Westies new GM

[am Bays]

ANNOUNCEMENT OF NEW CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER
WEST ADELAIDE FOOTBALL CLUB
Release: Friday 11 August 2006 (18.00 hrs)
After a thorough and comprehensive national recruitment campaign, the West Adelaide
Football Club is pleased to announce the appointment of Damien Phillips as their new
Chief Executive Officer.
Damien s background is as follows:
Chief Executive Officer Western Region Football League (Victoria)
General Manager (Victoria) The Cabinet (Corporate Hospitality Specialists)
Chief Executive Officer South Melbourne Soccer Club (NSL)
Sports Liaison and Development Officer - Brimbank City Council
Development Manager - NSW/ACT AFL Development Foundation
General Manager Prahran Football Club (VFL)
Damien is highly experienced at CEO level within both the Football and Soccer codes.
He has successfully implemented business plans within sporting environments which
included: corporate governance reform, club constitutions, marketing strategies,
corporate development strategies, project development and management. Further to
this, he has successfully managed an event and corporate hospitality firm specializing in
the corporate market.
He has had direct involvement and is well connected with organizations such as FIFA,
the Oceania Football Federation and the AFL, together with Federal, State and Local
Government bodies.
Damien holds a Graduate Diploma in Sports Management and next month will be
completing his Masters of Sports Business.
Damien will be commencing in an official capacity with the Club on 3 October 2006
which coincides with the end of his football season in Victoria where he will be
understandably honoring his commitments to the Western Region Football League.
In summary, I would personally like to thank the SANFL and both committees of the
West Adelaide Football Club for their faith, support, high level of professionalism and a
commitment to maintaining confidentiality throughout has been an extremely thorough
and rewarding process.
Regards,
Steve Nolis
State Manager
McArthur Management Services

Well the only way is up.......

Given he comes from soccer and unless he has jumped from job to job in the last 12 months he was there in the days of the old NSL/Soccer Australia and a Greek club at that he is going to have plenty of experience dealing with personalities, hidden agendas, innuendo and self serving elected club officials.

Sounds like just the man for Westies then.....

[am Bays]

All jokes aside for the sake of the comp and the westies supporters hoopefully this is a dawn of a new era the men and (pram) women of Millner Rd

[Wedgie]

Interesting, he'd have virtually no knowledge of the SANFL you'd think.
Great point about South Melbourne though Tassie, Westies will be a piece of cake after a gig like that, a harder job there wouldn't have been.

[Dutchy]

Interesting, he'd have virtually no knowledge of the SANFL you'd think.
Great point about South Melbourne though Tassie, Westies will be a piece of cake after a gig like that, a harder job there wouldn't have been.

especially not being Greek!!!! but he does have a "s" at the end of his name so therefore they may have accepted him!

[Adelaide Hawk]

Heard him interviewed this evening and sounds as though he has very good knowledge of the SANFL and West Adelaide, obviously based on his research prior to making application. He sounds enthusiatic and very capable. I think West may have done very well.

[Squawk]

Interesting to note that the the recent trend in appointments of SANFL GMs is definitely towards very capable, qualified business administrators. Not longer would it seem that these jobs are similarly a natural career path for former footballers after they retire. Ben Kavanagh at South came from Victoria with a diverse background in sports administration and is doing very well there. As an outsider he "came in" with a very objective approach to the club AND to the SANFL competition. It would seem that Westies have also elected to travel down a similar path. He also beat favourite son John Kantilaftas (assuming he was an applicant that is). It will be interesting to see who gets the football ops gig (and coaching gig) at Sturt.

[redandblack]

I agree, squawk. I met Damien at the Club last night and he presented very well to the members and the media.

For the record, John Kantilaftas still has a year or two of his contract with the Eagles to run and was never a candidate for the West job.

[Coorong]

And I doubt fitted the criteria drawn up for the position. Dont get me wrong, JK is a top bloke, however the candidate to fill this role needed be, shall we say unique. A guy who will move on in say 3 years to the next level, but will leave a very positive legacy.

[Wedgie]

You're happy to have someone who will move on in 3 years?
Personally I'd rather someone that really takes the club to heart and makes it apart of his family.

I think a few people to remember that the CEO can do so much too. The CEO is employed to implement decisions the board makes so if a board still makes crap decisions it wouldn't matter who your CEO is.

