AOC culture out of step with Olympic ideal, review finds

Australian Olympic Committee staff believe the organisation’s culture is out of step with Olympic ideals, review finds.

AOC President John Coates. Picture: Getty

Australian Olympic Committee (AOC) staffers have described the organisation as dysfunctional in a wide-ranging review which details poor workplace culture.

The independent review found the AOC’s culture is out of step with Olympic ideals and modern workplace practices.

The review, released publicly on Thursday, highlights disillusionment of staff with their treatment from AOC leaders.

Staffers tell of senior leaders undermining each other and being openly hostile; of widespread concerns about favouritism; a lack of transparency in decision- making; and poor communication.

Many staff also hold a view that some people had stayed in the organisation too long, which was a key plank in the failed campaign to win the AOC presidency by ex-Olympian Danni Roche.

Roche challenged John Coates for the AOC in May, with the incumbent Coates retaining the role.

• Read the full report here (external site)

The review, by The Ethics Centre, was commissioned following bullying claims within the AOC which came to light during the presidency campaign. The review found staff described the AOC as “out of step with both their ideals and the minimum expectations for a modern organisation”.

“The principal cause of disillusionment is the way the organisation’s leadership treats staff and external stakeholders,” the review findings said. “All stakeholder groups were able to provide examples of senior AOC officials acting poorly,” adding staffers described “deceitful”, “two-faced” “egotistic” and “belligerent” behaviour.

Staffers also pinpointed a lack of governance.

“A number of staff described the AOC as “the most dysfunctional” organisation that they have worked for,” the review said.

“Staff described a ‘command and control’ structure that is akin to that of a conservative family business.

“There was a widespread feeling that difficult conversations are avoided by senior leaders in favour of short-cut ‘work arounds’ that minimise the need to engage directly with staff.

“Less than one in three staff surveyed felt that people ... are able to have difficult conversations in a constructive and respectful manner. “Poor behaviour is not directly dealt with.” The review said the AOC “needs to answer the question of how it can play a leadership role as an organisation in the Olympic family while, at the same time, progressing the interests and ambitions of Australia”. “As it happens, the majority of the AOC’s values are neither strongly nor consistently expressed in practice,” the report said.

“Indeed, the AOC values are not widely recognised by staff, nor do they resonate strongly with them.”

AAP