Motivation of professional rugby players affected by different management styles



Introduction

Occurrence of problems in an organizational setup need attention, and must be addressed at their earliest. If not taken into consideration, these problems may spread to such an extent that they might hamper the performance of the people involved. This can in turn hamper the overall performance of a department further hampering an organizations performance. Hence it is immensely important that any issues that arise within an organizational setup are handled immediately, for issues that arise between the management and the workers, it is immensely important that a solution is reached upon. Foppen, (2000) emphasized that, “management is of pivotal importance for modern society.”

The issue that has been selected for study is how the motivational level of the rugby team is affected by different management styles adopted by its coaches. The rationale behind this study is to gauge how the behaviour of management is impacting the behaviour of rugby players by motivating or demotivating them. The problem behind that has contributed towards the study is dissatisfaction of rugby players from their new coaching team. The previous coaching team

was asked to leave after a bad season.

According to the players, the bad season was due to injuries with some of the main players and not because of any lack at the coaching team's side. According to the players, the previous coaching team always welcomed their feedback. It always involved the players while making any decisions. Coaches in the previous team never tried to impose their decisions on the players, rather encouraged them to give their comments on everything. The players were welcomed to discuss their issues and suggestions openly with the coaches. They were also encouraged to take decisions on their own according to the situation they were in. Communication between the coaches and the players was clear and open. According to the players, the previous coaches believed in innovation above execution whereas the current coaching team believe in, execution above innovation. This means that the new coaching team has a very authoritative style and does not allow the players to make decisions on their own. The players have complained that the decisions made by the new coaches are based solely upon statistics and not upon what is appropriate according to a particular situation.

In order to find a solution to the problem arising between the coaches and the players, it is important to study the problem in detail. This study of problem will involve collection of data through observations and unstructured interviews. Such collection of data will help to gain an insight to where the problem actually lies. It will also help to figure out if there is a need to bring a change in the management style of the new coaching team. According to Drucker (1984), managers are a dynamic, life giving element in every business. The role of a manager is immensely important for promoting or demoting the performance of a player. They are the managers who can rectify ...