Assignment:
Review a NASCAR'S Racing Teams
Developed by David S. Chappell, Ohio University, modified by Hal Babson, Columbus State Community College and John R. Schermerhorn, Jr., Ohio University
The most popular team sport, based on total spectator audience, is not bas- ketball, baseball, football, or even soccer: it is stock car racing. The largest stock car racing group in the world is the National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing (NASCAR), which recently celebrated its 60th year. The NASCAR Sprint Cup Series (formerly known as the Winston Cup or Nextel Cup) kicks off in February and runs through November. Along the way it serves as a marketing powerhouse.
Not only are over 3.5 million fans attracted to NASCAR's Sprint Cup races, but another 218 million watched them on television last year.1,2 Drivers are involved in cable network shows as well as syndicated radio shows each week. NASCAR's official Web site, at www.nascar. com, consistently ranks among the top league sites on the Internet and generates well over 1 billion page views year-after-year.3 Companies such as the Coca-Cola Co. and Nationwide Insurance take advan- tage of NASCAR's popularity with merchandise, collectibles, apparel, accessories, toys, and other market- ing tie-ins. The race cars themselves have been described by some as "200 mile-per-hour billboards."
Jeff Gordon is one of NASCAR's most successful and well-known drivers; he's been a sensation ever since he started racing go-carts and quarter-midget cars at the age of 5. But as the driver of a successful race car he represents just the most visible part of an incredibly complex racing organization-a high-performance system whose ultimate contribution takes place on race day. For several years a team known as the Rainbow Warriors handled Gordon's car. Their leader was crew chief Ray Evernham, recognized by many as one of the very best in the business. Posted on the wall of his workshop was this sign:
Success is a ruthless competitor, for it flatters and nourishes our weaknesses and lulls us into complacency.
While Gordon represented the star attraction, many believed that it was Evernham who pulled the whole act together. He was responsible for a group of over 120 technicians and mechanics with an annual budget estimated between $10 and $12 mil- lion! And he had strong opinions as to what it takes to consistently finish first: painstaking preparation, egoless teamwork, and thoroughly original strategizing-principles that apply to any high-performance organization.
Evernham believed that teams needed to experiment with new methods and processes. When he assembled his Rainbow Warriors pit crew, none of them had Nextel/ Winston Cup experience and none worked on the car in any other capacity. With the use of a pit crew coach, the Rainbow Warriors pro- vide Gordon with an approximately one-second advantage with each pit stop, which, at a speed of 200 miles per hour, equates to 300 feet of race track. "When you coach and sup- port a superstar like Jeff Gordon, you give him the best equipment possible, you give him the informa- tion he needs, and then you get out of the way. But racing is a team sport. Everyone who races pretty much has the same car and the same equipment. What sets us apart is our people. I like to talk about our ‘team IQ'-because none of us is as smart as all of us."
Said Evernham, "I think a lot about people, management, and psychology: Specifically, how can I motivate my guys and make them gel as a team? I surround them with ideas about teamwork. I read every leadership book I can get my hands on. One thing that I took from my reading is the idea of a ‘circle of strength.' When the Rainbow Warriors meet, we always put our chairs in a circle. That's a way of saying that we're stronger as a team than we are on our own."
Evernham backed up this belief in team by emphasizing team performance over individual performance. When the car won a race, everyone shared in the prize money. In addition, when Evernham earned money through personal-service activities such as
speaking tours and autograph sign- ings, he shared what he earned with the team. "I wouldn't be in a position to earn that income if
it weren't for the team. Everyone should feel as if his signature is on the finished product."
Steve Letarte had some pretty big shoes to fill when he became Jeff Gordon's crew chief. After a series of successful title runs, Letarte was recently transferred to Gordon team- mate Dale Earnhardt's team with the intention of bringing about "a more professional and ultimately more successful Earnhardt."4
But don't cry for Jeff Gordon. Under new pit boss Alan Gustafson, the #24 crew is performing as strongly as ever: In the current sea- son, Gordon has spent 50% more miles at the front of the pack than the number two racer.5
It's not only the fans who have noticed what goes on in the NASCAR pit crews and rac- ing teams. The next time you fly on United Airlines, check out the ground crews. You might notice some similarities with the teams handling pit stops for NASCAR rac- ers. In fact, there's a good chance the members of the ramp crews have been through what has been called "Pit Crew U."6 United is among many organizations that are sending employees to Pit Instruction and Training in Mooresville, North Carolina. At the same facility where real racing crews train, United's ramp workers learn to work under pressure while meeting the goals of teamwork, safety, and job pre- paredness. The objective is to replace work practices that may sometimes result in aircraft delays and service inadequacies-things that a NASCAR team should avoid in order to stay competitive in races. "It's stuff you can carry back like cleaning up your work area, being set up for that airplane to arrive like the pit crews are ready for that car to get here," said Marc Abbatacola of Chicago's O'Hare International Airport.7
Joe Konkel agreed: "The PIT training supports all the major prin- ciples of Georgia-Pacific . . . the need for everyone to have the necessary skill, commitment, ownership, and teamwork to advance the vision. Safety, compliance, and efficiency work together and become a result of this focus. This fosters pride, owner- ship, and a clear understanding of each person's individual advantage as part of the team."
High-performance teams may be inherited, but should be maintained. They do not happen by chance; rather, they are the result of good recruiting and meticulous attention to learning every detail of the job.
Questions
1. In what ways do Evernham's leadership tactics prove consistent with the characteristics and ideas on high performance teams and teamwork advanced in the text?
2. If you were hired as Jeff Gordon's new pit crew chief, what team norms would you expect to be in place?
3. What can someone who takes over a highly successful team from a leader like Evernham do to maintain and even improve team success in the future?
4. Research question: Pit crews are often in the news. See what you can find out about pit crew performance. Ask: What distinguishes the "high performance" pit crews from the "also rans?"
Ref:
Schermerhorn, John R.. Organizational Behavior, 12th Edition. John Wiley & Sons. .