| Want to know how hard KM worked for us? 22:23 - Aug 29 with 5644 views | jasondozzell |
Guardian article about younger managers includes a lot on his routine
But it’s also because modern management is exhausting. At Ipswich, Kieran McKenna would have his coaches present their plans to him for the day at 6am, altering anything he felt wasn’t quite right. That plan would be sent to the staff at the training ground to set up all the various pitches and drills. McKenna would then go to check everything was laid out properly. It was all extraordinarily detailed; everything was marked out, down to where players should stand when they weren’t directly involved and where water bottles would be placed.
During 11 v 11 practice games, McKenna would be the only one who coached. Over his five years at Ipswich, no drill was ever repeated in exactly the same form; repetition and possible staleness were to be avoided at all costs. Little wonder that after a third promotion in five seasons at the club, he felt exhausted, in need of a break rather than taking on an uneven fight in an ungrateful Premier League that could only sap his reserves further
https://www.theguardian.com/fo
He deserves every part of his break. |  | | |  |
| Want to know how hard KM worked for us? on 10:26 - Aug 30 with 914 views | djgooder |
| Want to know how hard KM worked for us? on 07:47 - Aug 30 by RetroBlue |
I suppose you can look at it in several ways. Whilst what he did here was utterly incredible, it also demonstrates a personality that is very rigid, maybe at times even controlling behaviour, but definitely on the autistic spectrum with the intense attention to detail, never wavering from a particular way of functioning.
I used to think he wouldn't do things any other way ( adaptability/ flexibility etc) but I now think he " couldnt" do it any other way. His mental thought processes are extremely high functioning demonstrated by his attention to even the minutest detail, and he never deviated from , what to many, would appear as very rigid, meticulous planning, which would not, by many, be considered as " normal" behaviour, and certainly not sustainable.
Kieran is definitely a wonderful, one off in the game I think, and im sure when he's ready to return he'll have many suitors, but im not sure his mental health will cope with the demands in thd game, given his personality traits. |
Your autism point is interesting. Often considered negative but can be a super power and absolutely needed in certain roles. The question is maybe the support given to him, maybe the mentoring and or examples he’s had.
I am sure he will be taking time to reflect, hope he comes back stronger. I’ll always be his fan. And any team he maanages will become a second team of mine (apart form budgies, blades, millwall, Bolton etc 😀) |  | | |
| Want to know how hard KM worked for us? on 10:36 - Aug 30 with 884 views | AVJones |
| Want to know how hard KM worked for us? on 07:55 - Aug 30 by bsw72 |
Without a doubt he was hard working, but (admittedly based on these paragraphs), to an experienced business leader this could indicate a leaning towards micromanagement and not necessarily 100% trust in his reports if he feels he has to check and approve training plans etc. and all have to meet his very high standards.
One of the toughest lessons to learn in management and leadership is trusting in your direct reports that they understand what the team is trying to achieve and are capable of supporting those aims fully.
New leaders often earn roles because they were excellent individual contributors, so their instinct under pressure is to fall back on doing the work themselves rather than directing others to do it. Delegation feels slower and riskier than just handling it personally, especially early on when they haven't yet calibrated how much they can trust their team's judgment.
Perfectionism compounds this. Inexperienced leaders frequently equate their own standards with the only acceptable standard, so they either avoid delegating meaningful work or delegate it but then re-do or heavily rework what comes back; which defeats the purpose and burns even more of their time. There's also often an unspoken fear that delegating and something going wrong will reflect on them personally (100% true in football where the manager almost always carries the can individually for team failure) which pushes toward over-control rather than trust.
The above leads to a workload that scales with role size instead of shrinking, because they're carrying both their own job and a shadow version of everyone else's. Over time that's a direct path to burnout long hours, constant context-switching, and no real capacity buffer.
I do wonder how much support KM got and/or accepted and the loss of some of his key coaching staff periodically impacted this.
Like I said, I am only basing this on what was written in those 3 paragraphs and is not intended as a criticism of KM as he carried enormous pressure on young shoulders with the clubs rapid ascent. [Post edited 30 Aug 8:22]
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An excellent post.
I’m so pleased his time with us ended in success, you could see and feel his relief after we gained promotion.
Saying that, I hope he gets himself an excellent coach to talk through the learnings, especially in his last 15 months, such as:
- Why did some of the player relationships end as they did? Eg Morsy, Woolfenden?
- What could he have done differently to get a “fast start” in 25/26? - he will certainly need to in whichever Club he goes to next.
- As mentioned in multiple posts, how can he learn to use his energy differently, and focus on the most vital areas? Eg this will not be micro managing training sessions. Trusting other excellent coaches will be Key.
I wish him the very best. [Post edited 30 Aug 10:44]
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| Want to know how hard KM worked for us? on 10:47 - Aug 30 with 836 views | chicoazul |
| Want to know how hard KM worked for us? on 08:31 - Aug 30 by OldFootball |
How many days a week (or mornings) do footballers train? |
Usually 3 sometimes 2 depending on time between games as they have mandated rest between.
