Port Adelaide CEO Keith Thomas has endorsed the Power's direction heading into what shapes as a pivotal 2020.
The Power are coming off an uneven season which left the club out of the finals for the fourth time in the last five years, prompting speculation around the future of coach Ken Hinkley.
On the field, Port Adelaide's 2019 season was highlighted by a bumper 2018 draft haul, led by Rising Star runner-up Connor Rozee.
Thomas, who last week announced he would depart the club after the 2020 season, said that despite winning one fewer game than the previous year, 2019 represented a forward step for the club.
“I reckon we probably didn’t communicate the process we were going through at the end of 2018 well enough when we traded Chad [Wingard] and Jared Polec we were really saying we needed to reset the footy program a little bit,” Thomas told SEN SA Breakfast.
“We needed to bring in high end talent and we did that again this year and so I don’t think we spoke clearly enough about that process and I reckon that 2019 was judged quite harshly.
“All the criticism about 2018 was valid.
"I think 2019 we took more positive steps than people were giving us credit for."
Port Adelaide will open its 150th anniversary season at Metricon Stadium against the Suns on March 21.
