Emergingleader.com Leadership Blog

Is Lineage Important in Leadership?

Today's NFL team presidents and owners are caught up on lineage. Nothing illustrates this more than the recent hiring of Eric Mangini. Eric is 33 years old and has been a career assistant to Bill Belichick and Bill Parcells. Twelve years ago he was an intern making copies and ordering pizzas with the Cleveland Browns.

His speech at the Jets press conference was filled with name dropping and statements about who he has worked for and what he believes he has learned from them. There was not much about what he HAS done.

According to the New York Times, "The Jets were not dissuaded by Mangini's lack of head-coaching credentials, focusing instead on his experience under Bill Belichick.

Mangini has worked under Belichick with three teams over 10 seasons. He also spent three seasons plugging into the expertise of Bill Parcells when Parcells was coaching the Jets.

"That's like getting your M.B.A. from Harvard, only the football version," Mangini said last year, referring to his exposure to Belichick and Parcells. "They're arguably the best professors you can get."

This hiring is tantamount to hiring one of Donald Trump's minions because you are trying to create a show about an "apprentice".

Pro's of Eric Mangini

• Lineage (OK - he did work under Belichick and Parcells for 12 years - he may have picked up something).
• He has been on coaching staff of three superbowl champions.
• Actually played college football which is important to earn respect of the players.
• There might be something to actually giving a new guy on the block a chance.
  

Con's of Eric Mangini

• Youth - he is not much older than most players. He is certainly not much older than many coaches. He will have a hard time being a leader. He will have to resort to "do this because I said so" leadership style which doesn't work well with professional athletes.
• He has not "been there". While he was on championship coaching staffs, he was not the defensive or offensive coordinator. He was the defensive backs coach.
• OK - giving a new guy on the block a chance might work out, but he has no track record. Let him earn his stripes in the college game. There are plenty of coaches out there that have a proven record of success. Why not one of them?
  

Good luck, Eric!

posted by JMB @ 8:13 AM