Joe Gilfedder, who is the Senior Associate Athletic Director for Sports Performance at Fordham University in the Bronx discusses what it was like taking on a director role at 28 years old. Joe provides us with insight around how to be socially aware when creating and establishing connections with the players, and everyone else in the building. He also talks to us about what it means to truly set a standard and how to uphold that standard across the board. Enjoy!
Episode overview
Joe Gilfedder, Senior Associate Athletic Director for Sports Performance at Fordham University, reflects on assuming a director role at 28. He discusses social awareness, establishing connections with players and colleagues, and setting standards that can be upheld across a program. The conversation gives strength and conditioning professionals a practical way to think about coaching beyond sets and repetitions. It connects day-to-day training decisions with communication, leadership, athlete development, and the realities of working inside a larger organization.
Key themes from the conversation
Growing into leadership early
Taking a director role at 28 required Gilfedder to lead while still developing his own experience. The episode provides a useful framework for balancing confidence with listening, preparation, and respect for the people already in the building. As you listen, pay attention to the decisions behind the approach: what problem the coach is trying to solve, what information matters most, and how the idea can be adapted to a different team, age group, or training environment. That context is more useful than copying a drill or program without understanding why it was selected.
Social awareness and connection
Relationships improve when a coach notices context, listens carefully, and understands how communication lands with different people. Social awareness is not separate from performance; it affects trust, feedback, and the willingness to work through difficult moments. As you listen, pay attention to the decisions behind the approach: what problem the coach is trying to solve, what information matters most, and how the idea can be adapted to a different team, age group, or training environment. That context is more useful than copying a drill or program without understanding why it was selected.
Setting and maintaining standards
A standard only matters when it is specific enough to guide behavior and consistent enough to survive pressure. Gilfedder’s discussion encourages staffs to define what the standard looks like in practice and how it will be reinforced fairly. As you listen, pay attention to the decisions behind the approach: what problem the coach is trying to solve, what information matters most, and how the idea can be adapted to a different team, age group, or training environment. That context is more useful than copying a drill or program without understanding why it was selected.
Why this episode matters
Joe Gilfedder’s perspective is useful because the role of a performance coach is never limited to writing a program. Coaches must earn trust, explain expectations, adjust to the people in front of them, and keep training aligned with the competitive calendar. This episode invites listeners to examine how professional growth and better athlete outcomes often come from the same habits: asking better questions, communicating clearly, reviewing results honestly, and staying willing to refine an approach.
For head coaches and administrators, the discussion also offers a window into the responsibilities carried by a strength staff. A successful program depends on shared standards, useful feedback, and collaboration across sport coaches, athletic trainers, medical staff, and performance specialists. The details will look different in every setting, but the need for alignment remains constant.
Who should listen
This episode is especially relevant for young directors, collegiate performance coaches, staff leaders, and coaches working to improve social awareness and organizational standards. It is also a strong professional-development resource for interns and graduate assistants who want to understand how experienced practitioners evaluate problems, build relationships, and grow into greater responsibility. Listen once for the story, then return to the sections that connect most directly to the challenges in your own program.
Turn the conversation into action
After listening, write down one idea that confirms your current practice, one idea that challenges it, and one question you want to discuss with your staff. Choose a small action that can be tested without disrupting the entire program, define what improvement would look like, and review the result after an appropriate training block. That simple process turns a podcast insight into a useful coaching experiment while keeping the athlete and the program’s goals at the center of the decision.
Explore more interviews on the Samson Strength Coach Collective, where coaches and performance leaders share the experiences, systems, and lessons shaping their work.
