Park Hang-seo's leadership philosophy

Written by Han June, a renowned writer for SPOTV, the book "Park Hang-seo's Leadership Philosophy" delves into the leadership skills and team management techniques that have contributed to the coach's success.

Vietnamese U22 players using mobile phones at the SEA Games 30. Source: Saostar .

I set out for Vietnam with the intention of absolutely respecting their culture. I also told the players that I respect all cultures and traditions, but I will modify their style of play.

It's no exaggeration to say that the history of Vietnamese football can be divided into two periods: before and after Park Hang-seo. The team's performance speaks for itself. But why has this dramatic change occurred?

When asked what changes he had made and how he made them to succeed as head coach of the Vietnamese national team, Park Hang-seo replied: "I didn't do anything special."

Despite his modesty, the reality is that in just three short months after taking over as head coach, Park Hang-seo had to lead the national team into his first tournament, and in fact, he hadn't been able to make much of a difference.

Park Hang-seo believes that the first and most important thing is for him to truly understand Vietnam. He considers many factors, including not only playing football on the field, but also environmental and cultural variables that could affect the players' performance.

Furthermore, Park Hang-seo's appointment as head coach of the Vietnamese national team was not met with widespread approval and consensus from the Vietnamese public and media. Vietnamese football had previously collaborated with several European coaches, at a time when the influx of Western coaches into Asia was very popular.

Furthermore, Park Hang-seo's lack of significant achievements in Korean football also raised doubts. In this context, upon arriving in Vietnam, Park Hang-seo did not rush to implement his own management methods. Instead, he chose to approach Vietnamese football by first understanding the mentality of Vietnamese players and the Vietnamese football community.

"I wasn't trying to change anything. At that time, I didn't know much about Vietnam either. As you know, when I first took office, I faced a cold attitude from many sides; Vietnamese people were still questioning my experience. So, the first thing I did was learn about Vietnam."

I sought out the head coach of the Vietnamese shooting team, Park Chung Gun, who has lived in Vietnam for over 10 years. Although our sports are different, they are both within the field of sports , so I asked him for advice on the habits of Vietnamese athletes and cultural differences. I also read books about Vietnam and learned about your history. The first thing I did was to learn about Vietnam and the issues surrounding football here.”

Coach Park Hang-seo.

Learn about Vietnam to find the right direction for Vietnamese football.

People only see what they know. Therefore, it's impossible to learn superficially; one must understand deeply and thoroughly. First, Park Hang-seo outlined what he could change and what he couldn't change.

South Korea, and South Korean football in particular, is undoubtedly more developed than Vietnam. Clearly, South Korean football has a greater potential than Vietnam, but we cannot simply copy and apply the methods that South Korean football uses to Vietnam. Before embarking on reforms, Park Hang-seo always started with respect for this country.

The first thing Park Hang-seo learned and accepted was the Vietnamese culture of napping. Due to the hot and humid climate, Vietnamese people are accustomed to starting work early in the morning to avoid the heat and taking time to rest and sleep at noon.

To avoid disrupting the players' lunch breaks, Park Hang-seo moved the morning training sessions earlier. Vietnamese people typically start their day at 5 AM and work from 6-7 AM. This meant the players would wake up early to train, then have lunch and finish their work schedule to ensure adequate rest. Sudden changes to daily routines could negatively impact the players' health and ability to concentrate on training.

During training and working with the Vietnamese national team, Park Hang-seo absolutely did not interfere with the players' rest time. However, there was one aspect of the culture that Park Hang-seo demanded the players change: the habit of using phones during meals.

Many players are on both the U-23 and senior national team rosters, meaning they spend more time with the senior national team than with the senior South Korean national team. However, in reality, the time players spend with the national team cannot match the time they spend playing and socializing with their teammates at their clubs. Therefore, it is crucial to encourage players to take advantage of each training camp to socialize, chat, and build camaraderie during meals.

And to avoid disrupting communication between coaches and players, as well as among the players themselves, the use of mobile phones during meals is absolutely prohibited. Even when sitting at the same table, if everyone is engrossed in their phone screens, the conversation will inevitably be interrupted.

Not only during meals, but even when the whole team is traveling on the bus, team members are not allowed to use their mobile phones.

Because this is a very precious time for the players to rest, relax, and recover their physical strength, to ensure everyone adheres to the rules, Park Hang-seo also set a regulation that anyone who violates it will have to pay a fine, and he himself seriously complies with paying the fine if he happens to forget to put his phone on silent mode during team meals.

The advent of smartphones has overcome all spatial and temporal barriers affecting human connection. However, it has shortened the time people spend in face-to-face conversations, causing us to become distracted and lose focus when we need to communicate directly with others.

Unless it's during national team training camps, Park Hang-seo, Lee Young Jin, and other members of the coaching staff usually communicate via text messages. However, during national team training camps, they have established some rules of conduct to minimize the negative impact of smartphones.

This is essential to help not only the 11 players on the field but also all 23 players on the final national team roster bridge the gap in their collective life and unite as one.