{"id":1306,"date":"2018-12-24T00:00:00","date_gmt":"2018-12-24T00:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/leadersinsport.com\/performance-institute\/reports\/cracking-the-data-code\/"},"modified":"2025-12-15T05:12:39","modified_gmt":"2025-12-15T05:12:39","slug":"cracking-the-data-code","status":"publish","type":"article","link":"https:\/\/leadersinsport.com\/performance-institute\/articles\/cracking-the-data-code\/","title":{"rendered":"Cracking the Data Code"},"content":{"rendered":"<!-- blocks\/hero-editorial -->\n<!-- inc\/hero-editorial -->\n<div class=\"hero es-hero__editorial hero--var-1\" role=\"banner\">\n\t<div class=\"hero__image\" style=\"background-image: url(https:\/\/leadersinsport.com\/app\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2021\/08\/Insight-Cracking-the-Data-Code-Featured-Image.jpg);\">\n\n\t\t<div class=\"hero__overlay grad-overlay content-bottom\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"container\">\n\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"hero__content\">\n                    \n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"hero__content__inner\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t                            <p class=\"es-label es-label--md\">\n                                Dec 24, 2018                            <\/p>\n                        \t\t\t\t\t\t<a href=\"https:\/\/leadersinsport.com\/performance-institute\/articles\" class=\"theme-dark hero__back-link back-link es-label es-label--sm\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<span class=\"icon icon--md icon--arrow-left\"><\/span>Articles<\/a>\n\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<h1 class=\"hero__title\">Cracking the Data Code<\/h1>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\n        \n\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\n\t<\/div>\n<\/div>\n    <section class=\"es-section theme-light hero__sidebar-wrapper container\">\n        <div class=\"hero__sidebar\">\n                            <div class=\"category-list\">\n                  <div class=\"es-label es-label--sm\">Category<\/div>\n                  <a href=\"https:\/\/leadersinsport.com\/performance-institute\/category\/data-innovation\/\" rel=\"tag\">Data &amp; Innovation<\/a>                <\/div>\n                            <div class=\"share-list\">\n                  <div class=\"es-label es-label--sm\">Share<\/div>\n                  <a href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer\/sharer.php?u=https:\/\/leadersinsport.com\/performance-institute\/articles\/cracking-the-data-code\/\">Facebook<\/a>\n                  <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?url=https:\/\/leadersinsport.com\/performance-institute\/articles\/cracking-the-data-code\/&#038;text=Cracking the Data Code\">Twitter<\/a>\n                  <a href=\"mailto:?subject=Here's a Leaders In Sport article for you &amp;body=Check out this article: Cracking the Data Code. https:\/\/leadersinsport.com\/performance-institute\/articles\/cracking-the-data-code\/\">Email<\/a>\n                  <a href=\"#copyLink\" id=\"copyButton\" class=\"copy-link-clipboard\">Copy Link<\/a>\n                  <div id=\"textToCopy\" class=\"font-hidden\">https:\/\/leadersinsport.com\/performance-institute\/articles\/cracking-the-data-code\/<\/div>\n                <\/div>\n                    <\/div>\n    <\/section>\n<!-- blocks\/section -->\n<section\n  class=\"es-section flexible-section  text-only theme-light\"\n    >\n                <div class=\"container\">\n                                    <div class=\"bg-striped-pattern__inner section-padding-top section-padding-bottom\">\n                <div class=\"es-section__inner col-parent col-parent--stack-sm\">\n                                            <div class=\"es-section__sidebar es-section__sidebar--sticky col col--12 \">\n                                                            <p class=\"es-section__label es-label es-label--md\">How to best blend data and intuition.<\/p>\n                            \n                            \n                            \n                                                            <div class=\"es-section__text content-area\">\n                                    <p><h4><strong>The Essentials:<\/strong><\/h4>\n<ul>\n<li>\n<h4><strong>The importance of understanding the needs across your entire athletic, coaching and performance department<\/strong><\/h4>\n<\/li>\n<li>\n<h4><strong>Why data will never replace intuition<\/strong><\/h4>\n<\/li>\n<li>\n<h4><strong>The need for flexibility in conveying the numbers<\/strong><\/h4>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<hr \/>\n<p>Cracking the so-called data code is a process that can drive coaches to distraction. What does the data say? Do we risk paralysis by analysis? Will this undermine everything I\u2019ve believed throughout my career? Any data scientist worth their salt will tell you that it is less about supplanting years or even decades of accrued experience and more about supplementing that intuition with number-based evidence.<\/p>\n<p>As data collection becomes ever more sophisticated we bring you eight steps, as part of our wider Performance Special Report, to consider as you look to embed smarter data usage in your organisation.