David Zorrilla (TPE): sport is the easy part, the management is what's hard

David runs TPE, a sports company with a club, an academy and campuses.

We've worked together for a few years, so I've seen from the inside how much management there is behind every training session. I wanted to know how it looks from his side.

What is TPE and how did it start?

TPE stands for Tot Per l'Esport. It started small, with a simple idea: kids should be able to play sport properly organised, with coaches who know what they're doing. Then came the academy, the campuses... Almost every step came because families asked for it.

What's the hardest part of running a company in the sports world?

That sport is the easy part. Training sessions, matches, coaches: we know how to do that.

What's hard is everything around it. Registrations, payments, schedules, families who want an answer now.

If the management fails, nobody remembers how good the training was.

When did you decide you needed your own technology?

When I saw we were spending more time chasing information than running activities. Lists in one place, payments in another, emails everywhere. At some point you realise the problem isn't that you work too little. It's that your tools make you work twice.

What do you expect from a tech supplier? And what makes you stop trusting one?

That they answer. That they understand a family registering on a Sunday night is as urgent for us as an outage is for them.

I stop trusting someone when they promise dates they can't meet. I'd rather hear "not this week" than a nice lie.

Which part of your day has changed most since it went digital?

Payments and registrations. Before, chasing a payment meant phone calls and spreadsheets. Now most of it happens on its own, and I only look at the exceptions.

Which management mistake taught you the most?

Growing the activities before growing the organisation behind them. Every new group looks like a small addition until you count the hours.

How do you see grassroots sport and academies in the next few years?

More professional and more demanding. Families compare, and they're used to booking and paying for anything from their phone. Clubs that keep running on paper and goodwill are going to have a hard time.

One piece of advice for someone who wants to start a sports project and make a living from it.

Love the sport, but learn the numbers. Passion gets you through the first season. The numbers decide whether there's a second one.

I'll leave it there.

He said it better than I would have.