For an eg Man City didn’t train at all from March onwards if they were in the CL and FA Cup, they just had tactical meetings. |  |
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| Want to know how hard KM worked for us? on 10:52 - Aug 30 with 830 views | eireblue |
| Want to know how hard KM worked for us? on 07:55 - Aug 30 by bsw72 |
Without a doubt he was hard working, but (admittedly based on these paragraphs), to an experienced business leader this could indicate a leaning towards micromanagement and not necessarily 100% trust in his reports if he feels he has to check and approve training plans etc. and all have to meet his very high standards.
One of the toughest lessons to learn in management and leadership is trusting in your direct reports that they understand what the team is trying to achieve and are capable of supporting those aims fully.
New leaders often earn roles because they were excellent individual contributors, so their instinct under pressure is to fall back on doing the work themselves rather than directing others to do it. Delegation feels slower and riskier than just handling it personally, especially early on when they haven't yet calibrated how much they can trust their team's judgment.
Perfectionism compounds this. Inexperienced leaders frequently equate their own standards with the only acceptable standard, so they either avoid delegating meaningful work or delegate it but then re-do or heavily rework what comes back; which defeats the purpose and burns even more of their time. There's also often an unspoken fear that delegating and something going wrong will reflect on them personally (100% true in football where the manager almost always carries the can individually for team failure) which pushes toward over-control rather than trust.
The above leads to a workload that scales with role size instead of shrinking, because they're carrying both their own job and a shadow version of everyone else's. Over time that's a direct path to burnout long hours, constant context-switching, and no real capacity buffer.
I do wonder how much support KM got and/or accepted and the loss of some of his key coaching staff periodically impacted this.
Like I said, I am only basing this on what was written in those 3 paragraphs and is not intended as a criticism of KM as he carried enormous pressure on young shoulders with the clubs rapid ascent. [Post edited 30 Aug 8:22]
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Depends how you read those few paragraphs.
“At Ipswich, Kieran McKenna would have his coaches present their plans to him for the day at 6am, “
Their plans
“altering anything he felt wasn’t quite right “
Coaching his coaches
“After sessions, coaches would watch them back and report to McKenna on what could be improved before planning the next day’s drills “
Encouraging self reflection and analysis.
Did he develop his coaches as well as build multiple successful teams. |  | | |
| Want to know how hard KM worked for us? on 11:26 - Aug 30 with 778 views | mellowblue |
| Want to know how hard KM worked for us? on 00:41 - Aug 30 by Libero |
How many promotions have you managed your team to in the last four years, again? |
management is management, the underlying principles remain the same. | | | |
| Want to know how hard KM worked for us? on 11:31 - Aug 30 with 761 views | WD19 |
| Want to know how hard KM worked for us? on 00:41 - Aug 30 by Libero |
How many promotions have you managed your team to in the last four years, again? |
In fairness to mellowblue he has fewer relegations. |  | | |
| Want to know how hard KM worked for us? on 12:10 - Aug 30 with 712 views | hadleighboyblue |
| Want to know how hard KM worked for us? on 08:00 - Aug 30 by NthQldITFC |
Yes, the more I read about how KMc worked the more concerning it sounds.
It goes without saying the MASSIVE respect for him, thanks to him and love for him that I think all Town fans feel, and he should be very, very proud of what he achieved - a top, top football manager and human being.
But there are great risks to self and family from working like this for an extended period, and oversight really ought to be preventing that from happening again. I hope that the extremely lucky next club to employ him makes sure that that oversight is in place. |
We have to be forever grateful for what KM did for our club over the whole period he was here .
I agree that a manager should be able to delegate tasks to his assistants , then take a step back and analyse things .
KM was brilliant for us and making the decision to step back would have been a difficult but totally right decision for him to take for him and his family - great credit to him for doing it .
I wish him all the best for the future . | | | |
| Want to know how hard KM worked for us? on 12:35 - Aug 30 with 676 views | stonojnr |
| Want to know how hard KM worked for us? on 23:14 - Aug 29 by mellowblue |
unnecessary over detailing. He needs to learn how to ration his energy. Should have trusted his coaches to do what they are paid to do. In all organisations you have to learn to rely on those under you. You can't do it all and it appears he tried to. Ridiculous really. No wonder he was knackered. |
indeed but he's still young literally and metaphorically speaking in the management game, and thats the kind of thing you only learn from experience over time.
it was something I thought about post the Sunderland game, O'Neill was already talking about and focussing on Tuesdays game, and Id imagine post that game it was all focus on today, and so on
theres no letup is there, no break to even enjoy things, and if youve got a young family, it feels like where do you make the time for them, you are going to miss chunks of their growing up whilst you are focussing on football.
