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NRL
Reputation in Tatters
But Lessons Learned?
The drunken rampage in country NSW by players from
the National Rugby League's Newcastle Knights involving
allegations of vandalism and sexual assault has again
seriously damaged the NRL's reputation.
One
year after the Canterbury Bulldogs plunged rugby league
into a crisis following allegations of players raping
a female fan, the NRL at the beginning of a new season
must have felt is was "groundhog day".
Or
was it?
While
the behaviour of the Knights' players is inexcusable
and impossible to comprehend after last year's debacle,
it appears the NRL management and Club CEOs at least
have learned from the Bulldogs fiasco.
Managing
crises and events that seriously threaten one's reputation
are always difficult and poorly done can cripple an
organisation.
While
never on the balance sheet, an organisation's reputation
is its most valuable asset and needs careful nurturing
and management.
Last
year's Bulldogs saga did enormous damage to the club
and NRL's most significant asset.
It
appears though that through better issues management
following the latest revelations, the NRL has begun
to at least work on rebuilding a seriously flawed
and damaged reputation.
The
Bulldogs and initially the NRL last year appeared
to adopt the typical reaction when under public attack
and scrutiny in a crisis.
In
many respects, it was the textbook lesson on what
not to do in a crisis.
First,
some in the NRL or Bulldogs initially tried to ignore
the situation with some downplaying the allegations.
Hoping
such serious allegations will just go away never works.
Next,
a veil of secrecy surrounded the situation. It was
difficult to get details of the activities of the
players and events, let alone the allegations and
the Club's response.
Then,
legal arguments were used to stall and avoid confronting
the issue. Claims that nothing could be done until
the "legal processes" had taken their course
were never going to quell public and media outrage.
Most
damning, and in a classic "what not to do"
approach, critics of the Bulldogs were attacked and
denounced. The scurrilous attacks on the character
of the alleged rape victim on the front page of Sunday
papers added fuel to an already raging inferno.
Fast
forward 12 months and the NRL is confronted with similar
allegations of player drunken rampages and sexual
assaults.
Faced
with the staggering stupidity of the Knights players,
at least the team management and NRL had learned what
to do this time - even if the players had not.
The
Knights' and NRL's response, on the face of it, appears
to have done much to prevent a total melt down.
By
contrast to 2004, their response adopted many tactics
regarded as critical for successful issues management
when an organisation's reputation is at risk.
Quickly,
the Knights and NRL appeared to have collected full
information about the incident. Their response time
this year was significantly reduced.
And
perhaps more importantly, the organisations actively
sought to reveal rather than conceal what they knew.
Both
organisations were proactive in the responses and
led the discussion on who was involved, what happened
and most importantly what they intended to do in response.
They
accepted the criticism, but similarly both were at
pains to demonstrate what action they had taken over
the past 12 months to demand and expect behaviour
changes from their players and teams.
Critically,
their immediate response and actions included further
measures they were taking to continue the demand for
behaviour change.
The
swift penalties imposed on the Knights and players
were an attempt to reinforce that perception.
No
one is suggesting that the NRL or its teams escaped
unscathed. Or that their reputations if not in tatters
were seriously damaged again.
That
many in the community may consider rugby league players
as moronic thugs, paid too much with little regard
for women or others and the clubs have an unhealthy
male-dominated culture involving binge drinking is
one brought about solely by the players own behaviour.
The
NRL and team management at least appear to have learned
some lessons on how to deal with crises as a result
of their chargers' stupidity.
The
game's and organisation's reputation would stand in
much better stead if the players could also learn
a thing or two.
Maybe
they should start by learning about what is right
and wrong.
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