with Andy Etches
Our guest on this episode is Andy Etches, Founder & Sports Director of Rezzil. Andy has had many very interesting stops in his career, working at Apple, working as Head of Sport at Stream AMG, which was used by Matchroom, DAZN and BBC. But Andy was also a senior manager at Manchester City Football club - responsible for innovation in performance and media.
„The top football teams in Germany are all incredibly clever, incredibly talented and really understand how to manipulate data to their advantage. And that's why they’re the top teams. So, you do tend to find a direct correlation between success on the pitch and the success of embracing technology.”
Forbes Magazine noted “Sports Tech Comes Of Age With VR Training, Coaching Apps And Smart Gear”, when talking about sports technology and technology used by Rezzil with top football and basketball clubs worldwide. Rezzil is the world’s leading platform for developing elite athletes and particularly soccer players. It is used from academy level to European League and World Cup winners.
In this unique and fascinating conversation with Andy, we learn what exactly leading players are looking for in terms of resilience, focus and the ability to make decisions when surrounded by chaos. What is it that truly makes the great players stand out from the rest? Like business scenarios, it's all about building mechanisms to help you cope with difficult circumstances. It's not just about making decisions or reading what's happening. It's about the core structure, the core physiology underneath you that makes those decisions and about subconsciously building good habits. The underlying skill behind that decision making process is perception-action coupling.
From being able to take in parts of the pitch, whilst making decisions at the same time as scanning via controlling the ball at the same time as scanning and finding the player, whose body shape suggests they're ready to receive a pass right through to subconsciously building good habits. One thing is for sure: There are so many parallels to the business world. With so many unpredictable things happening around us that have to be measured, bringing everyone together to reach a common goal can only be done with excellent teamwork, leadership, oversight, resilience and motivation - all things we can apply to the continually evolving business world in times of digital transformation and equally to the world of football and other sports.
BTW, what does a true Mancunian have to do with worldwide VR sports innovation and why is listening to the janitor of particular importance for digital transformation? 😊 – tune in!