Experts and longtime NCAA observers say that a combination of factors is at play, but it boils down to this: The risks—and stakes—are higher for the association in 2021.
“They’re in such a prime location to show like, ‘This is what accountability looks like. This is what allyship looks like,’ ” says Jen Fry, a former college athlete who has consulted with the NCAA on diversity issues. “And they didn’t do it right.”
As I close this season on retreats, I want to go back to the beginning. Before the agenda, the activities, or the team dinner, leaders need to name the problem the retreat is supposed to solve. In this blog, I talk about why purpose matters, what it means to define resolution in behavior, and how to design a retreat that helps people work differently when they return.
A retreat can help a team name what has been sitting under the surface. But if nothing changes afterward, people notice. I’m unpacking why “we talked about it” is only the beginning, and why real repair has to keep going once the team is back at work.
Some retreat agendas are carrying conversations that should have started months ago. Jen unpacks the leadership work that needs to happen before a retreat, from naming accountability gaps to clarifying roles, decisions, and trust issues before they show up as surprises.