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/info.leadersinsport.com\/l\/285402\/2018-11-15\/44dsjf\"><button>Download the full report<\/button><\/a><\/p>\n<p><strong>1. It has to start with the top level<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>It might sound obvious but as Nick Chadd, Head of Sport Science at the Manchester City Academy, says, when it comes to cracking the data code the support of the owners and directors \u201cmakes a 100% difference.\u201d A support and understanding that stems from the upper echelons of the organisation ensures that Chadd and his staff have a suitable infrastructure around their use of performance data. \u201cI couldn\u2019t do it without our data insights team and the club has been absolutely fantastic; they integrate with us and there\u2019s no barriers when it comes down to the people. We want to make this work and get the job done to the best possible standard and that goes across the whole club; you can see it in the way that people work together and it\u2019s fantastic to be part of.\u201d<\/p>\n<p><strong>2. Data must lead to intentional conversations<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>This is one of the things that causes tensions between data scientists and performance staff is the lack of appreciation for what the other does. Bryan Burnstein, Head of Performance Science at Cirque du Soleil, offers a template that could serve the world of sport well. \u201cIt\u2019s not about how much data you collect &#8211; it\u2019s about making the most of what you do collect,\u201d he begins. \u201cDuring that process it is important to explain to performers why we\u2019re collecting the data, what is going to be collected and who\u2019s going to have the opportunity to look at it.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWe don\u2019t want to dehumanise a decision; data should lead to insights and it should lead to good intentional conversations about what\u2019s going on with the individual. We\u2019re dealing with human performance and we have to keep the human at the centre of that.\u201d<\/p>\n<p><strong>3. The focus needs to be on core efficiencies<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>There is validity in pursuing marginal gains but data is best used fine-tuning your core efficiencies. \u201cI\u2019d rather do some simple things and do them really well and effectively where we can rely on the interpretation of that data,\u201d says Nick Chadd. \u201cThat way it\u2019s repeatable and more robust \u2013 rather than focussing on one percenters, it often comes back to the other 99%. Are we sure we\u2019re doing this 99% as well as we can?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Of course, it is important to keep evolving but an organisation cannot lose sight of the overall goal. Bryan Burnstein says: \u201cIf we\u2019re changing something it\u2019s because it gives us better insight and we\u2019re not just changing for the sake of using some new technology or platform.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIt really has to optimise our core efficiencies. Otherwise, if we\u2019re going to evolve something then we ensure there\u2019s an appropriate transition, that we still have enough data to be able to be able to use that to guide our decision-making process and then make sure it\u2019s still relevant to our content.\u201d<\/p>\n<p><strong>4. Nothing can be considered in isolation<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>For good, intentional conversations to take place around core efficiencies then no data point can be considered in isolation. As Jamie Tout, Strength &amp; Conditioning Coach with the New Zealand women\u2019s national rugby team, says: \u201cWe don\u2019t go through a tick box exercise.\u201d No decision around the athlete can be based on numbers alone. He continues: \u201cWe don\u2019t just go \u2018you should do three gym sessions a week\u2019; you don\u2019t have to and sometimes you want to talk to the athlete about something, such as their sleep.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Astute data users can use the numbers as a means to have a broader conversation around an athlete\u2019s wellbeing. \u201cIt\u2019s all relative and so we have to make sure that none of our numbers are ever looked at insolation. The players these days have a real hunger to understand why we\u2019re doing things.\u201d<\/p>\n<p><strong>5. Get a feel for your coaching staff<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>It is important for data collectors and interpreters to take time to know how best to convey actionable data with different coaches. \u201cIt\u2019s definitely a challenge,\u201d observes Tucker Zeleny, Director of Sports Analytics and Data Analysis\u00a0at the University of Nebraska. \u201cYou go through a couple of seasons with a coaching staff and gain a feel for what they want and once you\u2019ve built that trust you can get into a routine.