Vision and Strategy Consultation Stakeholder Event 27th April 2017

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1 27th April 2017 Developed by: 1

2 Introduction BAFA, the National Governing Body of American Football, in consultation with Sport Structures, gathered stakeholders from the organisation to a vision and strategy consultation meeting on 22 nd of April 2017, at Allianz Park. Over 35 people from the American Football community attended, including volunteers, coaches, and officials. Four board members attended to support the day. The aims of the day were to seek feedback on BAFA including; strengths and limitations, to define the vision and agree strategic aims and objectives for the future. Strengths and limitations of BAFA Stakeholders undertook and strength and limitations exercise to determine the state of the sport now. Headline strengths The stakeholders respect the work that the sport has done, and is positive about the passionate workforce and the opportunities to play. Headline limitations The stakeholders however lamented the poor player pathway, workforce issues and communication from the board. Table 1 Swot of BAFA Strengths Limitations A passionate volunteer workforce Many opportunities to play the sport Many opportunities to play competitive American football. Year on year growth, with future potential Registration system Good practice in certain areas, e.g. youth, women, further education, and adult participation. Board is self-aware - know it limitations and are seeking to improve Good levels of participations Social media presence Player pathway is unspecified and unclear- for example age ranges, participation, and performance Workface issues, not enough qualified officials, coaches etc. Clarity of roles on the board Communication from the board to the stakeholders and vice versa. BAFA is not a transparent organisation Lack of planning strategy and vision at all levels. Membership management Poor operation of BAFA as an organisation Positive networks Inclusivity of sport as a whole Loss of good practice over the years Note enough volunteers at BAFA board level Scheduling of competitions no clear calendar. Too easy to start new teams- no development control 2

3 Opportunities Threats Potential for growth, (4 years) Board continuing to run operationally NFL endorsement and support Other sports Sport England money? Facilities issues Sponsorship deals and commercial arrangements Poor member behaviour Staffing Current culture of membership Operational processes Repeating past mistakes/ past decisions Vision BAFAs current vision is an outstanding sport where more people can participate and perform in an accessible, inclusive, enjoyable and safer environment generally members are on board with the vision, but feel it can be changed to better reflect the future. Furthermore, participants were asked to describe BAFA as a vehicle now, and in 4 years times. Clear negative views that align with the limitations of BAFA are clear in its current state, alluding to its poor direction and unclear strategy. In four year times, stakeholders are realistic, they want a professional, accessible, suitable, organised BAFA, that is respected as a NGB. Table 2 Key word findings of Visions vehicle exercise Lost/ unguided x2 Directionless x2 Potential Blind Underpowered Unclear Current Reactive Transitional Baggage Acceptable Lot of effort Not going far Future (four years times) Professional x2 Respected Sleek Communication Dynamic Clarity Robust Development Guided Well-engineered Inspirational Sustainable Visible Accessible Organised Strategy themes BAFA current strategic themes were detailed at the meeting. Stakeholders generally agreed with the strategic aims of the organisations that the Board had put together. However, they were more passionate about people, participation, performance; this is detailed in the tables below: 3

