Leading from the Middle

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Caption: Latvia's basketball team's head coach Luca Banchi greets supporters in Riga, Latvia, Sept. 11, 2023. The team finished 5th (out of 32 national teams) at the 2023 FIBA World Cup. (Photo by Edijs Palens)

I asked AI's Bard for Luca Banchi's "secret sauce" for coaching Latvia's basketball team to unprecedented heights. This time, Bard got it pretty much right, absent any sources, of course:
"Banchi refused to accept that Latvia was a minnow on the world stage. He believed that the team could compete with the best, and he instilled that belief in his players."
"Banchi gave his players the freedom to make decisions on the court, which helped them to develop their confidence and their ability to play under pressure.
Banchi's "secret sauce" is a combination of all of these factors."
Bard does fail to mention "kustībā" which is Latvian (and the Italian Mr. Banchi's favorite Latvian word) for "in motion".
When I reviewed several of the highlights reels of Latvia's victories, I perceived a great deal of kustībā - the ball got passed at a head snapping velocity and accuracy multiple times all over the court. Often, the final recipient managed a score. I saw much sharing and little egotism.
For example, star player Artūrs Zagars set the World Cup record for most assists in a single game with 17.
Mr. Banchi, now a national hero in Latvia, offered - tirelessly - multiple interviews to an enthralled nation.
Banchi said his goal as a coach was "to make the players autonomous ..."
"More than once he said his team 'doesn't need a coach any more' after a win over Brazil."
Earning the World Cup's Best coach award, he said that "it is not for the coach, it is a prize for the best team."
When asked for influences on his coaching philosophy, he cited a 2013 book: "Legacy: What the All Blacks Can Teach Us About the Business of Life" by James Kerr.
Legacy breaks down how New Zealand?s rugby team
consistently wins far more often than loses and the leadership philosophy behind the winning.
Early on the All Blacks moved away from a top-down leadership and " transfer(red) the leadership from senior management to the players...they play the game and they have to do the leading on the field. The traditional 'you and them' became 'us'."
For the All Blacks, "(s)hared responsibility means shared ownership. A sense of inclusion means individuals are more willing to give themselves to a common cause."
Which, coincidentally, pretty much sums up my Letting Go
theory, a leadership principle I practiced my entire career. So, I am not put off by the notion of a manager allowing workers to make decisions, allowing workers to strive for best practices; in other words expecting workers to think and act for themselves and the organization.
Sure, that puts you at risk but only in organizations wedded to the hierarchy - think micromanaging - and fearful of sharing the decision-making power.
Alas, I worked in several organizations like that and while for the most part my philosophy was tolerated by a few of my bosses it was threatening to many top-down managers.
They were never going to declare that their unit, department or team, "doesn't need a coach any more"!
While the top-down style can keep any company going, I feel like it fails to unlock a much greater potential and higher productivity.
But, and there is always a but, I could have done my brand of "letting go" better. By that, I mean enlightening, empowering and equipping staff to be let go. I should have done more, like the All Blacks , in developing a culture of honesty, authenticity and safe conflict.
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ONLY a click away, in time for gift giving :

And, for a variety of insights about letting go Leading from the Middle, is available at Amazon.
Copyright John Lubans all text 2023

 

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