Tom Harley

[Blood Tunnel]

Interesting. Can you list his "show of strengths" ?

He has answered the question honestly of why we couldn't land Langdon or VDB saying they chose to stay at their current clubs & that we are confident in the our list's natural improvement to come & with the two boys Clarke & Thurlow added, that should allow us to still throw Mills & Jones into the middle.

But if you see him as a poor performer thus far then show me your your list.

[barry]

He has answered the question honestly of why we couldn't land Langdon or VDB saying they chose to stay at their current clubs & that we are confident in the our list's natural improvement to come & with the two boys Clarke & Thurlow added, that should allow us to still throw Mills & Jones into the middle.

But if you see him as a poor performer thus far then show me your your list.

I'm just interested in what "Thus far he has shown nothing but strength in his role." means?

[stevoswan]

I'm just interested in what "Thus far he has shown nothing but strength in his role." means?

Probably means he has shown no 'weakness'.....but yes, happy to see your list.

[Doctor]

I can't see why else we would have anointed Tom Harley as Andrew Ireland's successor if we weren't already convinced about his potential/ability to take the job on. We have a recent history of succession planning but we are also careful about it. We gave Harley 12 months to audition and develop under Ireland's tutelage before the handover. Does anyone really think that we'd have handed the job on to someone who the club (including the outgoing head of football) and the board felt wasn't up to it? We are too significant a club with too much at stake to allow that to happen. While the AFL might continue to nobble who we can take on as players, I suspect that the level of senior corporate backers and influencers we have, given the nature of our supporter base, wouldn't allow poor governance to happen.

[barry]

Probably means he has shown no 'weakness'.....but yes, happy to see your list.

What strange logic exists that when I ask for some evidence to back up a statement, it gets turned around that I have to now produce counter evidence?.

Convince me "he has shown nothing but strength in his role" with at least something other than he hasn't made a massive blunder yet?

[longmile]

There seems to be little to no substance in this thread. Everyone is going off of impressions. I agree he can seem quiet cold when hes being interviewed, but there is literally nothing of substance to judge him on yet, except maybe Shaw leaving and a weaker than usual trade period, two things which can be hardly blamed entirely on him or seen as his fault.

[CureTheSane]

What a futile discussion.

He hasn't done anything particularly good or bad yet.

The jury is still well and truly put.

[R-1]

I thought when commentating the 2012 grand final he had by far the most insight into the Swans players and their tactics etc.

[stevoswan]

What strange logic exists that when I ask for some evidence to back up a statement, it gets turned around that I have to now produce counter evidence?.

Convince me "he has shown nothing but strength in his role" with at least something other than he hasn't made a massive blunder yet?

I didn't write that but you obviously doubt that he 'has strengths', so I guess we'd just like you to back it up.....

[ScottH]

Exactly.
At least let the guy sit in the seat for a while before passing judgement.
Thus far he has shown nothing but strength in his role.

What strange logic exists that when I ask for some evidence to back up a statement, it gets turned around that I have to now produce counter evidence?.

Convince me "he has shown nothing but strength in his role" with at least something other than he hasn't made a massive blunder yet?

I didn't write that but you obviously doubt that he 'has strengths', so I guess we'd just like you to back it up.....

Can't dispute that!!

At the Melbourne Member function earlier this year Andrew Ireland spoke very highly of Harley. And said he was leaving the club in good hands.
The Club must think he has the right attributes.

[barry]

I think, like getting blood from a stone, his strengths are being listed as:
- He knew about Swans players during his commentary days.
- Andrew Ireland speaks highly of him.

Here are his Weaknesses:
- Not experience at executive level.
- Poor trading period this year.

I'd say there are 3 KPI's a Swans CEO has to hit:
- Keep support level up, or increase (Sponsors, members)
- Maintain or improve revenue.
- Maintain or improve ladder position.

These are all lag indicators. They dont manifest until the problem is well entrenched. So we've got to judge him early to avoid disaster

[sprite]

I think, like getting blood from a stone, his strengths are being listed as:
- He knew about Swans players during his commentary days.
- Andrew Ireland speaks highly of him.

Here are his Weaknesses:
- Not experience at executive level.
- Poor trading period this year.

I'd say there are 3 KPI's a Swans CEO has to hit:
- Keep support level up, or increase (Sponsors, members)
- Maintain or improve revenue.
- Maintain or improve ladder position.

These are all lag indicators. They dont manifest until the problem is well entrenched. So we've got to judge him early to avoid disaster

Some of Tom Harley's backround;
- He has a Bachelor of Commerce. Has qualifications - check his wiki profile
- AFL NSW's general manager for two years before replacing Dean Moore as the head of the Swans' football
- Planning and Operations Manager NSW AFL
That's experience at executive level

- While the Swans board believed several members of their executive were capable of taking the top job, Harley was considered the standout with his experience in football, both as a player and an administrator. (sourced from SMH article).
Has endorsement from the board, but yeah what do they know about business. Andrew Ireland is still around as a consultant, plus the board will be there to support him deliver their plan for the club.

Perhaps if you had done some basic research your concerns may have been answered.

Poor trading this year, why? Just because he didn't throw bags of money at some players who in the end decided in the end not move(can't blame him for that). Remember he is part of a team that identifies players to try and get to the club. Some negotiations you lose out on, sometimes players receive better offers or we found their demands excessive to what we thought. The pro's and con's of the trade period have been discussed elsewhere.

In my mind he has been appointed by a board who know more than I do about running a multi-million dollar business. I happy to wait and see then make a judgement.

[barry]

General manager positions are not executive positions. While it's a stepping stone to c-level positions, there is quite a big leap up to executives.

[Bloods05]

I think, like getting blood from a stone, his strengths are being listed as:
- He knew about Swans players during his commentary days.
- Andrew Ireland speaks highly of him.

Here are his Weaknesses:
- Not experience at executive level.
- Poor trading period this year.

I'd say there are 3 KPI's a Swans CEO has to hit:
- Keep support level up, or increase (Sponsors, members)
- Maintain or improve revenue.
- Maintain or improve ladder position.

These are all lag indicators. They dont manifest until the problem is well entrenched. So we've got to judge him early to avoid disaster

We should always judge a person early when the criteria for judgement are "lag indicators". You know it makes sense.

[Bloody Hell]

Most peoples gripe is around his experience.

Andrew Ireland used to be inexperienced.