Types Of Roles In Performance Analysis
Depending on the size and organisational structure of the sporting club or institution, the range of responsibilities and job title of a Performance Analyst may vary significantly. Most Performance Analysis roles, particularly in smaller teams or lower divisions, continue to encompass a generic list of responsibilities across the different areas that make up the discipline, from handling filming equipment to performing data analytics and managing databases. These roles, usually titled Performance Analyst, often provide the analyst with a great level of autonomy by relying on them to effectively manage all processes, equipment and communication related to the analysis of performance within team. In these roles, often supervised by senior peers or team leads, the Performance Analyst is responsible for successfully executing the existing filming, data collection and analysis delivery processes already in place at the club but also for helping to shape and improve the practices of the team in respect to the analysis of team and player performance.
In elite sporting institutions of medium to large size, Performance Analysis departments are considerably more established within the structure of the backroom staff than in lower-tier clubs. These Performance Analysis departments may be composed of a larger number of analysts, with each analyst’s role and responsibilities focused on a particular team or area of the club as the wider responsibilities of the Performance Analysis department are more clearly divided amongst its staff members. In these organisations, Performance Analysts may be given more specific job titles to reflect the team or area they support, such as Academy/Development Performance Analyst, Women’s Performance Analyst or First Team Performance Analyst. The level of experience in the role, club or field may also define an analyst’s title, ranging from Performance Analysis Intern, to Performance Analyst, to Senior Performance Analyst. Furthermore, these wider Performance Analysis teams are often overseen by a Head of Performance Analysis or a Lead Performance Analyst that defines the strategy to follow by the team and ensures consistency of practices and transfer of knowledge across all analysts.
Top-tier elite clubs, such as leading Premier League football clubs, benefit from much larger analysis departments, where the responsibilities of a Performance Analyst are often sub-divided into further specialised roles, such as Data Scientist, Recruitment Analyst, Opposition Analyst or Match Analyst. As technology and the reliance of data analysis to clubs’ success has grown over the years, the function of Performance Analysis has dramatically grown in size and importance within top-tier clubs, who increasingly want to achieve more through data to obtain a competitive edge over rivals. This phenomenon has given rise to a number of specialised roles focusing on narrower elements of the analytical process of a team’s or player’s performance. As technologies and analysis processes become more complex, the range of skills and responsibilities of a Performance Analyst is increasingly becoming more convoluted and varied. Different specialised roles may require different experiences and may place different emphasis on some skills over others, whether those are highly technical skills (i.e. programming languages like Python or R), knowledge in the sport (i.e. coaching certificates) and/or filming and video editing experience.
Responsibilities As A Performance Analyst
As mentioned in the previous section, the responsibilities of a Performance Analyst may vary between club to club, team to team and role to role. However, ultimately, all roles of a Performance Analyst share the common goal of providing objective feedback to coaches and players on performance. Therefore, there is a shared set of responsibilities present in most Performance Analysis roles that represent the core nature of the field of work. These include:
Filming:
Filming team training and home and away matches is a key responsibility of most Performance Analyst roles. This involves the handling of camcorders, tripods, SD cards and other necessary filming equipment and software while ensuring its maintenance to a high working standard. In some clubs and competitions, matches are recorded by TV camera operations and footage is sent to the respective Performance Analysis teams. However, clubs may require Performance Analysts to film additional angles or film during matches that are not broadcasted in order to obtain the footage for later analysis. When footage is obtained by Performance Analysts, certain competitions follow footage exchange rules amongst teams to ensure the same video material is available for both the home and away team.
Data collection:
Video-analysis software is core to Performance Analysis. A Performance Analyst is required to use tools such as Sportscode, Dartfish or Nacsport to record key performance indicators (KPIs) and collate event data from training and match footage. They are responsible for developing new techniques, protocols and systems to gather event data on relevant actions that take place on the pitch. The collection of such data allows Performance Analysts to produce statistical and video-based feedback to be shared with the coaching staff and the wider department. Analysts are also responsible for managing the various statistical databased containing player and team data. These datasets may be complemented with external data obtained online or from data providers, such as Opta.
Data analysis:
Performance Analysts are responsible for producing detailed team and opposition analysis, as well as readable match reports, in both written and video format for coaching and technical staff to interpret. These tasks may also involve the creation of team and individual KPI databases, used for trend analysis of performances over a period of time. The reports produced by Performance Analysts help coaches make informed decisions on a variety of areas, from tactical decisions to team selection and player recruitment. Analysts in roles focusing on player development, such as Academy, also produce individual player analysis with educational programmes and content for players to review their individual progression.
