Planning for the summer has long been under way for Swansea City.
Following what was a disastrous January transfer window, the Swans will be bidding to have far more success in the upcoming market as they look to continue their progress under Russell Martin.
Despite a poor run of results up until mid-March, Saturday's 3-0 victory over Norwich City kept Martin's troops in the mix for a play-off place. It also saw them surpass last season's tally of 61 points with two matches still to play.
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Jason Levien, Jake Silverstein and Martin all spoke of needing to learn from the shambolic January, although the sheer amount of player contract concerns the club has at present would suggest that hasn't been the case.
However, the most pressing matter concerns the situation of the head coach and his staff. Martin is set to enter the final 12 months of his three-year deal at the club.
The 37-year-old has regularly stated his desire for his situation to be resolved, one way or another while also stressing his love for the city, the club and those working within it.
To that end, why is there yet to be a resolution to a matter that has been a concern for so long?
The lack of clarity will undoubtedly have a major knock on effect on the club's summer. How can the Swans expect a transfer target to commit his future to the club if they don't even know which manager they'll be playing for in a year?
And what about the umpteen players who are on the brink of entering the final year of their deals. At what stage do they feel they need to strike while the iron's hot and look elsewhere?
Let's not forget, speaking at a fans' forum in October, Silverstein revealed the top brass were eager for Martin to remain at the club for the long-term.
"We want Russell to be here a long time and I think we can all see the growth in the players working with him and his staff," he said.
So why hasn't it been sorted? Those comments were six months ago. Half a year.
We all know who signs off on key club matters by this point. It was made abundantly clear after the abysmal winter window; a scenario that has unfortunately been only too familiar in recent years. (See January 2019 or summer 2018 for further examples.)
When asked by the Supporters' Trust earlier this year if he is the one who signs off on a deal to sign a player, Levien responded: "Yes."
He went on to add: "I huddle with my partners Jake and Steve (Kaplan), we look at the opportunity and spend a lot of time talking Josh (Marsh), Julian (Winter) and Russ in making that determination.
"We govern by consensus because we all have a lot of skin in the game, and then we execute."
Unfortunately, the final four words of Levien's answer have to be pulled to pieces given the shocking lack of execution in the month of January, and, for the most part, ever since. How much has actually changed?
Jay Fulton was recently handed a new deal which serves as a real boost to Martin and the first team while exciting academy product Ben Lloyd has also extended his stay with the club of late.
But an alarming amount of work is yet to be done, which probably typifies Martin's desire in February to open up on the "ambiguity" that plagued the club so badly in their botched winter window.
During his explosive post-January press conference, Martin referenced the work done by all in Swansea regarding transfers before stating: "The problem then arises, we don't have the final say.
"Jason alluded to that yesterday (in his interview with the Trust), that's with him, over there. All of the hours that get put into the work, then we have a little bit of ambiguity at the end of it."
Players have thrown their weight behind the current regime of late, with Liam Cullen and Ben Cabango among those to show their gratitude to the coaching staff for aiding their personal development.
But so many of Joel Latibeaudiere's comments ahead of this weekend's trip to Hull City were as insightful as they were telling.
The defender - whose contract expires in the summer - spoke about his love for the club while also stressing he is desperate to extend his stay with the Swans to ensure he is a part of the long-term project under Martin. But his other words held real significance.
"I know the gaffer has been trying really hard to get things to move faster. He's controlling what he can control," the 23-year-old said when addressing his contract situation.
Ultimately, control lies with those on the other side of the Atlantic, or, to be more specific, with Levien. He has the final say. So how such a vast array of crucial club matters continue to hang in the balance can only be answered by him.
The relentless dallying and uncertainty will do more harm than good, which ultimately damages the very entity Mr Levien wants to succeed. It simply does not make any sense.
The very same occurred just two years ago when Steve Cooper left the club fewer than three weeks prior to the start of the 2021/22 campaign, with Martin then joining from MK Dons just six days before the season opener at Blackburn Rovers. It left Martin chronically short of time to implement his drastic changes to the playing style and to tweak the squad in the transfer market.
Prior to that, the aforementioned 2019 winter window drama led to Huw Jenkins leaving the club in what became a clear indication of the power struggle between the key decision makers at Swansea, with the former chairman himself recently admitting his voice wasn't being heard by the American owners.
Clarity is sorely needed, and so is execution.
Rather than telling fans about the need to learn lessons, why not go out and prove you're doing just that with the right actions that will benefit the club in the long term and genuinely bolster the chances of returning to the Premier League?
Surely that isn't too much to ask.
Very best of luck to the new investors - you are in for a hell of a ride.
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