Having said that as far as CEOs go Damien Phillips CV looks very very good and if you're going to get a new CEO you might as well as try and get as good as possible., I wish him and Westies well.

Hopefully he'll be another CEO that doesn't mind a chat like Warky and Glenn Elliott.

[ORDoubleBlues]

It will be interesting to see who gets the football ops gig (and coaching gig) at Sturt.

Think Atkinson will get the coaching gig.
Any talk of "exhaustive nationwide searches" is just PR.

[Coorong]

In answer to Wedgies post, yeah I am happy to see a CEO move on after three years. I think those that stick around too long get a little tired, dare I say complacent?

I think it is evident this guy is a career man and will want to move up the line (I admire that) but to achieve that he will need do a bloody good job to add to his credentials. Hey look at our last CEO, ample evidence of what some can achieve by eventually governing rather than manage.

But like all GM's AND boards (business or sport) fresh energy, fresh thinking is usually achieved by rotation.

I think many of us at West Adelaide wanted this change and now we have it. We will support the influence he will have on the club. We now will address the next issue, that being the boards themselves and this will happen at the next AGM and the 2007 AGM. I think it is evident that the members will want the days of self serving comittee men to end at the earliest opportunity. And they know who they are!

[am Bays]

Serious question Coorong:

Given the years of mis-managemnt at Westies as you have posted so frequently on this and other sites (you have arguably been Doug's biggest on-line critic) is three years enough to turn it around from a management and systems point of view??

The reason for asking is that unless you have good coin behind you my experience in sport is four to five years is needed for plans to work....

[Coorong]

Yeah I think so Tassie. Serious coin? well we will now be able to better manage the budgets for instance as they wont be "controlled" We can start to turn around a restaurant that for two years running lost $2,000 per week. Turn around a profitable bingo operation that did very well until the operator asked the wrong question and got sacked (allegedly)

I would also think the right guy will fill the coffers with new sponsorship etc etc

We do have some rather generous members (cough cough)

But we need to get our membership up too and get the bar and pokies revenue up. This can be done now with direction and promotion.

Of course all this will depend on our onfield success. We have a habit of coming out of the woodwork when we are winning. I do know lots of work has been done in this regard for next year and this will continue. Not only the players!

Good question, and I do in my heart believ it can and will turn around. I have enjoyed answering it, in part, but now I think I will watch the 1983 GF replay.

[firstblood]

I totally aggre with coorong...if Damien Phillips can get westies up
and get them into a strong financial position then he's done his job.
Should he move on after 3 or so years, so be it as long as westies
are a competitive and financial club...we have been stale for too long.

[Wedgie]

I think those that stick around too long get a little tired, dare I say complacent?

I disagree, that would only be the case if the person was unprofessional and not a proper candicate for a CEOs position, which well may be the case in a lot of instances though.

[Strawb]

I feel it is a great change for the Club. Westies will hopefully improve and Mr. Phillips running of the WRFL over here has been brillant to say the least. From a local media point of view he is always available for comment in all three local papers down Werribee way and Westies have got a Find. On tassie's comments about the board room stuff Our biggest problem was sacked as GM and I don;t see the current board being re-elected. I feel now that people know that changed is happening at the club it will bring alot of Westies People back into the Club because Doug is no longer controlling the club. Doug is a very sick man and I am not Doug Bashing here i am just putting out my point of view.

[Squawk]

It will be very interesting to compare membership numbers between this year and next at Westies, and thereafter. It would be great to see Westies have "a turn" as a serious performer in the league again.

I must also complement WAFC on their communication to members and supporters throughout this turbulent period - weekly updates on the process of the appointment of a new GM (via the club website) is a standard that all clubs should take note of and strive to replicate. It also suggests that serious change is afoot at West backed by a serious commitment to undergo change.

[JamesH]

The Prahran FC club folded in 95

[topsywaldron]

I must also complement WAFC on their communication to members and supporters throughout this turbulent period - weekly updates on the process of the appointment of a new GM (via the club website) is a standard that all clubs should take note of and strive to replicate.

Agreed.

My Scottish football team posts minutes of board meetings on their site. Sure you mightn't want to actually read them but it's nice to know that they're there. Mind you I would have loved to read some of the Norwood boards minutes through the last few years.