4 Table 3 Current BAFA strategic theme 1. People; Developing a resilient sporting habit in our players, coaches, official, volunteers, and spectators. 2. Participation; High levels of activity in a variety of American football-related contexts that allows people to enhance their physical, mental, and social well-being. 3. Performance; Highly effective performance pathway in which players, officials and other staff can learn, develop, and thrive. 4. Leadership & Governance; Diverse, skilled, and experienced decision-making, which contain independence voice and operates effectively. 5. Communication & Transparency; Transparent and accountable, engaging effectively with stakeholders. 6. Finance & Operations; Compliance with all regulations and have appropriate financial controls, whilst organising high quality events and experiences. 7. Commercial & Marketing; Utilising enterprise expertise to grow the game and thrive in the increasingly competitive sports marketplace. Stakeholders were given the strategic themes of, people, participation and performance. They were tasked with developing the action points to achieve strategic objectives, specifically, some key actions that should be addressed in the coming year. The other themes of the strategy are to be tackled by the Board later, and clear action planning will follow post reporting. The findings from this stakeholder analysis are detailed below and could be used to shape the first-year action plan. Table 4 Stakeholder feedback on strategic planning People Developing a resilient sporting habit in our players, coaches, official, volunteers, and spectators Players Change of culture of the membership towards BAFA. Coaches National education system Licensing of coaches including minim standards Mentoring of coaches Financial investment in coaching workforce. Referees Accessibility of courses and access Education and process Review best practice. Education and recruitment Recruitment campaign Financial investment in upskilling referees Management workforce Recognition of volunteers/ management Education process- e.g. tool box based on best practice and benchmarking Accreditation Job descriptions e.g. medics Revise standards of paid staff, 4

5 Participations High levels of activity in a variety of American football-related contexts that allows people to enhance their physical, mental, and social well-being. Clear player pathways Strategy towards age groups Regional staff- e.g. development officers School- cubs link advice tool kit Level of youth s development Incentives or requirement for full player pathway Clear development plan Club legislation, criteria for investment and chartered standard style format. Clear marketing of participation of American football product e.g. Touchdown football Coaching at all levels Inclusivity at all levels. Evaluation of programmes and new entrant numbers Performance Highly effective performance pathway in which players, officials and other staff can learn, develop, and thrive. Appoint national programme director to align all teams Structures, set a long-term calendar Align all games to formats in Europe Implement plans for a national performance centre Develop camps incorporating coaching development Board Session Whilst the stakeholders were engaged with identifying the strengths and limitations the board engaged in a session looking at key competences as a board. This drew out some key issues about how the board behaves and identified some key developments for the future. Key findings Culture Stakeholders do respect the work BAFA has achieved over the last few years American football has a membership culture which threatens the future of the sport Stakeholders are passionate about the future of BAFA and want to see and support change. Stakeholders are realistic, they want a professional, accessible, suitable, organised BAFA, that is respected as a NGB. The Game American football has a passionate and committed volunteer workforce at all levels Many opportunities for American football to grow exist American football has several workforce gaps that are effecting the development of the sports at all levels The player/competitive pathway is unclear thus stakeholders are unclear of the pathway of participants from grassroots to high performance, this impacts all levels of the game but is particularly the case in the transition between the junior and adult game. Leadership American Football has clear strategic themes, but needs clear strategic actions on how to achieve these. Although the vision is understood a new sharper focused vision and objectives should be considered. Board roles need to be clarified based on the functions needed to guide and deliver the strategic plan. This new form could lead to different levels of governance dealing with the business and the game. BAFA has a Board and stakeholder culture thinking and behaving operationally which need to be changed if the sports is to progress. 5

6 Recommendations Strategy The Vision should be sharpened to reflect the feedback from the stakeholders and should be underpinned with objectives that grow the game and sharpen the organisation. The strategy should be reviewed and sharpened to address operational and competition issues. The strategy should have a clear four-year plan and a one year implementation plan that should identify the actions to be put into place to realise the vision in four years time. Use the stakeholder thoughts on people, participation, and performance to shape action plan for the next year. The Game Player/competitive pathway- a full player pathway/competition pathway should be developed to define the pathway players will take from school engagement through to long term engagement in the sport either at the highest level or on a regular basis. Develop a high-performance plan that structures the sport at the highest level to enhance performance. Clarify the coaching and official s pathway and identify educational points that are essential to growing the game. Governance Considering the needs of the strategic plan review the skills, competencies, knowledge and experience needed on the board to support the functions within the strategic plan Consider a revised governance structure that addresses growing the business and implementing the growth of the sport. Consider the allocation of resources into staffing to meet the needs of the strategic plan. Develop a communications strategy that will provide more effective communication with stakeholders. Plus 6