its something that modern football management hasnt really worked out yet in their work/life balance, and as the average age of football managers decreases overall, though weirdly in the Premier league its always been around mid 40s, its likely to become an increasing factor in alot of young managers careers. | | | |
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| Want to know how hard KM worked for us? on 12:52 - Aug 30 with 654 views | Libero |
| Want to know how hard KM worked for us? on 11:26 - Aug 30 by mellowblue |
management is management, the underlying principles remain the same. |
So that’s none then…
Churlish to question the choices of one of the greatest managers to ever sit in the dugout of our fine club. It’s easy to look back in retrospect and say he should have taken this tact, or that tact - reality is, McKenna did what he did and the club benefited MASSIVELY due to his extraordinary efforts. [Post edited 30 Aug 13:12]
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| Want to know how hard KM worked for us? on 13:37 - Aug 30 with 578 views | mellowblue |
| Want to know how hard KM worked for us? on 12:52 - Aug 30 by Libero |
So that’s none then…
Churlish to question the choices of one of the greatest managers to ever sit in the dugout of our fine club. It’s easy to look back in retrospect and say he should have taken this tact, or that tact - reality is, McKenna did what he did and the club benefited MASSIVELY due to his extraordinary efforts. [Post edited 30 Aug 13:12]
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And how much promtion winning experience do you have, so what makes your opinion any more valid. Sheer hypocrisy. You do not need to be a promotion winning manager to know how to look after yourself in management. I have plenty of management experience and meting out your personal resources and where to focus it counts for a lot. There is nothong great in football managers burning themselves out. At the end of the season he looked close to a anervous breakdown of some kind if he continued at the same pace. Not wise and it is partially on the CEO. We fans obviously appreciate what he has done for us and fully recognize what he has done for us. Does that really need to be pointed out by you. And my post comes from concern not churlishness. | | | |
| Want to know how hard KM worked for us? on 10:20 - Aug 31 with 459 views | Libero |
| Want to know how hard KM worked for us? on 13:37 - Aug 30 by mellowblue |
And how much promtion winning experience do you have, so what makes your opinion any more valid. Sheer hypocrisy. You do not need to be a promotion winning manager to know how to look after yourself in management. I have plenty of management experience and meting out your personal resources and where to focus it counts for a lot. There is nothong great in football managers burning themselves out. At the end of the season he looked close to a anervous breakdown of some kind if he continued at the same pace. Not wise and it is partially on the CEO. We fans obviously appreciate what he has done for us and fully recognize what he has done for us. Does that really need to be pointed out by you. And my post comes from concern not churlishness. |
loooool | | | |
| Want to know how hard KM worked for us? on 10:59 - Aug 31 with 426 views | djgooder |
| Want to know how hard KM worked for us? on 12:52 - Aug 30 by Libero |
So that’s none then…
Churlish to question the choices of one of the greatest managers to ever sit in the dugout of our fine club. It’s easy to look back in retrospect and say he should have taken this tact, or that tact - reality is, McKenna did what he did and the club benefited MASSIVELY due to his extraordinary efforts. [Post edited 30 Aug 13:12]
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I agree.
These things are only really discussed in hindsight. He was producing golden eggs so everyone was happy to carry on. But if you don’t look after the goose you eventually looose the golden eggs.
Anyhow, like most of us I guess , I’ll forever be thankful for his efforts. I hope he gets the rest he needs, becomes a husband and a father for some time. As I said previously any future team he manages will be a second team for me. As I’ll support him!
I do hope he reflects and makes some changes next time out though. But maybe it’s the nature of a high pressured job. I’ve been there, I’ve done burnout! | | | |
| Want to know how hard KM worked for us? on 15:03 - Aug 31 with 364 views | Libero |
| Want to know how hard KM worked for us? on 10:59 - Aug 31 by djgooder |
I agree.
These things are only really discussed in hindsight. He was producing golden eggs so everyone was happy to carry on. But if you don’t look after the goose you eventually looose the golden eggs.
Anyhow, like most of us I guess , I’ll forever be thankful for his efforts. I hope he gets the rest he needs, becomes a husband and a father for some time. As I said previously any future team he manages will be a second team for me. As I’ll support him!
I do hope he reflects and makes some changes next time out though. But maybe it’s the nature of a high pressured job. I’ve been there, I’ve done burnout! |
I’m sure he will- people criticising the process of one of the greatest managers we’ve ever had is absurd. | | | |
| Want to know how hard KM worked for us? on 16:18 - Aug 31 with 315 views | J2BLUE |
| Want to know how hard KM worked for us? on 10:19 - Aug 30 by djgooder |
I managed for a while at Amazon. I know that is a swear word for some people. But, they expected three things (actually millions of things 😀) but condensed in to three. 1) Manage your area 2) manage your team 3) manage yourself. There wasn’t a hierarchy in these, you were expected to interleave them.
KM needs to learn to manage himself, maybe he hasn’t had the right example previously? Maybe he was so keen to set the example when he first arrived and couldn’t then ramp it back. Maybe delegation is a challenge for him, it is for so many. Maybe maybe….
He was awesome, but still has development areas. I truly hope for his sake he tries a different approach, maybe only a tweak here or there, and is super successful in his next role. |
Amazing. Any news on the nutrition plans he had the players follow so we can run it past someone who worked at Nandos? [Post edited 31 Aug 20:32]
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| Want to know how hard KM worked for us? on 16:33 - Aug 31 with 292 views | Backtoblue78A |
Hardly worth going home...oh | | | |
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