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How does a Coach kick off the PCT Process?
The PCT Process is a procedure with a set
of ground rules and roles. The Coach needs to make sure every
Parent understands the process, meeting and roles at least 2
weeks before the 1st meeting.
What's
in it for the PLAYERS? How does PCT make hockey more fun for
the
kids?
The PCT encourages Parents, Organizations
and Coaches to team up for the kids, so they can have FUN in
ONE role: the role of Player. The design of the PCT encourages
this. The problem to solve is the duel-role situation ... where
the kid is both Child (of Parent) and Player (of Coaches Team).
The
kids need to know that they can occupy ONE role (Player) and
have healthy relationship with Parents and Coach. PCT strongly
encourages this.
How?
PCT encourages the single role of Player for
all the kids. This is accomplished by getting Parents and Coaches
talking in a structured way. That formal communication between
the Parent group and Coaching staff encourages cooperation and
collaboration towards the stated goal: more FUN for the kids.
When Parents and Coaches are talking, understanding is the result
and the kids benefit when Parents and Coaches have a shared understanding.
I am a Coach and I am not a professional manager
of people. Am I going to be able to run these PCT meetings?
Yes. The structure is clear, the roles are
completely defined, and there is no ambiguity. The meeting is
short and you the Coach do not need to answer ANY questions.
In fact the Coach is required to ASK questions and never answer
ANY questions at this meeting. PCT is simple and anyone can do
it
in the Coach role.
What if some
parents choose to not participate?
PCT meeting attendance by parents is optional;
for Coach it is required. If a parent chooses to not attend,
that is their choice. However, "not attending" also
means that the absent parent is explicitly choosing to disengage
from this
aspect of team life. That means they are in some sense opting
out on an important periodic team event.
Why the 2-week frequency?
The recurring, fixed-length period of time
between meetings is an essential aspect of the PCT process. The
2-week frequency becomes a drumbeat throughout the season. Parents
learn to expect (and look forward to and PLAN for) the repeating
PCT meeting during the season.
In a typical hockey season, there
6 months and up to 12 PCT meetings. Other
sports with shorter seasons might choose a 1-week PCT frequency.
The main thing is to ALWAYS have the meetings every N weeks,
where "N" is a number you decide is best for frequency.
The Coach is required to send an email (directly,
or via the Parent/Team Manager) within 48 hours of every PCT
meeting. What if the Parents do not like the email sent by Coach
after the
PCT
meeting?
The Coach is always has full and
formal authority over every aspect of team life during the season.
This does not change when the PCT is used. Parents carefully
examine the post-meeting email from Coach in preparation for
the next meeting.
At the next meeting, parents may bring up
content from the last email from Coach and express disagreement.
If this
happens, the Coach is protected because of the clear ground
rule that Coach does NOT answer ANY questions during this meeting.
This includes questions (if any) about his last email.
Coach may
later choose to address the concern, or not, via the next
post-meeting email.
In this
manner
parents
and Coaches gain experience and
learn
about each other's boundaries.
Can I ask the Coach any questions OUTSIDE
of the PCT meeting?
Of course...the meeting does not replace 1-on-1
parent/Coach communciation. It simply provides a structured set
of ground rules for when
Coach meets
periodically with parents as a group.
Outside of the meeting, everything is the
same. The main thing about PCT is that it is a set of ground
rules for a GROUP meeting.
Outside of that meeting parents can and do communicate with
the Coach in whatever way they are most comfortable. PCT does
not
replace 1-on-1 parent/Coach communication.
Doesn't the PCT Process provide a way for
Parents to ambush the Coach in a group setting?
No. PCT in fact is designed to PREVENT this.
Coach asks and does not answer questions during this meeting.
Further,
only
3 questions
are
asked in a
compressed, 25-minute format. Parents explicitly agree to these
rules as a condition of participation.
When the 3 questions are answered
by parents, or the 25 minutes expire, the meeting is over
and the Coach exits the meeting by leaving the room.
The PCT
provides
a forum for parents to express issues to Coach without
Coach giving up any authority or opening him/herself up to any
kind of group-level "ambush". The structured PCT
meeting is run by Coach and is set up to protect the Coaching
staff
from any kind of
verbal abuse.
What does the Coach give up in terms of authority
if he/she implements this process?
The Coach does not give any authority with
the PCT. The Coach runs this meeting, or authorizes
an Assistant
Coach
to
run
the meeting
in
his absence.