\u201d Zeleny and his colleagues work with 13 teams across different sports and so their approach is tailored for each and every one. A similar method has been adopted at the Manchester City Academy where teams range from boys aged nine and under through to the under-23s. \u201cWe take a different approach in every case,\u201d says Nick Chadd. \u201cDon\u2019t forget that many coaches have a different background &#8211; so we have to be mindful of their understanding of data as well. Sometimes we assume they\u2019ve been party to the same background or exposed to the same line of data as a sports scientist and that often isn\u2019t the case. What I\u2019m finding is that the most powerful data is the most simple; it isn\u2019t always digestible for people and you cannot always see the wood for the trees when there\u2019s an abundance of data.\u201d<\/p>\n<p><strong>6. Provide your coaches with flexibility when using data<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>While alignment and continuity are paramount in data collection, there should also be scope for coaches to use data as they see fit or for new coaches to put their own spin on an analytical approach. As Nick Chadd explains: \u201cThey may want to come in and put their own slant on things and so the spine of alignment stays the same but they\u2019re able to divert off and explore something else at the same time in more depth and detail. They\u2019re absolutely allowed to do that and put their own individual flair on that.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Cirque du Soleil, as Burnstein observes, take a similar outlook. He says: \u201cA company like ours has to balance central intelligence with local need. We\u2019re putting in minimum essential requirements across the board and we also provide latitude and flexibility so that if there are particular pieces relevant to the acts or disciplines on their show or provide utility to the experts that are on the show then they have the right to go above and beyond &#8211; but not in place of what we already require across the company.\u201d<\/p>\n<p><strong>7. Take a scaled approach to datasets<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>One thing that is clear about data is that not every stakeholder needs to prioritise the same data points. Jamie Tout says: \u201cThere\u2019s some things I\u2019ll share with coaches from a coaching level and they\u2019ll understand those numbers; there\u2019s some things I\u2019ll share with the sports scientists and that\u2019s a greater level of detail; and then there\u2019s information you share with the player.\u201d Everyone involved with the Black Ferns is aware of the team\u2019s \u2018gold standards\u2019. \u201cWe have gold standards around what that looks like in a game performance and how we can better use that in the training environment and, realistically, that\u2019s what we capture these numbers for.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>At Manchester City, for example, Nick Chadd explains that the club has adopted a scaled approach in its academy. \u201cThey may want to come in and put their own slant on things and so the spine of alignment stays the same but they\u2019re able to divert off and explore something else at the same time in more depth and detail. They\u2019re absolutely allowed to do that and put their own individual flair on that.\u201d<\/p>\n<p><strong>8. The value of real-time data<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Real-time data collection can be useful tool for making training more intentional. Nick Chadd says: \u201cThe reason we use real-time data isn\u2019t necessarily always from a load management perspective, it\u2019s actually to generate an output or affect the training environment. We make it competitive and, therefore, can make our training more intentional.\u201d<\/p>\n<p><strong>3 things to consider:<\/strong><\/p>\n<ol>\n<li>Get to know the needs, hopes and expectations of your athletes, coaches and performance staff.<\/li>\n<li>Ensure that every dataset collected works towards the collective goal of maximising performance.<\/li>\n<li>The human aspect cannot be discounted at any cost.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<hr \/>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<\/p>\n                                <\/div>\n                            \n                            \n                            \n                                                    <\/div>\n                                        <div class=\"col visibly-hidden col--flex-align-right\">\n                                            <\/div>\n                <\/div>\n            <\/div>\n        <\/div>\n        <\/section>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Data will never supersede intuition. Once that is understood then it becomes possible to explore how the numbers can best serve your athletes.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"featured_media":1307,"menu_order":0,"template":"","categories":[23],"pathway":[],"topic":[],"sport":[],"class_list":["post-1306","article","type-article","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-data-innovation"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v26.6 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>Cracking the Data Code - Performance Institute<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/leadersinsport.com\/performance-institute\/articles\/cracking-the-data-code\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Cracking the Data Code - Performance Institute\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Data will never supersede intuition. 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