During May of 2015, Eight Laces Consulting had just over 300 assistant coaches at both the high school, and collegiate level complete a survey about Head Coaches. This survey was a follow up to a survey about Assistant Coaches. I encourage all Assistant Coaches to read those articles as well, which you can find here in the archives.
THE #1 THING THAT ASSISTANT COACHES SAID THAT HEAD COACHES NEED TO IMPROVE IS THEIR COMMUNICATION SKILLS!
Here is what Assistant Coaches said, word for word, about communication needing to be improved by the Head Coaches they work with.
Communication with kids
- I’d be much more effective at communicating with the kids and creating a winning atmosphere.
- Communicating with our student athletes. Game planning and knowing what the plan is when communicating it to our athletes
- Relay the vision of the program to all stake holders
- Communicate a clear plan to the players, hold them accountable to that plan.
- Definitely communicate more effectively with the staff, the players, and the parents
- Better communication out of season with current athletes and better job recruiting our own campus
Communication with assistant coaches
- Communicate details to my asst. coaches
- Improve the communication with coaches. Give coaches clear cut duties and make them accountable to those duties. Improve weightlifting program
- Communicating expectations, roles of staff
- Relay the vision of the program to all stake holders
- Definitely communicate more effectively with the staff, the players, and the parents.
- Listen to me and let me feel like my voice is heard. Give me freedom to take charge of projects that I want.
- Communicate with staff, collaborate ideas, widen my play calling horizons, organizations/time management
- Communicate vision, build unity amongst the staff.
Communication with parents
- Communication with parents and community to build a schools that loves football.
- More effort in engaging the parents, faculty, &community.
- Relay the vision of the program to all stake holders
Communication with admin and teachers
- Relay the vision of the program to all stake holders
Communication with the community
- Better communications and relations with the community
- Bringing in the rest of the town and helping to build up the team as a community event that everyone wants to be involved with.
- Relay the vision of the program to all stake holders
More on communication
1. Organize and communicate more.
2. Communicate and stay organized/have a plan.
3. Communication Off season workouts
4. Communicate verbally more effectively.
5. Communicate with the feeder programs
6. Communicate better, be more organized, work better with others, have more discipline.
7. Communicate, fundraising, empower assistants more
Chris Fore is a veteran Administrator, Athletic Director, and Head Football Coach from Southern California; he currently serves as a Principal. He has written four books and produced coaching manuals, available at EightLaces.org. Both schools where he served as Athletic Director set school records for championships won in a single school year, and were recognized for both sportsmanship and academic excellence. Fore holds a Master’s in Coaching and Athletic Administration and multiple education credentials. A Certified Athletic Administrator, he served as President of the California Coaches Association (2018–2021) and has held various other leadership roles in several different organizations. A sought-after speaker, Fore has contributed to national sports publications and appeared on radio and podcasts. He also serves as an expert witness in athletic lawsuits. Follow him on X!
