ICC announces 100% cricket future leaders programme

Greg Barclay

(ICC) The International Cricket Council (ICC) has launched the 100% Cricket Future Leaders Programme – a mentorship programme for all female future leaders in cricket as part of their long-term commitment to accelerate the growth of women’s cricket and women in cricket.

Under the umbrella of 100% Cricket, 100% Cricket – Future Leaders Programme is designed to support emerging female talent in cricket across administration, coaching and officiating, broadcast, and journalism as well as marketing, digital and technology and events.

Belinda Clark

The programme is designed to address the low percentage of women in leadership positions in global cricket and build a pipeline of new female leaders in cricket.

Commenting on the programme Greg Barclay, Chairman ICC said: “Cricket is a genuinely inclusive sport for all, but that is not widely reflected in how our game is led globally so it gives me great pleasure to launch the Future Leaders Programme.

“This is a practical approach towards solving the underrepresentation of women in leadership positions in our sport to enable us to build a strong pipeline of future female leaders and ultimately inspire more women to take up roles in cricket. 

“The response from the global cricket community has been fantastic as you can see from the mentors who have enthusiastically committed to bring their knowledge and expertise to the programme and I am personally looking forward to being part of it.”

Application is open to all female future leaders of cricket and will be matched with a mentor to support their development growth.

The role of a mentor is to unlock their mentee’s potential and help them to be at their best.

This could include being a confidential sounding-board, providing advice, guidance, and connections to reach their potential.

The philosophy of the 100% Cricket – Future Leaders Programme is to be participant lead, with the ICC acting in support to match the mentees with suitable mentors and provide guidelines and evaluation frameworks for the participants and opportunities to network and interact.

The programme will last for a period of six months, and include a kick-off workshop with Belinda Clark, followed by monthly check-ins and a three-month review with the mentees and mentors agreeing the frequency and method of communication.

Commenting on her involvement Belinda Clark AO said: “I have experienced and witnessed some amazing leaders within cricket over the last 20 years. It is pleasing that these quality leaders are willing to help females starting out on their leadership journey. We have made great progress, but cricket understands it has a big responsibility to be more inclusive across all areas of the sport. 

“The breadth of this programme is unique – not only covering the areas of administration, coaching, officiating, governance, broadcast, digital but also matching people across borders to make it a truly global experience. I applaud the ICC for undertaking this programme to facilitate greater diversity in all areas of the game. I encourage emerging female leaders involved in cricket think about this unique opportunity and submit an application to be involved.”

All mentee applications will be reviewed by a selection panel consisting of the ICC General Manager – Marketing and Communications, another member of the ICC senior management team and two independents.

The panel will put forward the successful applicants to an appropriate mentor based on their personal and professional development objectives and projected career path.

The aim is to announce the first batch of selected applicants on May 13, 2021. 

* The ICC invites applications for the first batch of participants from April 19 to May 3, 2021 from all interested candidates from the world of Cricket. The opportunity is open to women who will go on to become the future leaders of our sport.  Aspiring leaders in junior to middle management positions of any ICC Member or ICC would make suitable candidates.

Potential Programme Workstreams:

* Governance/Board

* Administration/ Executive Management/ ICC Senior Management Team

* Coaching

* Match Officials

* Player Growth 

* Marketing and Promotions / Commercial

* Media: Journalist/ Commentator/ Broadcaster

* Digital/ Technology

* Interested candidates must send the following to ICC’s email address: 100percentcricket@icc-cricket.com

o An updated CV – showcasing current role and experience – be as descriptive as possible. 

o Covering Letter – as means of the Statement of Purpose illustrating the need for mentorship.

o Letter of recommendation from Member Board / Organisation / Supervisor

* Successful applicants will be notified by May 13, 2021. 

* The selection committee consists of ICC General Manager Marketing and Communications, along with a list of two independents and Belinda Clark, a legend and leader of the game.

* The mentors will be paired with successful mentees by May 17th, 2021 and the programme and officially commence from that date.

* The first batch has limited capacity and will consist of not more than 15 candidates. 

LIST OF CONFIRMED MENTORS FOR BATCH 1

1. Greg Barclay, Chair, ICC

2. Wasim Khan, CEO, PCB

3. Andrea Nelson, CEO, ICC Women’s Cricket World Cup, New Zealand

4. Steve Elworthy, Managing Director – Events & Special Projects, ECB

5. Michelle Enright, Acting CEO, ICC T20 World Cup Australia

6. Hilton Moreeng, Coach – South Africa Women’s Team 

7. Claire Polosak, Match Official / Umpire 

8. Sana Mir, Former Captain of Pakistan’s Women’s Team 

9. Divya Gokulnath, Co-Founder BYJU’s

10. Anthony Everard, Exec GM, Fan Engagement, Cricket Australia 

11. Sharda Ugra, Sports Journalist 

12. Ian Bishop, Leading Broadcaster, Former West Indies Fast Bowler   

13. Dhiraj Malhotra, GM Cricket Operations and Game Development, BCCI 

14. Christina Matthews, CEO WACA

15. Gemma Davies, Operations Director, Engage Digital Partners