Delivery of analytical insights:
The distribution of the work produced by Performance Analysts may take different forms. Often coaching staff require Performance Analysts to edit and distribute relevant footage, such as key highlights of a training session or match, to key members of staff or players. For example, a Performance Analyst may create a summary clip of all positive actions a player has made during a game together with one of those instances where the player may have been caught out of position. These clips, together with additional analytical reports, may be used in appropriate meetings between coaches and players. A Performance Analyst is often required to attend, contribute and provide high-quality presentations using video and key statistics at such meetings to aid the feedback process. Furthermore, Performance Analysts in Academy roles may also be required to facilitate appropriate communication methods, such as workshops, to inform and educate younger athletes and their coaches in the effective use of performance analysis insights.
Some specialised roles, such as Academy Performance Analysts, may include additional responsibilities, such as ensuring that a consistent approach to analysis of player performance is maintained across all age categories. In these roles, the focus of coaches may significantly differ from those of the first team coaching staff, as priorities are shifted to the individual development of players rather than the competitive success of the club. Therefore, more focus is placed on the progression and monitoring of players and the creation of individual development programmes to aid player retention decisions. These priorities mean that analysts need to maintain slightly different video and statistical databases that emphasise on specific development KPIs, as well as create age and learning style appropriate educational content for young players to understand their performance against their individual goals.
Moreover, data-focused roles within the analysis of team and player performance have started a transition into the field of Data Science and Machine Learning. For instance, the role of Data Scientist is increasingly emerging in player analysis, scouting and recruitment. These positions differ from the conventional role of a Performance Analyst as they require a higher degree of technical know-how. Data Scientists or similar positions are often responsible of developing statistical models and metrics to identify talent and opportunities across global markets using specific programming languages and analytics solutions. They heavily focus on the collection, analysis and visualisation of data and intelligence from vast internal and external data sources and databases. In some cases, their responsibilities also include the development of data-driven tools and platforms to help maximise the effectiveness and efficiency of the department and club.
Lastly, as a wider member of staff in such a competitive sporting environment, a Performance Analyst is required to follow certain procedures to adhere to a strict code of confidentiality in respect of any information relating to their club’s operations, as well as any other regulations and standards. For instance, while working in certain sensitive positions, such as an Academy, Analysts are required to strictly follow safeguarding (child protection), health, safety and equal opportunity procedures and practices dictated by their club. These roles involving young athletes often require a DBS criminal record check prior to commencing employment. Other procedures often expected to be followed by all members of backroom staff in a sporting institution include attending continuous personal development events, arranged by clubs to enhance personal knowledge, skills and expertise amongst their staff. Nevertheless, successful Performance Analysts often keep themselves up-to-date with current research, technology and the latest developments in Sports Analysis practice and bring ideas to assist with continuous improvement of its club.
Other non-role related responsibilities include mobility and unsocial hours of work. Due to the high mobility of teams during competition, most clubs expect their analysts and members of backroom staff to have a driving license to be able to travel to matches and training grounds. Also, since matches are often played outside the standard office hours, Performance Analysts are expected to be able to work evenings and weekends, when most of the sporting action takes place. This may also include overnight stays at certain locations during away games and competitions.
Skills Required In Performance Analysis
The skills demanded for a specific role will depend on the various responsibilities of the position, as well as the level of experience and specialisation required to carry out the role (i.e. Data Scientist may require a higher level of technical skills). Nevertheless, there are set of common skills often looked for by teams when recruiting for a new Performance Analysts. These include:
Experience:
Most vacancies in Performance Analysis look for candidates with an undergraduate degree in a sports-related field at 2:1 or above. Some may even prefer a Masters qualification. Aside from academic qualifications, most full-time roles will require prior experience supporting athletes and coaches to improve their performance through the provision of performance analysis or similar multi-disciplinary analytical support using sports data within an elite or high-performance sport environment. For Senior or Lead positions, clubs may look for candidates with experience in developing and implementing innovative Performance Analysis programmes and ideas according to the results of needs, assessment and feedback from coaches and other support staff. For other roles where Performance Analysts may be required to perform a wider variety of roles supporting the coaching staff, they may be required to have some generic sports science knowledge and, in some cases, coaching experience to demonstrate good knowledge of the tactical aspects and other fundamentals of the sport. For example, a Performance Analyst role in a top-tier football club may demand an excellent understanding of football tactics, game management and talent identification.
Technical Skills:
Technical demands of Performance Analyst roles continue to evolve as technology advances in the field. However, the ability to use videoanalysis software packages (i.e. SportsCode, Dartfish, Nacsport, etc.) is a must for any role in the field, as they represent a critical component in the process of data gathering and analysis of team and player performance. This also means that Performance Analysts need to have the ability to operate filming equipment to obtain and handle sport footage and be highly proficient in Performance Analysis computer equipment and software to collect, transfer and store relevant video files across systems. Furthermore, the analysis process of the collected data requires Performance Analysts to have experience handling datasets with analytical software (i.e. Microsoft Excel) and have proficient data analysis skills to produce performance profiling, trend analysis, data mining and managing large longitudinal datasets that systematically track, monitor and objectify performance. Lastly, the outputs of the analysis work need to be effectively presented using data visualisation systems and reporting tools, such as Tableau, for clear and easy interpretation by coaches and relevant parties.
