Regular readers of this blog will know that I was against the appointment of David Moyes from day one and it’s interesting to compare the way in which he was appointed with the recruitment process for senior people in my industry.
For starters I would never ignore a person’s c.v. Mr Moyes’s c.v. Stated the following;
No experience managing a big club
No experience buying big name players
Never won a trophy
Very little champions league experience
If you were an MD looking for a COO would you really hire someone with no experience of the role you were intending for them? Generally you wouldn’t unless maybe they were an internal candidate whom you knew and trusted.
If you were looking externally you would at least want to speak to a few candidates just to benchmark your chosen one? Not if you are Manchester. United of course.
When I am in the process of selecting a high level candidate I take myself across to their current business and assess how well run it is, after all, these day most people have pretty good interview skills, I’m more interested in their ability to “walk the talk”. Had United taken a moment to look at the Everton team they would have seen dour, boring, defensive football with the primary objective being not to lose the game…….not exactly the qualities that are welcomed in Manchester United teams.
Finally, you would look for someone who can demonstrate the ability to get the big decisions right, who can hit the ground running, who has the self confidence born from years of experience and achievement.
Does any of the above sound like David Moyes…….I think not!
A leader needs to do more than just inspire people, they need to inspire confidence, this is especially important when things are not going too well. Sadly David had the air of a defeated man almost from day one………
I am sad to see anyone lose their job, however the whole sorry saga brings to mind a line from an old Clint Eastwood movie “don’t let your ambition outweigh your ability”. It’s fine to have a dream, but at some point you actually need to wake up and smell the coffee.
random outpourings 