Lean Analytics and Football

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Although Lean Analytics focuses mostly on tech companies, Alistair and I quickly realized while doing our research that the principles and tactics of Lean Analytics apply to many types of businesses. We managed to highlight a few examples in the book, including Solare, a San Diego-based restaurant that uses two key metrics to guide their decision-making.

Recently, Curtis Peterson reached out to us about a blog post he wrote, Lean Football Play Calling. The basic premise is that Lean Analytics can be used to make better plays during a football game. Curtis talks about a couple of hypotheses that he has around “explosive plays” and the use of play action passing.

It’s fascinating to see Lean Analytics applied in areas outside of technology. It’s not surprising though, because the challenges remain the same. And the way to get things accomplished remains the same. You have a goal. You need hypotheses on what to do (experiments to run) that you think help you achieve your goal. And you need to measure your progress.

Curtis hasn’t tested his theories out (it’s the offseason!) but I’m hoping he will, and I’m hoping others will as well. It’d be fascinating to see if a structured approach like the one he’s proposing can help in winning football games. Wouldn’t that be something?

Photo from Flickr.