Billy Gillispie was the sought-after brand of basketball coach that the University of Kentucky was seeking. He was successful at Texas A&M, and Kentucky liked his swagger. They were willing to pay for it. Gillispie was not satisfied with success at the Aggies, and eventually fell for the prospect of moving to a high profile job with a better package. However, high-profile jobs and package upgrades come with a price: higher expectations. No worries: Billy was ready for the challenge.
Game over. On Friday, the Wildcats released Gillispie. The challenge was cut short after Gillispie went just 40-27 in two seasons.
To get from Point-A to Point-B...what's the Lift and Drag, and how long is your runway?
Heroic challenges are fine, but will the employer and employee be honest about expectations? Are they willing to have enough runway to meet that challenge? How much drag and lift exist as the jet is thundering down that runway? If a company is asking you to bring your talent, experience and horsepower to improve their existing situation–what are they prepared to do in terms of teams, marketing, strategy. And, patience. And, how does the current economy impact the runway?
Perhaps Gillispie’s best play was to remain at the friendly confines of A&M, but it’s tough to resist the urge to climb–to reach for that next step on the ladder. Ladders are there to be climbed, right? What’s the drawback?
Fast forward, and what do you get? Kentucky is once again looking for a coach, and this time they’ll have the soiled reputation of an impatient employer that is sending mixed message (“it’s not the losses”). Billy has some money, a “failure” to learn from, but he will also have the added pedigree that he won a high-profile position. Even though he “didn’t win enough of the right games” he now has the “win” on his resume by securing that job initially. Yes, he has his money, that “big job” credential. He’ll rise again. Smarter.
Once burned, twice shy? Will Billy choose his next employer more carefully, or at least have measured discussions about the runway, lift and drag? Will Kentucky adjust their expectations and invest in more than just a coach? Most importantly, how does Billy use New Business Development concepts to set expectations, secure the right environment, and run his business accordingly so that there’s a true win/win from the beginning?
Game reset. Expectations reset? Fast forward to April 1st, and it’s John Calipari that accepts Kentucky’s latest courtship. In accepting, Calipari quickly went to work on expectations for his new business development project: “I do not walk on water,” he told the audience in the Craft Center. “I do not have a magic wand. I’m day-to-day. I told Dr. Todd and Mitch, if you want something to happen in a year, do not hire me. That’s not how I do things. I’m not the grand poobah. I’m not the emperor. That’s not what I want to be. We’re regular people.”
Filed under: Observations
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I am still upset that the AD never mentioned meetings he had with the coach, discussions on what need to be “fixed,” and verbal and written warnings of things that need to be changed. The AD is a director getting paid $400000 per year to direct. Part of directing is “fixing” your employees. I don’t get paid nearly that much, but I do know how to manage and how to direct. I don’t go higher up for a month (to the pres) until I can show what I have done. And, to brag about the UK football coach as how well he has done – well, that is a bit much. I love Coach Brooks, but when all is said and done, we are still cellar dwellers in the SEC.