Six Association Lessons from the Tour de France

For the last two weeks I’ve been glued to my TV in the morning for the live broadcast of the Tour de France. In thinking about why I love the Tour so much, I realized it illustrates principles that apply to the association industry.

1. Unleash personalities.

Many Tour cyclists use Twitter and have encouraged their teammates to get on it too. Not only cyclists, but team managers, cooks, doctors, soigneurs and even bus drivers are tweeting. Surprisingly I haven’t seen any of them make Twitter faux pas, perhaps they’ve had social media coaching.

Team management is smart to allow and encourage their cyclists to tweet throughout the Tour. Cyclists share behind-the-scenes photos and thoughts about the day’s ride. We get to see a bit of the cyclist’s off-camera personality and humor. Their tweets tighten the bond we already have with the teams and sport.

Lesson: Encourage your staff to get out from behind the association logo and interact with members wherever they are – events, social media platforms and online communities. Provide training and guidelines and set them free.

2. Explain the rules and lingo.

I thought baseball was boring until I watched it with someone who explained all the nuances to me. Cycling is the same. Unless you understand the strategy, rules and terms, it looks like a pack of guys riding together for 120 miles until one wins at the end in a finishing sprint. It doesn’t make much sense. Thankfully the Tour TV commentators frequently explain the strategy, rules and terms so viewers can understand and enjoy what they’re seeing.

Lesson: Help new members and staff figure out how the association works – the written and unwritten rules, mission, strategy and lingo.

3. Tread carefully with tradition.

Cyclists have passed down the traditions and customs of the Tour since its beginnings in 1903. These traditions might seem out of place in such a competitive event but they’re also part of its charm. For example, when the Tour passes through a cyclist’s village, the peloton will slow down so the cyclist can stop on the side of the road and visit with friends and family, pose for photos and perhaps have a sip of wine or beer. The Tour has many unwritten rules about the yellow jersey (or maillot jaune), the cyclist in the overall lead. When someone disrespects these rules, they get grief not only from journalists and fans, but from fellow cyclists too.

Lesson: Even with all the talk of innovation and slaying sacred cows, there is a place for traditions. Traditions are tribal glue for communities, helping to perpetuate the positive aspects of an organization’s culture. Younger generations don’t dislike all traditions, just the backwards non-inclusionary ones.

4. Take a risk, crash and get back on the bike.

Unfortunately crashes are a common occurrence for Tour cyclists. The lucky ones recover quickly and, like a skater falling on the ice, pick themselves up, get medical and mechanical attention and get back in the race. The unlucky ones lose a chance at winning a stage or the Tour, or worse, end up in an ambulance and out of the Tour. After a crash cyclists often have to change their game plan, but there’s always tomorrow’s stage to fight back.

Some cyclists fight their way to a win by doing the unexpected, like Thor Hushovd descending a steep mountain road with hairpin turns at 69 miles per hour, or Thomas Voeckler hanging with the contenders on tough mountain stages when everyone says he can’t. They take risks knowing that if they fail, they do it publicly, but if they don’t risk, they don’t have a chance at glory.

Lesson: Take risks. Better to fear regret, than fear failure. Expect failures; they’re inevitable. Learn from them and keep moving forward.

5. Choose the right leader.

The leader of a team is the strongest cyclist, the one with the best chance of winning the Tour. It’s not the most popular guy or even the guy with the best record. American team Garmin-Cervelo expected Christian Van de Velde, currently in 30th place, to be its leader, but Tom Danielson is in 9th place, so the team is riding for him.

Lesson: Take a hard look at how your leaders are recruited and selected. How inclusionary is your leadership development process? Is it political or cliquey? Is selection based on knowing the right people? Must everyone “pay their dues” by climbing a long leadership ladder before contributing?

6. Honor the team: the grind and the glory.

Cycling is a team sport. Individuals take the glory but they can’t do it without the support of a strong team. Mark Cavendish wouldn’t have four stage wins without his teammates who help him get over mountains and protect him from the wind and crashes so he can save his energy for the final kick. Stars like Cavendish get the spotlight, but they share the credit with their team.

The team domestiques grind out a painful pace at the front of the peloton in an attempt to tire out competitors. They’re the ones who go back and forth between the team cars and the peloton to fetch water bottles and snacks. Yet even the guys who do the dirty work get their moment of glory. In every stage a group of cyclists will escape from the peloton in a breakaway. Breakaways have only a 5% chance of succeeding, but for younger or lower-placed cyclists, it’s a chance to get TV time, racing experience and perhaps a stage win.

Lesson: Honor and credit behind-the-scenes staff: those who maintain the database, answer phones, pack meeting supplies, manage programs, write minutes and stuff badges. You can’t succeed without them. Find ways to give the spotlight to those who normally wouldn’t get it. Let them take ownership of projects that will help them develop skills.

Any other Tour fans out there? In what other ways does the Tour illustrate life in the association world?


Deirdre Reid, CAE is a freelance writer who’s rooting for a spoiler, someone besides Contador, Evans or Schleck, to win the Tour this year.