With his handball goal against lowly Mansfield, Game Theory bête noire Luis Suarez has again incurred the wrath of the football community – but has once more won the backing of his club in the aftermath. The string of incidents surrounding Suarez, coupled with Liverpool’s penchant for standing by their man, raise an interesting management question: when is it good policy to support and maintain the services of an unpredictable, yet highly talented, employee?

A continent-crossing 2012 report from the London School of Economics and the University of New South Wales found that the global downturn has made businesses “increasingly more reliant on the skills of internal ‘mavericks’ to keep firms aggressive and competitive in the global market place.”

It kind of makes sense – and partly explains the tolerant attitude of Liverpool FC.

As recent economic events have led to belt tightening at firms, many companies are asking employees to do more with less. The lack of resources has arguably made the marketplace more competitive than ever before, requiring the input of creative solutions. And that’s where the maverick comes in.

No one is seriously suggesting that the Premier League is a cash-strapped economy – but it is certainly a microcosm of bear-pit competition; one in which the act of firing your most able member of staff could well mean that the employee in question scores against you next week.

The report describes mavericks as creative, quick decision makers with disagreeable traits – qualities that Suarez appears to have in spades.

One, final maverick streak identified by the report is “goal-oriented”. Suarez is certainly that. And if overall success is what Liverpool craves, rather than cosy public relations, the club is highly likely to hang on to him.

Management ups and downs

Promotion:

Heather Watson and Laura Robson
For becoming the first two British women to be ranked in the tennis World Top 50 at the same time for 25 years – another historic step forward for the British game.

Relegation:

Sepp Blatter
For making another fine mess of an important issue while discussing AC Milan’s recent walk off from a friendly match against Pro Patria, after rival fans subjected Milan player Kevin-Prince Boateng to racist taunts. FIFA chief Blatter accused the Milan team of “running away”, implying that their action smacked of cowardice rather than solidarity.