So, they need to make things work straight away. But we’re looking to appoint staff within our organization that have a long- term future. I use the resources in the club to help me get to the right answers. I get a lot of support from our psychology department from a behavioural perspective, in terms of getting the right fit. What is the right fit? You must have a feel for people. There are no strict criteria that we adhere to. Certain values that the club has stand true and we would expect any person who comes into our organization to have the same values. The depth that you go into, the time that you spend on it is, is influenced by the role you’re appointing. For example, leadership roles, such as lead sport scientist or head of performance. As a department, our process involves mapping out the qualities that we want in an individual, considering what the role is going to involve, in addition, to a combination of the required hard skills and soft skills. In terms of interviews, first impressions are huge, just the way someone walks into a room and sits down. You develop a feeling for someone straight away. The importance of reaching out to colleagues at other clubs where they have worked before is also useful. If you get a real honest opinion from someone you trust, of that person working in a different environment, then I think that holds a lot of value. Staff want to understand what investment you as a club are going to make in them, to further their career. You want people who have got a growth mindset. Picking things up from different sports, willing to push themselves and get out of their comfort zone and, seeing what the best athletics coaches are doing. When they’re stood in front of a group of footballers, they must be good at what they’re doing. They don’t have to have played the game, but they must be able to demonstrate certain things, to have credibility in front of the players. If they’re coach facing, they need to be able to develop those strong relationships, qualities that fall under the soft skills mentioned earlier. Richard Hawkins ManchesterUnited FC: Director ofFootball Insightsand Innovation