12 QUALITY AREAS
The working processes connected with the Community Connectivity Quality Area include:
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Academy communication, CSR programme, and connectivity with local environment COMMUNITY CONNECTIVITY
Do you operate training camps or talent days for
Do you hold workshops for parents of potential signings?
children not signed with your club?
S uccessful Community Connectivity means constructing a living working interface between the club and its local community through communication, exchange opportunities and other touch points. An academy needs its local community for many reasons: to find future talent, as a source of human capital for academy services, and as a support mechanism or to
Do you have selection process or is any child of any ability free to attend?
assess performance. It has many different touch points, not least through the players and their families, but also with other participants in the ecosystem, such as local residents who live close to a training facility, the education community in the schools where an academy’s players study, or club supporters with an interest on the academy and its activities. If these touch points are unmanaged, an academy won’t be able to fully utilise the potential of its environment, or use it as a learning and development tool for internal needs. Relatively few academies have their
Are players provided with
Do players participate in marketing and PR actions?
training related to PR and marketing?
Does your club involve its sponsors in academy operations?
Do players work with community?
own in-house communication function, but increasingly they are sources of content for the club’s media output. The same can be said for CSR activities, which are natural allies of academy settings, combining sport and the younger population. The quality of an academy’s Community Connectivity can be measured by the presence of strategic communication plans for the academy, and its inclusion in the wider club’s communication efforts on a regular basis. It can also be measured by quantity, and type of contact with local representatives, and a demonstration of a strategic approach to developing community connections based on strategic goals and aims set by academy or wider club management.
“For us, parents are in the middle of the project!”
Are players briefed on how community work can impact a club's sporting success?
Jean-François Vulliez, Olympique Lyonnais
Are the players provided an explanation of the club's strategic goals about working with the community?
Are players active (they have role in which they create some content) or passive (they just show themselves at an event)? Is there a plan or rules for communication with a player after he leave the club?
Is your style of play connected to your club
community’s preferences?
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YOUTH FOOTBALL 2021-23
YOUTH FOOTBALL 2021-23
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