Following the resignation of Gareth Southgate as England manager, there has been an explosion of articles and eulogies about him. Most of the commentary is not about his tactical skills as a football team manager but about his leadership skills. This is unprecedented.
Gareth Southgate’s leadership skills
What is it about Southgate’s leadership skills that have captured our attention? The ILM describes him as a leader "that inspires and empowers”. It also claims that he is "a leader I could happily follow to find hope”. These are strong, emotive words.
Grahame Robb Associates calls him a transformational leader and lists the many qualities that make him an effective leader. The qualities they list are:
Team ethos: “Southgate values the importance of teamwork”
Humility: “His willingness to go on learning.”
Empowerment: “Starting each game with a positive attitude.”
Resilience: The ability to bounce back from setbacks.
Courage: The ability to make difficult decisions.
Transparency: The ability to listen to all sides and have open dialogue within the team.
Southgate’s off-field impact
Southgate was also acknowledged in the same article as having "had a wider impact, much bigger than football.” Indeed, Southgate is "building national pride and a community.”
The man himself pretty much acknowledged the bigger picture in his "Dear England" letter, which he wrote to England fans in March 2020. It was written when the pandemic forced the cancellation of all fixtures and upturned people’s lives. He is well aware of the power embodied in the England football team regarding the country's collective consciousness.
What happened?
It is obvious from everything written about Southgate that he is a decent human being. The successive generations of England players that he has managed over his decade in that role speak positively about the man. Many feel a strong loyalty to the England Manager. The big question then is: if this is all true, why is Southgate leaving the job of England Manager with a small cloud hanging over him?
It is clear that there was a lot of frustration at the recent Euros – from the gifted young players left on the bench when others on the pitch did not perform, and from notable football pundits, such as Alan Shearer and Gary Lineker, when we watched the negative hold-up play tactics.
Leadership is contextual
England did not perform at the level expected of them.
The contradiction between the eulogies in print and the direct experience of people watching the game illustrates a great leadership truth. There are no magic formulas or qualities that guarantee success because, above all, leadership is contextual.
When the environment changes, leaders need to change, or they fail. Whatever great qualities they display. This is why so many leadership development programmes are broken; they lack tools to explore the context of an individual's own leadership experiences.
The way Spain played in the final was completely different from how England played. Ranking individual players, England trumps Spain. On the field, however, Spain’s aggressive, unrelenting press triumphed. England were simply outplayed.
Southgate stuck with a plan and a style of playing football that appeared to be out of sync with the way other national teams were now playing. He patiently waited for the perfect moment when a second of genius could transform a game. It turned out that the second or two of genius was no match for consistent, aggressive football.
Four leadership lessons
There are four lessons to be learned about leadership that should take us way beyond agreeing on lists of immutable qualities of great leaders.
1. Do your fieldwork!
Southgate should have been out there talking to players and managers and even listening to foreign commentators on the game. Asking the players what such and such a team was doing differently and what seemed to be working in their league.
He could have explored whether the context was changing and, if so, how. To be able to change, you need to know that change is necessary and that the environment is shifting under your feet.
2. Reflection in action is critical
If something is going wrong, you have to assume that your decisions could be part of the problem.
3. Experiment more
Try out a new approach and chop it out if it is not working. The game is over 90 minutes long. There is room to experiment with new players and new tactics.
4. Take a systems approach
Southgate could have examined the games from a systems point of view. This means not focussing on individuals but the entire process at once. You do not blame the players, you blame the processes and the systems in which they are forced to operate.
The great talent theory has been debunked for a while. Its core idea is that if you can secure a handful of extraordinarily talented people and give them any support they need, they will do the job regardless. This is simply not true. Brilliant people working in a different context cease to be brilliant. It is the systems that make them brilliant. Each game of football needs a different system focused on challenging the opposition.
Final takeaway
The best leaders are always the ones who adapt following observation and interrogation; they understand that they are leading in context.
Southgate’s intellectual robustness, empathy and willingness to surround himself with experts who could help team psychology and focus were admirable and key factors in his success. What was missing was just a little bit of systems thinking!
