Governance in the context of Cohesion Analytics refers to how an organisation develops Cohesion within their environment from the senior leadership down. Without appropriate direction from the top of an organisation, high Cohesion and the long-term sustainability that comes with it is virtually impossible. This is not to say short-term success can't be achieved, it's just that it will be fleeting. Governance can be as simple as alignment and permission or an all encompassing organisational vision. A lack of strong governance or lack of desire by an organisation's senior leadership to understand the status of an organisation tends to lead to misalignment. In a misaligned system even the greatest coach will have trouble reaching the desired levels of performance or there will be a misunderstanding about what can be achieved.
In 2010 the Richmond Tigers AFL club announced their 10 year vision (watch from 9.45). Part of this vision was to win 3 premierships within the next 10 years. This was following 9 seasons of no finals appearances and 30 years since their last club premiership. When they won the 2020 AFL premiership they had achieved the goal of those 3 premierships. All evidence indicates that their plan succeeded but even as late as 2016, a year before their first of the 3 premierships Richmond's ability to be successful was being called into question. To quote one AFL journalist "The existing formula hasn't worked. And this wretched year should have underlined that in its current shape, it's a team and list with a very limited outlook". However, the signals that Richmond had been building from 2010 were there. The fact that the club had been patient with the build is a strong signal of an aligned organisation with backing and leadership from the governance of the organisation.
The chart below shows Richmond's In-Season Cohesion leading up to the 2010 10 year vision and beyond. In-Season Cohesion is one of the drivers of performance on the field - it's the equivalent to the "strength" of a team. During this time other Cohesion markers were following a similar positive pattern, such as markers that track evenness and spread of Cohesion, or "weaknesses" across the team.
While Richmond didn't make significant perceived performance improvements in the first few seasons following 2010 their markers were improving. By 2013 they are starting to have the capacity to compete with other teams at finals time.
During this same time the threshold for teams to be involved in finals was reducing making the job of Richmond easier. It is now not so hard for them to make finals. Included in this is their unique Home Ground Advantage (see The GAIN LINE Report #36). Richmond have set themselves up for a strong period.
That "poor" 2016 season mentioned by the journalist above was driven by high Cohesion "weaknesses" not enabling the team to function effectively. Without this context it can be understood why the club didn't seem to be making any progress. So when Richmond won their first of 3 premierships in 2017 but with lower In-Cohesion markers than in 2016 they had significantly reduced their "weaknesses" across the team making them a more effective outfit. Across a lot of sports it more about a teams weakest link than their overall strength (see The GAIN LINE Report #35).
Decisions made back in 2010 enabled Richmond patience to develop their Key Cohesion Markers to the point that they were finals competitive. Without the 10 Year Vision any one of the previous season leading up to the 2017 premiership may have been enough for the club the blink and change to another path, a path that would have most likely taken a number of season to build towards if at all.
The chart below shows the change of the In-Season Cohesion and TWI Markers for Liverpool FC. While always being a relatively successful Big 6 club their recent high levels of success with the Premier League and across competitions has been driven by an improvement in their overall markers.
We believe there is a Bundesliga influence in the way Liverpool has been developed over Klopp's time in charge (no surprise there). The Bundesliga is one of the highest Cohesion football competitions, which is a function of the governance of the clubs and in a way the club governance systems are a reflection of German corporate governance with in-built systems of checks and balances. So while Liverpool's success looks to be driven by one individual, this has been influenced by governance structures with inherent checks and balances in place.
Australasia’s Best Sporting Team 2020: Melbourne Storm
Platinum Asset Management, together with GAIN LINE Analytics, are pleased to present their analysis on Australasia’s (Australia and New Zealand) Best Sporting Team (ABST) 2020, and delighted to announce that Melbourne Storm have won the award for the second year in a row, having also won the NRL Premiership for the second time in four years.
