Kießling: An exciting and effective exchange

As one of 14 participants, Bayer 04 honorary captain Stefan Kießling, currently responsible for first team coordination, used the opportunity of further education with the certificate programme 'Management in Professional Football' organised by the German Football League (DFL) and the German Football Association (DFB). In addition to the teaching material, there was also communication with other participants including Thomas Kessler (Head of the first team section at FC Köln) and Marcel Schäfer (VfL Wolfsburg sporting director).

In an interview with bayer04.de, the former Germany international talks about his experiences and how he has applied the knowledge to his day-to-day work with the Werkself.

Kies, belated congratulations on gaining your certificate. Take us back to the past 18 months. What does training to be a 'Manager in Professional Football' actually involve?

Kießling: Thank you very much. The whole programme was divided into three big modules: Bundesliga know-how, sporting know-how and management know-how. These were then subdivided into various sub themes. We did it online and in person. In addition, there were tasks we were able to do in preparation for the course events.

What content was new to you?

Kießling: The sessions on finance were completely new to me. And I also had little knowledge of the subject of licensing. In terms of scouting and match observation, we had helpful tools to enable us to better observe interesting players. The subject of management and leadership was particularly interesting. As a player, I already had experience as a leader to a certain extent. In a business however other aspects are important when it's about: How do I lead a team of colleagues? I was able to learn a lot.

And in which areas were you able to apply your previous experiences?

Kießling: A lot of topics around football were known to me from my time as a player. And with the other former players you could see that there was lots of expertise in this field too.

Where did you meet and how did the in-person sessions go?

Kießling: The venues were always different but we spend the most time at the DFL in Frankfurt. In addition, there were meetings at the Deutsche Bank Park, Eintracht Frankfurt's stadium, at FIFA in Zürich, at Adidas in Herzogenaurach and at Deloitte in Düsseldorf.

The individual sessions were over two days. During the day it was divided into events on the individual subjects. For example, the former U21 coach Stefan Kuntz dropped in to talk about subjects such as leadership, setting up training or addressing teams. Christian Seifert as the former DFL CEO was able to provide valuable insights into his years of work in professional football in the subject of management. Finally there are always Q & A sessions that were really enlightening.

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And what was it like between the training events?

Kießling: On the one hand, all the participants carried on their work with the clubs as normal in addition to the course work and, on the other, there were preparations to make in relation to the joint meetings. In that respect it is really helpful to be able to call on the expertise of colleagues at Bayer 04 – such as in financial management when it was about working out profit and loss or capital and balance sheets. It's important to be well informed in all these areas. Here at Leverkusen there are now departments that take such tasks off your hands but as a sporting director at a smaller club they could fall within your areas of duty.

How intensive was the communication between participants?

Kießling: The group got on well and it was really helpful to talk to colleagues. We had the opportunity to build up a network. I got on well with everybody – for example with Thomas Kessler, who now leads the first-team section at Köln. We used to play against each other but we always got on well. The communication with the other participants was also great and there were no exceptions, our WhatsApp group is still active.

There was a final exam at the end of the programme – what was that like?

Kießling: That's right, there was. We were able to pick out four subjects about a year in advance. The choices were: squad planning, infrastructure (sustainability, economic stability), youth/academy centres and first team. I opted for the two subjects of economic stability and academies. The job was to develop a strategy map for 2030. I felt like I was at university: font size, number of pages, and line spacing were all set out in detail – that was a first for me (he laughs). At the last in-person session at the new DFB Campus it was about pitching our results and defending them in a Q&A session. It all worked well overall.

Was this your first study course?

Kießling: In that form yes. As a player, I studied sports management at the ESM Academy in Nuremberg. Back then it was difficult to combine things as I had to miss out three or more weeks due to the fixtures.

What content from the course have you been able to apply in your day-to-day work?

Kießling: Above all, I was able to extend my understanding of how the club has managed and how wide-ranging the tasks in management are at a professional football club. The most important thing is communication both within an organisation as well as outside. I'm looking forward to being able to use my new knowledge at Bayer 04 in the future.

Looking to the future: How do you envisage yourself and your duties at the Black and Reds in the next few years?

Kießling: First off, there are no more courses. I want to concentrate on my job at Bayer 04 and fulfil that role to the best of my ability. As an organiser and coordinator, I primarily see myself as a point of contact between our departments. I'm looking forward to the tasks head such as organisation of Champions League matchdays, the training camp and the friendlies. And subjects such as the launch of the new kit or agreeing on the new autograph cards come under my remit in close cooperation with colleagues from communication and marketing.