Might explain it, so we should not take her Grin personal.
Maybe I'm slightly too old school but personally I think that openly filming people is a fairly confrontational act anyway, maybe she laughed through nervousness, maybe due to the witty repartee of the security guards, maybe it was a belly laugh at the futility of the fans' protests. Putting herself in the position which leads to us having the debate is pretty foolish though. There is no legitimate reason for her to walk to the window and film, if she needed footage then maybe her security guard could have stood down from his comedy routine and filmed it for her.
I don't buy into this becoming personal, I abhor bullying and think that we need to be very careful to ensure that we stray nowhere near that territory. I think that it is fair to comment upon her actions and judgments in a professional capacity but bullying and petty name calling will only lose us the argument.
Based on her actions, her interviews and quantifiable results, Katrien is not making a great fist of running this club however and that needs to change in one of two ways. She either needs to give it up and go or she needs to genuinely engage with the fans in order to start to win their trust. It's frustratingly simple to keep the majority of Charlton's illogically loyal fans happy. You first spend time understanding what is important to them and then you ensure that you protect it and show respect to it. You ensure that they feel like they are still vested in the club and that you do not openly present them as a liability rather than your greatest asset. That alone will win you an inordinate amount of patience from them in terms of making mistakes as you learn how to successfully run a Championship football club. And given the amount of learning still to be done, there's a lot of patience that needs to be accrued.
Do not presume to tell the fans what they like, or that they are wrong in their tastes or that they misunderstand what the club is about. Do not put up hollow posters about building a future together and then proceed to ignore and publicly disrespect them. Do not think that they can be replaced by new fans that are attracted by silly sofas, DJs or cheerleaders.
Why fight against the tide of the fans when it's so much easier to bring them along with you?
There is a chance, albeit a small one, that something positive could come of this crisis but only if there is a wholesale change in the attitude of the owner and his staff. Football is an emotional sport, fans are an emotional bunch, for many their attachment to the club is a heavy contributor in defining who they are, it's brought their families closer, it's given them the best and worst of days, it's probably the basis of their internet passwords, source of some of their earliest memories and one of the first things they'll share with new people that they meet. All of these emotions can be a pain to deal with but they can be your greatest asset too as there is a hardcore of custom that will prop up your revenues irrespective of the quality of your product. If only you treat them properly.
Do not presume that the fanbase are anything other than essential to a successful football club, without them it all falls apart.
Comments
I don't buy into this becoming personal, I abhor bullying and think that we need to be very careful to ensure that we stray nowhere near that territory. I think that it is fair to comment upon her actions and judgments in a professional capacity but bullying and petty name calling will only lose us the argument.
Based on her actions, her interviews and quantifiable results, Katrien is not making a great fist of running this club however and that needs to change in one of two ways. She either needs to give it up and go or she needs to genuinely engage with the fans in order to start to win their trust. It's frustratingly simple to keep the majority of Charlton's illogically loyal fans happy. You first spend time understanding what is important to them and then you ensure that you protect it and show respect to it. You ensure that they feel like they are still vested in the club and that you do not openly present them as a liability rather than your greatest asset. That alone will win you an inordinate amount of patience from them in terms of making mistakes as you learn how to successfully run a Championship football club. And given the amount of learning still to be done, there's a lot of patience that needs to be accrued.
Do not presume to tell the fans what they like, or that they are wrong in their tastes or that they misunderstand what the club is about. Do not put up hollow posters about building a future together and then proceed to ignore and publicly disrespect them. Do not think that they can be replaced by new fans that are attracted by silly sofas, DJs or cheerleaders.
Why fight against the tide of the fans when it's so much easier to bring them along with you?
There is a chance, albeit a small one, that something positive could come of this crisis but only if there is a wholesale change in the attitude of the owner and his staff. Football is an emotional sport, fans are an emotional bunch, for many their attachment to the club is a heavy contributor in defining who they are, it's brought their families closer, it's given them the best and worst of days, it's probably the basis of their internet passwords, source of some of their earliest memories and one of the first things they'll share with new people that they meet. All of these emotions can be a pain to deal with but they can be your greatest asset too as there is a hardcore of custom that will prop up your revenues irrespective of the quality of your product. If only you treat them properly.
Do not presume that the fanbase are anything other than essential to a successful football club, without them it all falls apart.