This online coaches workshop took place on May 9, 2020 and featured Tom Black, Head Coach of Canada Women’s National Team and University of Georgia.

Most of my webinar content consists of detailed video breakdowns and highly-technical volleyball discussions. This was a little different.

Tom Black has been a Head Coach at the High School, JUCO, NCAA Division 2, mid-major NCAA Division 1, and Power 5 NCAA Division 1. He’s also now the Head Coach for the Canadian Women’s National Team, after spending 4 years as Assistant Coach for the USA Women’s National Team. He’s coached on the men’s and women’s side of NCAA volleyball.

I’ve been an assistant both with Tom (USA WNT) and for Tom (LMU, UGA, and now Canada WNT) at a few of those programs.

Along the way, Tom and I have been part of highly-functioning staffs and some staffs that didn’t work as well together. Often, factors outside the individual brilliance (or lack thereof) contributed to the success (or lack thereof) of these staffs, and ultimately, the teams they served.

As coaches, we understand the concept of teamwork. We say things like, “I don’t need the 12 best players, I need the 12 players who make the best team.” This applies to our staffs as well.

The hard thing is, nobody teaches this at coaching clinics. Including me. This is my first workshop that will address this topic. Let’s face it, it’s more fun to dive into the nuances of passing, or debate the merits of a fast-tempo offense. But the quality of our staff dynamic probably makes every bit as much of a difference to our team’s success as the quality of our passing.

This workshop is my attempt to address that. We presented an outline of best practices, shared the successes and failures we’ve been a part of, and engaged in a troubleshooting-oriented conversation with attendees.

Detailed Workshop Notes and the Slide Deck are included, along with the video, with your purchase of this content.