Better Metrics in Baseball

Harvard Business Review has a great article by Scott Anthony that highlights the use of metrics in baseball.

“Better metrics give Theo Epstein a competitive advantage over his rivals. And better metrics can give you an advantage over yours — and create better innovations that benefit all of us. What else do you think would be in an ideal innovation encyclopedia? Is there an open source way to create a “good enough” starting point?”

Scott’s article on the use of metrics as an evaluation of success in baseball and its correlation to business is a reminder to be intentional about what we measure. Theo Epstein in his role as owner of the Boston Red Sox is looking at how many ‘outs’ a baseball player creates, not their Runs Batted In (RBI) production. Look at the back of a baseball card and the RBI statistic is prominently listed but ‘outs created’ is nowhere to be found. The very idea of winning a baseball game is simple, score more runs than your opponents before you reach 27 outs. If you can extend the amount of chances (play) you get between each out, one could assume you get more chances to score. Perhaps baseball management and the public are looking at different measurements for success because they have different outcomes. One pays pays for the business of performance and winning the other pays to be entertained. Fans can easily find other forms of entertainment if their team does not perform or at least entertain them. Finding another baseball team to own if your does not perform is almost impossible.

How do you measure success?

Programming Your Job By Hacking

Last night a raccoon stole through a dog door into our garage, negotiated a second dog door into the mudroom and helped themselves to an all you can eat buffet at the dog’s bowl. Only once they attempted to get into the dog food storage bin did they alert us to our presence. At 4 AM I was standing in the garage groggily thinking about how to keep the raccoon out. The raccoon had hacked our dog door system.

My experience last night made me think of the book Trust Agents: Using the Web to Build Influence, Improve Reputation, and Earn Trust by Chris Brogan and Julien Smith. One notion that has stayed with me is an article they cite from BoinBoing.net authored by Douglas Rushkoff describing “what he calls the three methods which kids relate to games: playing, cheating, and programming. He then goes on to ascribe these methods to the way that humans generally interact with culture, as well.”

I find the concept of programming (later referred to as hacking) a game to be an interesting game-changer. Kids reinvent the rules of a game so as to create a new paradigm and then share the amended game with the broader community.

All this makes me wonder about the numerous opportunities that require a little programming or hacking. I have seen volunteers turn envelope stuffing assignments into editorial letter-writing roles. I have seen dissatisfied donors step-forward to Chair fundraising events because they were excited to take a gala to a new level and wash away their poor experience. You have probably seen employees who clearly love their job more than anyone else in the sector. I would argue many of them are playing a different game than the rest of their colleagues. I think of a skycap who treated my bag like royalty, a waitress that remembered every person’s name, and a realtor who though of himself as a theme park tour guide.

Hacking is happening everyday. People are taking opportunities and turning them into something more powerful. The New York Times had a perfect real world business model of this today.

Competitive Advantage

Working with the social sector is an interesting paradox. You get innovative and leading answers to causes that are supported by a variety of fans and followers. The Board of Directors for many of these organizations often contains individuals with great business experience and acumen. The disconnect often comes when the Board or supporters try to transport their business expertise and toss them at the nonprofit sector. In my consulting and facilitation role I often find myself acting as a bit of a translator between the two worlds. Some axioms work in both worlds. The notion of ‘location, location, location’ (physical presence or virtual on social media). Others are tougher. Having successfully completed a strategic planning project for an independent school, one of the thrills was to have access to a method that promoted the idea of ‘competitive advantage.’ This term resonated with the business leaders- they are constantly monitoring competitive advantage in their small business and corporate sphere. They could speak about competitive advantage in both the business and nonprofit world and it needed no translation.

Today I found myself reading Seth Godin’s blog which spoke directly to notion of competitive advantage. He frames the definition effectively. I will add to his drumbeat by saying that you cannot rely on the universe to deliver endless support if you cannot quantify how you are uniquely position to succeed. How is your organization meeting the need or addressing the root of the cause you have tackled? Be brave. You are not stealing from others by identifying and understanding you competitive advantage. I would argue that you are instilling a foundation from which all of your efforts have a launching pad.

The New Fan$

An article by Wright Thompson published on ESPN.com shares his journey into the priciest seats at the new Yankee Stadium. He gives a behind the scenes account of the experience at the ballpark. What is most compelling is his discussion about the ‘haves’ and ‘have nots’ and their role as fans. If you know your audience and have a business plan then you can cater to a very limited audience. Take a look and see if you think the Yankees have made the right decisions.

An excerpt from the article:

A recent poll discovered an unsettling trend emerging for the first time. American families whose household income is $75,000 or less now have zero dollars of discretionary income. According to Luker, that means about 75 percent of the country can never responsibly afford to go to a live professional sporting event. Franchises want them to be fans, to buy the gear and pull for their teams and watch the telecasts the leagues are paid billions for. But they don’t need them to come to their stadiums. There are, right now, plenty of rich people who love games. The prices reflect that. The reason sporting events cost so much now, Luker’s research shows, is because they are designed to be affordable only to those making $150,000 or more a year.

http://sports.espn.go.com/espn/eticket/story?page=091005yankeestickets

Is the Honor Serving or Being Honored?

I just saw this in the local media. It just makes me wonder if the honor is in serving or if the honor was being elected? This is quite humorous when it comes to petty requests but makes you wonder what is being done during the rest of the meeting?
http://www.ktvb.com/news/localnews/stories/ktvbn-oct0809-achd_parkcenter_stalin.1f98c7f8b.html”>http://www.ktvb.com/news/localnews/stories/ktvbn-oct0809-achd_parkcenter_stalin.1f98c7f8b.html

Sometimes you are in the right place to witness great changes in nature. It cannot always be planned and the moments appear randomly. I arrived at Idaho’s most famous ski resorts for work yesterday. The day was sunny and temperatures hoovered in the high 70’s. It was still summer. Tempting enough to get out on the bike path and play nine holes of golf that ended at dusk.

This morning the world looks different. Overnight rain fell. The temperature is in the 50’s and snow is predicted to make an appearance just above the valley floor tonight. Talk of summer activities such as biking, swimming, running are now giving way to peeks into the ski shops. It is as if overnight the seasonal switch was thrown and fall has arrived.

It should not be a shock. It happens every year and yet it feels sudden, as if you arrived at the pool and it was empty and the poolside furnishings had all been packed away. Now the rush for firewood will start for those who have been enjoying a warm September. Lawns will be aerated, gutters will be cleaned, clothing will be rotated in closets.

Sometimes it takes a night of cool rainy weather to get each of us to focus on seasonal responsibilities. I imagine somewhere an end-of-the-year appeal is being drafted by a Development Officer, grant reports are being submitted after a successful summer of programs, and summer interns have left for college. It says September on the calendar but the 4th quarter activities seem in progress already.