Tough chats to be had: Langer

Justin Langer has laid down his expectations to Australia's leading coaches in an introductory session in Brisbane, declaring open, honest and 'tough' conversations will be the hallmarks of his tenure.

Langer spent the afternoon of the annual Australian cricket coaches' forum at the Bupa National Cricket Centre yesterday explaining his values and expectations for all involved in Australian cricket.

Following the fallout of the Newlands Test in March, Langer was hired as Darren Lehmann's successor and has been tasked with rebuilding a shattered team culture and public perception alongside captain Tim Paine.

The road to redemption will undoubtedly be long, but the 47-year-old said it starts with individuals, from players to coaches to all those involved in the game, being open and honest.

Former Australia opening batsman Chris Rogers was on deck in Brisbane in his role as High Performance coach and said the nation's mentors have been instructed to not shy away from having the "tough chats" when necessary.

"I think there is going to be a lot of honest conversations," Rogers told cricket.com.au. 

"That's what he (Langer) is all about, willing to have the tough chats. 

"He gave his own values, what he stands for, and of those people who do know Justin or have read about him it wouldn't be too surprising, but it was good to have the kind of reinforcement and understand where he stands.

"There's going to be no getting around that. It's very clear what the expectations are."

While Langer did a lot of talking on Monday, Rogers said the former Western Australia supremo was just as keen to listen. 

"I think he wanted to get a lay of the land," Rogers said. "He's very conscious of everyone being in it together, working collaboratively. 

"I guess that is from the fact he's just come out of a state coach role and understands all those issues. 

"A lot of the conversations were about how does cricket in Australia improve and what can be done."

CA’s Head of Coach Development, Matthew Betsey, is a driving force behind the conference, and said the aim was to help Australia’s leading coaches improve and develop.

"From a really high level, what we did was try to put a program together where we got the Australian coaching staff and the head coaches together to focus on them getting better," Betsey told cricket.com.au.

"We’ve had Dr Wade Gilbert, a coaching expert from the US, with us over for the past few weeks who’s been working with us trying to look at what does continuous improvement look like, what does getting better look like, and putting that in context for the coaches.

"Then we mixed that in with JL to set the scene and what his vision and purpose is moving forward."

Lehmann, who will see out his CA contract working with the National Performance Squad, is involved in the two-day Team Performance meeting that started today at the NCC.

Representatives from sporting bodies such as AFL premiers Richmond Tigers and NRL powerhouse Melbourne Storm, along with global car manufacturer Toyota, spoke to CA's Team Performance staff as they finalise their strategy for the next 12 months.