For roles involving aspects of data science and machine learning, skill requirements tend to vary from those of conventional Performance Analyst roles. These roles involve the automation, development and delivery of complex data-driven insights. Vacancies for these types of roles tend to look for knowledge of certain programming languages, such as R or Python, as well as a good understanding of querying and management of databases (i.e. SQL, PostgreSQL, etc.). Other technical skills required may include the ability to work with Rest APIs, JSON scripts and manage certain AWS or cloud-based solutions, due to the greater involvement in processing and dissemination of large datasets using the latest data science technologies and processes. Analysts in these positions also need to effectively distribute analytical insights using a variety of BI tools, such as Power BI, Tableau, Domo or Looker, therefore an extensive knowledge of such systems is often a requirement.
Soft Skills:
The role of a Performance Analyst demands certain personal abilities, or soft skills, in order to be successful at navigating the intricacies of a competitive, high pressure sporting environment where staff are often required to work under pressure to meet deadlines. While the core analytical responsibilities of an analyst demand a degree of passion about providing insights based on data and being naturally inquisitive about gathering new intel for the team, being able to effectively deliver such insights is critical to the role. A Performance Analyst needs to be able to effectively communicate and present complex data in terms that are easily understood by a wide variety of audiences. This effective communication not only involves the clear articulation of complex analytical ideas but also the clear understanding of the needs and what is important to elite athletes and coaches in a high-performance environment. This understanding can be obtained by having robust interpersonal skills that enable the fostering of productive relationships that allow analysts to successfully communicate with the wider team, coaches and during individual player interactions. Understanding each player and coach needs through strong relationships with them can help analysts become proactive and innovative at solving specific problems that help the team succeed, influence their peers toward positive change, and show willingness to work as a part of the team working towards broader team objectives. Lastly, under such a high-pressure environment it is important that Performance Analysts successfully and independently prioritise their workload and allocate time to their own professional development. As a rapidly changing and evolving field, analysts need to be constantly learning and researching new scientific methodologies, new data practices and innovative approaches towards intel and data insights that can provide their team with an extra competitive edge over rivals.
Certificates/Accreditation:
While accreditation is not required in order to undertake a Performance Analysis role, unlike in other sport science disciplines, there are clubs that recommend their analysts to obtain an ISPAS accreditation. While ISPAS has not yet been widely established as an official accreditation for Performance Analysis roles, it can be used as a way of demonstrating verifiable experience in the field of Performance Analysis. Additionally, certain roles may also request coaching and talent ID accreditation depending on their responsibilities. For instance, a Performance Analyst role for a first team position may require the analyst to obtain a Level 2 coaching certificate, while a Recruitment Analyst may require a FA Talent ID Level 2 accreditation.
Types Of Employment Offered In Performance Analysis
As a highly competitive field with a limited number of sporting clubs offering vacancies on a regular basis, most Performance Analysts get their foot in the door through season-long work placements. These opportunities are often offered in partnerships with universities across the country as part of graduate or post-graduate degrees in the field. For example, Reading FC recently offered a 2020/21 season-long work placement with their First Team Analysis department in partnership with the University of Worcester, as part of their MSc (Hons) Applied Sports Performance Analysis programme. The majority of these work placements are unpaid, and only include limited travel expenses. Others offer either a small compensation or a partial or full contribution towards the tuition fees of the MSc programme. This contribution may also be offered in the form of a bursary by the university themselves rather than by the club. However, these opportunities are not perceived as employment but instead act as a work experience opportunity to develop the knowledge and skills required to work as a performance analyst in elite sport. They simply offer a high-quality learning experience for future employment.
Part-time vacancies are the next most common offering in the field of Performance Analysis. These are usually task-specific and demand a very precise set of skills for a short period of time. For instance, a football team may need a Performance Analyst to code a number of pre-season friendlies and provide match analysis reporting for a limited set of matches. These services may be paid per match (i.e. £30 per match) or at a pre-agreed hourly rate. Sport betting agencies also offer this type of data collection roles, often supporting the match coding and analysis of a specific league or competition with fixed hourly contracts. On the other hand, an alternative form of part-time employment can be carried out through contracting/freelancing, where analysts are contracted on a project basis based on the changing needs of a club or set of clubs at a given time.
While less common than the prior two forms of employment, full-time opportunities in Performance Analysis have been increasingly growing over the years thanks to the development of the field and the growing reliance on the effective use of technology within numerous elite sporting institutions. Full-time roles tend to come on fixed-term contracts, similar to other functions in a club’s backroom staff. However, these vacancies often require extensive experience in a performance analysis function within a high-performance environment or a similar sport scientist role that shares common responsibilities. As more and more clubs make use of the system and process in Performance Analysis, full-time employment opportunities will most likely continue to grow, as well as evolve into their own sub-functions within the data science and technology space.