Every game in every sport in Australasia that conducts an ongoing home/away or equivalent competition that included Australian teams has been analysed subject to the competition criteria. The annual analysis, based on rolling five year outcomes (2016-2020), has grown to 18 competitions, including 7 women’s competitions, and the unisex Oceanic Pro League (esports). Over 8,000 individual matches were included in the dataset analysed. ABST brings an analytical approach to how relationships within teams (‘cohesion’) are important drivers of outcomes; this is often overlooked as conventional analysis tends to study talent and leadership.
ABST hopes to start a new conversation about greatness, reward success and unearth some hidden gems. While there were small movements among the leaders from 2019, Crusaders (Rugby Union), who won our original long term analysis (1994-2018), closed the gap at the top after winning Super Rugby Aotearoa, their fourth title in a row. The top five is rounded out by Sydney FC (soccer), NSW Breakers (women’s cricket) and Richmond (AFL), all of whom look like they could be forming dynasties in their particular sports.
GAIN LINE measured cohesion in NRL, Super Rugby and AFL; the three teams highlighted have the highest TWI (Team Work Index) score for their competition, which is GAIN LINE’s measure for cohesion created via organisational governance. 2020 was an unusual year for Australasian sport due to COVID-19 and travel restrictions. It was perhaps no coincidence to see NRL Winners Melbourne Storm, AFL grand finalists, Richmond and Geelong, and netball champions Melbourne Vixens operating in Queenslandbased ‘bubbles’, forgoing interaction with families and friends, though developing intense team spirit, and extra time to focus on the detail.
The rise of women’s sport continues with 64 teams now under analysis. This year we saw a second female team break into the top 10, Melbourne City (soccer) joining the NSW Breakers among Australia’s finest. Evolving trends led to the inclusion of esports in the ladder, with Chiefs Esports Club highest ranked at 11th overall. As traditional and online worlds converge, Adelaide Crows (AFL) has a stake in this year’s OPL (Oceanic Pro League) winners, Legacy Esports. We expect esports to continue to grow, though the local league has been disbanded for now. As ABST gains profile, we note more clubs aspiring to be the best sporting team in Australia.
The media has quoted leaders from Sydney FC, Melbourne Storm and Richmond Tigers all talking about striving towards such ambitions.The Crusaders told us in 2018 they actively collaborate with, and learn from, the world’s best. Platinum has worked with GAIN LINE previously with regard to what makes a team successful and this has led to a focus on our own team ’cohesion’ as a key driver of success.
In recognition of Melbourne Storm’s success, they were today presented with the opportunity to make a donation to a charitable cause. The club has chosen to support the Starlight Children’s Foundation, an Australian charity dedicated to brightening the lives of sick kids. In creating over half a million Starlight Experiences each year, they make a positive impact through bringing fun, joy and laughter to help sick children.
Clips from the presentation press conference here.
GAIN LINE Analytics has created a specific Cohesion Analytics Webinar Presentation Series. The online presentation series will allow for a time and cost effective way to learn about the impact of Cohesion on team dynamics, how governance decision impacts long-term performance and how recruitment and selection influence day-to-day outcomes.
The presentation series will be broken into Corporate, Sport and unique areas within each such as specific sporting codes.
Webinar Recommendations
"GAIN LINE Analytics have built an amazing program proving that teams who place building cohesion at the center of their operations are much more likely to have success on the field. Too many teams fail to recognize the power of cohesion and while they may have excellent coaches and top athletes, if they fail to build cohesion, they are missing significant opportunities."
GAIN LINE is an operations and management consultancy with a unique perspective on success in professional sports and business. We believe great teams are more than just the sum of their parts; we believe great teams are the product of the linkages and connections within a team. As such, we help organisations build these linkages and connections with a view to sustainable, long-term success. As distinct from other firms in the industry, GAIN LINE places a strong focus on data analysis and quantitative research. This means we offer our clients solutions that are grounded in evidence and real-world experience.
