Brian Kelly is the head coach of the University of Notre Dame’s top-ranked football team. During the 2012 season, Kelly’s third season as head coach, the Fighting Irish compiled a 12–0 record, with exciting wins over powerhouses like Michigan, Stanford and Oklahoma.
In November, the team earned the #1 ranking for the first time since 1993, and in December, Kelly was named Associated Press Coach of the Year, capping a season that will culminate in a bid for a national championship against Alabama on January 7, 2013.
Success Leads Kelly to Notre Dame
When he arrived at Notre Dame in 2009, Kelly had racked up a successful coaching record at Central Michigan University and the University of Cincinnati. He had also earned a slew of “Coach of the Year” honors throughout his career. However, when he arrived in South Bend, the Irish defense would present a challenge. It was ranked 86th in the nation in yards allowed per game. Despite some core talent, the team failed to execute a successful strategy at crucial times in too many games. Turnovers, incomplete passes and penalties plagued the team. In addition, there were issues with physical and mental stamina, as indicated by the fact that in the three seasons prior to Kelly’s arrival, the team had won only three of 13 games in the month of November.
Under Kelly, the Irish played a difficult 2010 schedule, went 7–5, and were victorious against Miami in the Sun Bowl. The next year, 21 out of 24 starters returned, but the team started the season with back-to-back losses. Still, under Kelly’s leadership, the Irish compiled an 8–4 record and secured another bowl bid. Unfortunately, Florida State came out on top of that battle.
Clearly, after two consecutive 8–5 seasons, something had to change. And for coach Brian Kelly, that something was fundamental. He decided to focus on personally developing his players not only as football players, but as students, leaders and all-around athletes.
A New Focus on the Players
As the 2012 season began, Kelly made some staffing changes that allowed him to return to what he enjoyed most and does best: coaching his players. He spent more time with his team, getting to know the student-athletes better. He learned their strengths, weaknesses and interests. He helped develop their confidence and leadership abilities. Ultimately, this approach led him to build what the Notre Dame football program needed most: a tougher defense, plus players with the physical and mental strength to play well through all four quarters of all 12 regular-season games.
The first step was to give the strength and conditioning coach a higher level of influence. The strength and conditioning coach is intimately involved in player development, observing and evaluating them both in-season and off-season, during workouts, practices and games. And like the head coach, each member of Kelly’s coaching staff also builds a close relationship with each player.
Kelly’s Winning Philosophy
In 2012, the Notre Dame football organization went from unranked to number one in the country, thanks to Brian Kelly’s effective leadership and philosophy of focusing on winning every day. With his holistic approach to each player’s physical, intellectual, spiritual, social and skill development, the team reached the pinnacle of college football.
Kelly’s attention to detail has influenced his players to improve in everything from keeping their lockers clean and tidy, to being on time and taking better care of themselves. It has led him to build a coaching staff that is more about being teachers, educators and communicators. And it has resulted in Notre Dame becoming the first college football team that is ranked #1 for both its record and for its graduation success rate.
It’s clear that Kelly thinks far beyond developing bigger, faster and stronger players. He cares more about building relationships that encompass trust and accountability. He helps players understand how basic values can lead to success both on and off the field; how important responsibility, respect for others and commitment to each other can lead to winning football games.
How You Can Apply Notre Dame’s Leadership Philosophy in the Business World
It may appear that coaching college football and leading in a business environment are two entirely different challenges, requiring different skills and approaches. In fact though, any business leader can learn from Brian Kelly’s philosophy for success. And even though he’s working with young college students – not experienced professionals – his team-building skills are definitely worth borrowing.
5 Ways to Build a Winning Team, Notre Dame-Style
- Build strong relationships with each team member. Get to know their strengths and weaknesses.
- Develop your team holistically, focusing on intellectual, leadership and skills development.
- Instill attention to detail in your team, including keeping work areas neat, arriving on time and completing tasks thoroughly.
- Focus on winning every day – not just when the pressure is on to meet specific goals.
- Find out if each team member really cares. Do they want to be there? Are they committed to the team’s goals and to each other?
By learning from one of college football’s most successful coaches, you too can build a strong and successful team, capable of reaching the top of your industry.
BIO: This guest post was provided by Dean Vella who writes about topics related to online business management and leadership courses for University Alliance.
The above video discusses Dell's Push-Pull.
The video is a summary of my interview with the Institute of Supply Chain Management for their monthly publication "Inside Supply Management." Here is a link to the Push-Pull article that appeared in the 2011 magazine: Download Feature Push-Pull Oct-Nov2011[1]
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