ANALYSIS OF WE ARE MARSHALL (LEADERSHIP FILM) - JOB - 2024

We Are Marshall tells the story of the West Virginia Marshall University football team, which suffered a plane crash in which all team members died

The goal of this article is to help you understand what leadership is. It will begin by defining what a leader is and explaining why leadership is necessary and important.

Next we will analyze the leadership behavior of the protagonist of the film “Equipo Marshall” (Spain), “Somos Marshall” (Argentina) or “We are Marshall” (USA and rest of the world).

Analysis of the film

In 1970 the American football team at Marshall University in West Virginia suffered a plane crash in which all the team members died; 37 players, 8 coaches, University staff, the aircrew, and 25 citizens.

The character played by Matthew McConaughey (Jack Lengyel) is an outsider who, after the accident, occupies the position of coach helping to restructure the team with optimism, hope and in general with a democratic leadership style.

Interactions and dialogues

To better understand what this style consists of, we are going to name each of the interactions that the coach establishes with his technical team and his players, referring to the adjectives that define the coach's personality.

1-When the director of the team comes to interview in his own home, the coach shows that he does not want to train for his own interest, but because he believes that he can help and move the team forward.

2-At the press conference to present the team's coach (38:20), faced with the compromising questions from a journalist “what are the expectations for this season? and “What would you say to citizens who think that re-forming the team is disrespectful? He does not lose his cool, he is confident and he shows that he can be trusted in difficult situations.

3-Non-verbal language (relaxed posture, smooth movements of the hands with the palms up, gaze into the eyes but not fixed, a lot of body contact) indicates sincerity and closeness.

4-In the coach's presentation to the 3 players who survived the accident (40:27), the coach is optimistic, courageous and makes the players understand that he trusts them.

He never focuses on negative aspects such as having only three players left alive, but on learning the names and reminding them that he will not abandon them in the new sports course.

He also displays qualities like sociability and kindness; invites them to her house for dinner.

It takes into account the whole group and does not show favoritism; You tell the three players that you will learn their names. It is important that you learn the names of your players to get to know them better.

This is repeated in a later scene, in which in a training session he asks the whole team to show up the next day with their name on their helmet.

5-At minute 40:47, he asks the team director who asks the NCAA to make an exception, letting them play with the first-year students, but he does not do it in a direct way but by explaining the anecdote that he always There is a first time, like when he had to change his son's diapers.

6-He does the same when he tries to convince the former assistant coach to return to the team to continue with his mission; makes the comment that the train that just passed in front of them derailed a while ago and is still on its way.

He says goodbye by reminding him that his doors are open and that he will take his sports advice into account (trust in others).

7-When the 2nd coach comes to his office to tell him that he can give him a year with a downcast, sad and discouraged attitude, the coach smiles and says "if it is all the time we have, we will have to start now", showing marked optimism supported with a handshake that reminds you that you are welcome.

8-Minute 52:50. When the director breaks the news that he is not being granted permission to play with the freshmen, the coach remembers that there is no time left and encourages him to continue with his purpose by persuading him to come personally to speak with the directors of the school. NCAA.

However, this tactic of influence is not by pressure, legitimation or coalition but a rational persuasion; do you have a wife? Would you ask her to marry you over the phone? When the first-year players are finally allowed to compete, he cheers and enthusiastically congratulates the director.

The same firm and gentle attitude shows when he asks for and orders activities and exercises from his players.

9-After some training sessions, he decides that the Y-training tactic that they are using does not work and he gathers his technical team to ask their opinion on what they can do to make the team work properly (democratic).

They made the decision to try the VIER formation and went to ask a rival team for information about it, a difficult situation that they nevertheless faced with optimism and confidence.

This behavior also shows an important quality; the foresight that allows you to avoid a possible failure with a formation that was not working.

Here you employ a consultative influence tactic: ask for participation and consider the ideas and suggestions of your co-workers.

10-In the first game he knows which players have experience and to whom he can leave responsibility (Nate Ruffin) to carry out important tasks; in this case, motivate the team and guide them to the field of play: “everyone on their feet, it's 60 minutes and we play until the whistle blows…” (1:11:45).

From the point of view of Hersey and Blanchard's Situational Leadership Theory, the best leader is the one who knows how to adapt his style to the level of maturity of the group members.

For this situation, the coach acts effectively by delegating responsibility to a self-sufficient member.

11-It is important to review the difference in qualities between the first coach and the second.

The former is optimistic, trusts others, supports, is confident, and courageous. The second is the opposite; He is not confident, he is pessimistic, downcast and not supportive of his players (except in the end when the head coach asks him to).

12- (1:39:00). The speech you give before the game to a difficult team helps to motivate the team and increase its self-esteem, it also demonstrates a catalytic quality that encourages the group to feel united and act together.

Why is leadership important?

• It acquires greater importance in crisis situations.
• It is recognized that well-run organizations have high levels of performance, something that poorly-run organizations lack.
• The main reason people quit companies is that their bosses don't treat them well. Those who stay in work working with bad bosses feel less satisfied with their work and life, feel less committed to the company and have more conflicts at work and in the family; as a consequence they experience psychological distress.

The words "leader and leadership" make an unequivocal allusion to someone who is and / or behaves in an outstanding and outstanding way, always leading a group of people.

Organizational leadership can be understood as the situation of superiority in which some people find themselves in their respective organizations since, due to their notable personal qualities and / or actions, they get the teams they lead to lead in the fulfillment of the organizational goals..

In organizational scientific research, leadership has traditionally had three different meanings, which have been: the attribute of a position, the characteristics of a person and a category of behavior.

At present, organizational leadership is reserved for business organizations, where it has been identified simply with the occupation of a managerial position-usually the position of a supervisor-; At the same time, the effectiveness of the leaders has been judged by criteria that only reflect the interests of the top management of the companies.

Effective leaders influence followers not to think in their own interests, but in those of the organization.

Leadership occurs when followers accept the influence of someone who motivates them to do things ethically and beneficial to them and the organization.

Taking advantage of subordinates for personal gain is not part of leadership. The members of the organization need to work together, oriented towards a result that both the leader and the followers want that motivates them to achieve it.

Leaders lead and, with input from followers, set challenging goals, leading to higher levels of performance.

Are there identifiable leadership behaviors?

In their studies, Kurt Lewin and his colleagues at the University of Iowa, analyzed three behaviors or styles of leaders: the autocratic, the democratic and the laissez-faire.

• The autocratic style corresponds to the leader who usually centralizes his authority, dictates working methods, makes decisions unilaterally and limits the participation of employees.
• The laissez-faire leader leaves his employees free to make decisions and do their jobs as they see fit, simply providing materials and answering questions.
• The democratic leader is the one who takes into account the opinion of the rest of the team, although he also enforces their authority.