The Coach
gives up no authority when using PCT. However, just like Parents,
Coach is explicitly agreeing to all PCT ground rules. This means
Coach agrees to receive answers to questions from Parents during
the meeting. This also means Coach must respond via email
to the Parents within an agreed-upon
deadline,
usually
48 hours. Coach is required to provide the Follow-Up feedback
in writing, usually through the traditional Parent Manager.
What does the Coach gain if he/she implements
this process?
The main thing the Coach gets is a tool for
gathering the attention of the parent group. Coach uses the PCT
to gather and focus parent attention on the team, the Coach,
and Coach's plans and policies for the team.
Since meetings are
frequent and short, parents must self-organize around the meeting
and be well prepared. This usually means they gather some concerns,
and get organized around the brief 25-minute format. After
the meeting, all parents are anticipating Coach's email response
to the meeting. The Coach now has all parents focused on his
meeting and his emails after these meetings.
Now the parents
are paying attention to Coach and what Coach thinks, does
and
says, both verbally and in writing. The Coach now has the
full attention of the parent group.
In actual implementations of this
PCT process, how does it work? How do Parents behave during
this meeting?
Parents as a group behave according to the
simple PCT meeting ground rules. Some parents attend, some do
not.
Some
parents attend out of respect for Coach, some out of curiousity.
Most parents attend the PCT as an opportunity to communicate
at the group level with Coach and coaching staff.
As a practical matter, all the parents cannot
talk in the brief 25-minute
format.
So
parents
tend to
self-select
a
person
from
the parent group who can speak the answers. This person effectively "speaks
for all parents" during the meeting. This is
exactly what PCT is designed to encourage.
Parents self-organize
around
the PCT meeting ground rules. In the end parents are actively
discussing the team, and Coach, and the meeting ... during
the 2 weeks before and after each meeting.
Can the Coach make huge mistakes with this
process? If so what are they?
Yes. The biggest mistake a Coach can make
with PCT is to defer, postpone or cancel any scheduled PCT meeting.
There is no surer way to kill the PCT process. Coaches who choose
to implement PCT must commit to scheduling and executing on every
PCT meeting at fixed intervals (2 weeks for hockey teams) thoughout
the season. Parents properly come to expect this meeting.
When
the meeting is not held, the process unravels. It is essential
to have EVERY meeting, and start and end on time. Implementing
the PCT is a commitment to execute on a meeting at the agreed-upon
fixed intervals throughout the season.
What is the scientific or theoretical basis
for this process?
The PCT process is designed to encourage specific
behaviors from parents, coaches and players. PCT draws from social
complexity science. The main influences on PCT design are social
complexity science, self-organizing systems, Scrum and group
relations research.
You can learn more
about the scientific basis of PCT by examining the PCT
Resources page
What is the worst thing that can happen if
I am Coach and I implement this process?
The worst thing that can happen is you fail
to execute each and every PCT meeting as scheduled, thereby undermining
both your credibility and the credibility of the PCT itself.
What is the BEST thing that can happen if
I as Coach implement this process?
PCT is designed to encourage certain behaviors
from parents and Coach. The PCT is designed to get parents and
Coaches to identify and agree on some shared understandings.
This is accomplished
via the PCT structure for two-way communication. When parents
and Coaches agree, kids are the winners. They get to take
up ONE role-- "Player"-- when they are practicing and
playing the sport. This reduces stress and increases the FUN
that the youth sport can provide.
The best thing that can happen is that kids
have MORE FUN, by taking up ONE role, the role of Player.....as
they learn about the sport and each other. PCT is designed "from
the ground up" to
achieve this objective.
Why is a process like PCT required in Youth
Sports and hockey in particular?
Parents
can be quite dramatic. Absent clear and formal ground rules,
all communication with Coach
becomes
a negotiation.
PCT
provides clear ground rules for a periodic and "safe" group-level
meeting. These ground rules create structured 2-way communication
every 2 weeks.
Hockey
has a
long
season,
is expensive,
and intense to play and watch.
The PCT is designed as a tool
for Coaches to manage complexity.
Is this a silver bullet that solves all my
Coaching problems related to the Parents?
No, but it is close...anyone in Coach role
can implement PCT without any experience. PCT encourages direct
and clear, structured communication with parents. This frequent
communication sets up fixed-duration "loops of feedback" that
allow parents and Coach to gain shared understandings. When this
happens, kids have MORE FUN.
I want to do this. How to I contact an expert
on this process to get my additional questions answered?
You may reach Dan Mezick at the link below....
Are you using the PCT Process in
your Youth Sports organization? Please contact
me and tell me more-- I am keenly interested in receiving
a report of your experience with the PCT Process.
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The PCT Meeting