Steps Ahead

Olympic team culture isn't built on the podium—it’s forged on day one.In this episode, we unpack what it truly takes to establish uncompromised standards in high-performance environments, drawing from the legendary careers of Olympic rowing medalist Jackie Gowler (Rowing NZ) and Black Sticks hockey striker Hugo Inglis (Hockey NZ Blacksticks).Whether syncing every stroke in an elite boat or navigating high-stakes penalty shoot outs on the hockey turf, sustainable success hinges on setting non-negotiables before the whistle blows.Jackie and Hugo share raw, actionable insights on how early standard-setting creates team accountability, builds trust, and converts high potential into world-class performance.This has incredible relevance for anyone onboarding new team members, setting a culture and passion for high performance.00:00 Welcome and Introductions01:06 Jackie's Rowing NZ career02:40 Hugo's Hockey career03:27 Sport Meets Business - Ice House Ventures 06:06 Feedback Loops and Culture10:01 Finding Rowing and Hockey12:25 Competitive Drive and Mentors14:40 Joining Elite Squads19:32 Senior Leaders and Standards23:15 Progression and Performance Data27:11 Rio Run and German Analysis29:30 Tactics Lessons and Peak Moments33:56 Culture Shift After 201834:50 Fueling Olympic Rowers 36:09 Roles Trust and Stroke Seat37:33 One Percenters and Candor38:18 Olympic Regatta Mindset40:10 Rivals and Racing Your Race41:56 In-House Competition Engine45:15 High Impact Athletes Mission47:25 Measuring Impact Like Sport50:18 Startup Story and Athlete Network52:57 Ice House IV Athletes Fund56:36 Wrap-Up

Designing Te Kaha Stadium: Community Impact, Fan Experience & World-Leading Turf Tech (Christchurch)In this Steps Ahead episode, Matt discusses his path from qualified carpenter to architect and his specialization in sports and recreation facilities across New Zealand and Australia. He emphasizes the social and economic value of these spaces including studies showing strong returns on community investment. He shares involvement in Christchurch’s post-earthquake rebuild and explains how Te Kaha Stadium became the final anchor project after the 2011 earthquakes, revived in 2019–2020 and delivered via a design-and-construct consortium with Populous, Warren and Mahoney, and BESIX Watpac. The conversation covers designing for both sport and concerts, the importance of customer and operational experience, stakeholder engagement, team culture and compromise, and world-leading fixed-roof, fixed-turf technology in South Island stadiums. 00:00 First Stadium Memories00:42 Meet Matt 02:36 Why Sport Facilities Matter03:45 Rebuilding Christchurch 04:23 Designing for Fan Experience05:28 IAKS and Modern Venues07:31 NZ vs Australia Delivery Models09:19 Te Kaha Origin Story12:02 Multiuse Stadium Design13:43 Team Culture and Stakeholders17:46 World Leading Turf Science20:04 Compromise and Pick Battles21:13 People Watching and Flow23:53 Build Highlights and Steelwork25:54 Te Kaha Meaning and Farewell

This is a video about Steps Ahead Ep 3 - Captains' Club with Kieran Read and First XV Captains00:00 Reset After Loss00:45 Meet the Panel02:19 Early Coaches and Roots03:09 School Sport and Work Ethic04:36 Handling Adversity06:54 Preparation and Game Flow07:59 Cricket Crossover Benefits09:51 Injuries and Mental Resilience12:44 Respect and Big Moments15:03 Building Team Culture16:42 Creating Safe Team Environments19:26 First XV Memories and 2015 World Cup20:52 Winning Culture Mindset21:55 2015 World Cup Pressure22:57 New Wave Reset23:49 Game Day Routines26:50 Adapting Mid Match29:38 Becoming Captain31:02 People First Leadership33:02 Know Your Values35:34 Reset After Mistakes38:17 Hard Lessons In Sport39:39 Coaching Kids Fun40:43 Lessons From Stanford42:05 Weight Of The Jersey43:49 Knowing When To Retire45:49 Final Thanks And Wrap

NZ Olympic Men’s 8 Rowing Coach Maths Teacher, Christ’s College00:00 Olympic Gold Vision01:12 Being Average Mindset01:38 Being Average Under Pressure03:41 Finding Rowing in Ireland04:11 Growing Up and Finding Rowing05:40 Olympic Dream Spark06:06 Olympic Dream Spark07:51 From Nationals to Olympics08:28 From Nationals to Worlds09:22 Thor Nilsen Influence09:39 Thor Nilsen Philosophy11:52 Training Limits and Respect12:20 Brutal Training Experiments16:05 Resilience and Winning Late16:16 Resilience and Loving Process17:46 Olympics Mindset and Debriefs19:32 Mindset Debriefs and Nutrition21:47 Nutrition and Marginal Gains23:46 Coaching Culture in NZ23:46 Coaching in New Zealand26:18 Joining the Kiwi Eight Campaign26:38 Joining Late and Selecting Crew29:02 Selecting the Eight29:16 Selection System Debate29:47 Selection System Frustrations30:09 Early Regattas Reality Check30:31 Early Races And No Time31:27 Seat Racing For Magic31:27 Seat Racing For Magic32:01 Worlds Heartbreak Sixth32:01 Worlds Heartbreak Sixth Place32:43 Rebuilding After Missing Qual32:43 Rebuilding After Nonqualification33:55 COVID Reset New Blood34:50 Knowing Athletes As People35:07 Athletes Are People First37:05 One Year Out Setting Goals37:05 One Year To Tokyo38:57 Daily Excellence Flywheel40:16 Excellence In The Details42:01 Competition Without Obsession42:01 Ignore Rivals And Fads45:04 East German Sports Machine45:04 East German Sports Machine47:42 Honesty Trust And Selection47:47 Brutal Honesty Builds Trust52:44 Pressure Tools Visualization52:44 Pressure Tools Visualization56:44 Advice For Future Olympians56:44 Advice Be Humble Average58:14 Closing Thanks And Wrap58:14 Wrap Up And Tech TalkSteps ahead is brought to you by Frankie - tellfrankie.com

A fortnightly interview series for Business and Property Leaders of Lessons from Sports people