Leaders from around Tasmania, and as far as West Australia, gathered in Burnie late last month for the opening day of the Tasmania Devils’ executive leadership program, Dancing With The Devils. 

The brand new initiative aims to explore contemporary leadership topics through the lens of high performance sport, leaning on some of the state’s biggest names in sport leadership to facilitate an immersive, cutting-edge leadership experience. 

Each of the program’s four core days revolves around a theme from the Tasmania Devils’ signature Devils’ Why and Way club purpose and values framework, allowing participants a behind-the-scenes look at the process of building a club from scratch. 

In Burnie, participants spent the morning with Devils’ CEO Brendon Gale, exploring the theme of Forged In Fire – leading under pressure, making decisions in complex environments, and resilience when the heat is on.

Gale shared stories about his time as Richmond CEO, before turning his attention to the build of the Devils.

Gale was joined by GM of Strategy, People and Culture, Lauren Jauncey, for an interactive Q&A where participants were able to dig deeper into the leadership lessons that have shaped the early years of the Devils. 

“Gathering here at West Park, looking out over the beach where I used to surf and fish as a teenager, it is impossible not to feel the pull of this place,” Gale said.

“This region has shaped so much of who I am, and there is something really powerful about bringing leaders together here to talk about resilience, pressure and purpose.

"Building the Devils is about more than football.

"It is about carrying the stories, standards and spirit of Tasmania into everything we do, and making sure this club belongs to every part of the island.” 

The day was rounded out with an afternoon of exploring contemporary leadership frameworks with facilitator and Devils’ Learning and Development Manager, Dr Robert Mason, with participants applying their new learnings to sport-specific leadership scenarios.

Five-time Olympian and proud Tasmanian, Eddie Ockenden, then joined the group for an intimate dinner in Burnie to continue the conversation and share his own leadership reflections after transitioning from athlete to coach in recent years. 

Head of Education and Impact at the Tasmania Football Club, Jesse O’Hara, said the program represented an exciting expansion of the Club’s existing education programs. 

“Education is a major part of our Club’s focus beyond the boundary." O'Hara said.

"Through our work with schools, TasTAFE and the University of Tasmania, we currently deliver a range of quality learning programs across the island.

"Dancing with the Devils is a natural extension of that commitment, bringing lessons from elite sport into the business world.” 

The program continues with a session at the Brighton Football Club in July, where participants will spend the day learning about feedback in high performance environments through the theme of Frank and Fast, before joining the VFL and VFLW coaches for an exclusive training session observation. 

While the 2026 cohort is underway, we have opened Expressions of Interest for our next intake, due to commence in early 2027.

For more information or to add your name to the wait list, please email education@devilsfc.com.au