Well, I don’t need to tell you that life as we know it has changed. Personally, being stuck at home has been a welcome change to my hectic life which, up until COVID-19, involved school drop off and pick ups, going to work, to trainings and games for myself and the kids’ sports, going from one committee meeting to another for multiple clubs and sports, presenting workshops, organising sporting events and functions, to now …. not. I needed to slow down, and COVID-19 has forced me to do that (I can also see the bottom of my pool table, which up until now has been my makeshift closet for all clothing in the house). The reason I am mentioning this is for volunteers in ‘clubland’ (that is, community sporting clubs), they may be feeling the same. In fact, I was talking to one of my friends the other day who said this whole situation has changed his perspective about what is important, and he is reconsidering the amount of involvement he has with his local football club. Up until now, he has been on the club’s committee, a coach, and with three children playing for the club, was out almost every weeknight at meetings or trainings and on the weekends to multiple games. I am sure he is not the only one.
So, what impact will COVID-19 have on sporting clubs once we can return to a ‘new normal’?
Community sporting clubs are still going to play an extremely important role in our society. They will provide an opportunity for social interaction and for people to feel part of their community. With the current social isolation, this is going to become increasingly more important. But on the flipside, clubs may also find that their current volunteers may feel they wish to reassess their current commitment within the club and to create a ‘more balanced life’. So, what can clubs do right now?
1. Keep engaged with your members
With the current social distancing requirements, clubs are in an ideal position to use technology to keep in contact with their members to ensure they are safe and still engaged with the club. Organising Skype or Zoom sessions with teams, coaches and club committees will help members feel connected. Clubs could start online social game nights for members, set challenges and have fun together. Websites such as Houseparty and Free Apps for Me provide ideas on games you can play over applications such as Zoom, Skype, or FaceTime.
2. Remote coaching
Clubs could post video highlights of last season’s games for players, or coaches could run coaching sessions that players can do from home – this could include video analysis of skills and techniques. What exercises and conditioning can coaches give their players that they can do at home? Here are some tips on being a remote coach https://www.trainingpeaks.com/coach-blog/your-guide-to-becoming-the-best-remote-coach-possible/ and https://www.trainingpeaks.com/coach-blog/retain-your-athletes-through-covid-19/.
The next three areas will be based on how people are feeling and what they are going through. With COVID-19, people have lost their jobs, and may be struggling with uncertainty, sickness or depression. There are plenty of services out there to assist your members, such as Head to Health and Headspace. So, if your members are struggling, you may wish not to consider points 3–5 because they could be the furthest thing on people’s minds. But if you feel it is the right time and your members are in a good headspace to engage with it, then go for it.
3. Review volunteer roles
Conduct an audit of what volunteer roles are in the club and who does what. Maybe look at ways to reconfigure roles or duties within each position to capitalise on people’s skill sets and share the love (i.e. workload) so not one volunteer has too much. Each role should have a role description (there are plenty of examples available on the Internet, so no need to reinvent the wheel). Give the volunteer an example of their role description and ask them to review it and add or remove tasks and then send it back. Asking them what aspects they enjoy and don’t enjoy about their role can help with realigning tasks. You may wish to also reconsider people’s job titles. Check out my blog post if you would like to think a little differently about your committee roles at.
4. Succession planning
Once COVID-19 settles, and we go back to a ‘new normal’, would your club survive and be able to function effectively if key people in the club were to leave or wish to cut back on their volunteer commitment? If the answer is no, then the club needs to think about succession planning. Succession planning means understanding what is involved in each position, documenting the roles and how each task is performed, and setting a plan in motion to ensure that if someone were to leave that another person who understands the role can step up and take on the position. It’s about training someone now to take on a role in the future. Refer to Succession Planning.
5.Review of the Club’s Governance
Governance is just another word for the system by which the club is managed – how the objectives of the club are achieved, the culture, rules, policies, communication and decision-making. One thing clubs can do right now is review their policies and decide what needs to be updated, included, or removed. If a club does need a new policy, chances are that other clubs do too, so there is no need to start from scratch– there are plenty of examples available, such as:
- Play By The Rules (examples: Alcohol, Chaperone, Codes of Behaviour, Communication, Disability Inclusion, Member Protection, Picking Up and Dropping Off children, Social Media, Spectator Behaviour, Smoke Free, Team Selection).
- Good Sports Program (examples: Alcohol, Healthy Eating, Safe Transport).
- Club Help (examples: Conflict of Interest, Diversity, Financial Management, Health and Safety, Information Privacy, Sponsorship).
Clubs should:
Step 1: First check with their State and National peak bodies to ascertain what policies they require and what they might already have covered as part of their affiliation (e.g. a Member Protection Policy).
Step 2: Conduct an audit of their current policies and when they were last updated. If there is a change to legislation that might affect your policy, it should be reviewed sooner. For example, in South Australia there has been a change to the requirements for volunteer screening (July 2019) that has impacted clubs.
Step 3: Review each policy and determine if it is still valid, or if it needs to be updated.
Let’s get through this challenging time and prepare now for when we can all get back to playing the sports we love.
Yours in sport
Kat
Keystone Sporting Solutions 