Article provided by our friends at X&O Labs
The researchers at X&O Labs have released a new study on developing culture in today’s ever-changing world.
It was through this study of over 40 collegiate and high school programs that X&O Labs was able to identify the specific six behaviors that are essential in building and sustaining a player-driven culture.
Player-driven culture is widely considered the most effective and healthiest form of culture in football. The head coach is responsible for creating the program’s core values, but it doesn’t shift to player-driven until the players make the choice to take ownership of performance, and ownership of individual and team success.
“We had the unique opportunity to study these programs during the pandemic and social protests,” said Mike Kuchar, Senior Researcher at X&O Labs. “When this time period subsides, it will be the programs that have learned to be completely player-driven that will thrive because they are the ones that can quickly adjust, pivot and manage themselves with little influence from anyone else.”
“When a program has a culture that is coach-led, player-driven, it’s the players that are the ones protecting the culture,” continued Kuchar. “Coaches are then able to focus more of their energies on managing their programs without having to worry if players are motivated.”
Among the programs X&O Labs had access to during their research were programs like North Carolina, Cincinnati, Iowa, Navy, Florida State, Wake Forest, Stanford, and many others.
One of those Coaches is Arizona State’s Herm Edwards widely regarded as a leader in the shift to player-driven culture. X&O Labs provided a short clip of their interview with Coach Edwards discussing the value of player-driven culture:
https://vimeo.com/496097179
How You Can Get This Study:
X&O Labs has released this study in a 246-page book, The Player Driven Culture System: A Study of the Six Behaviors That Create and Sustain Player-Ownership of Football Programs. To get more information on this study and learn how to get a copy, please go here: The Player Driven Culture System.