Working conditions of performance analysts in Oceania

Author: Leaha Dickey


Working conditions of Performance Analysts in Oceania

Leaha Dickey
31 January 2020

Dickey, L. (2020). Working conditions of Performance Analysts in Oceania. (A thesis submitted in partial fulfilment of the degree Master of Applied Science at Otago Polytechnic, Dunedin, New Zealand) [PDF 613KB]

Abstract

Introduction: Performance analysis (PA) has become an essential tool in the sports industry. Current PA research has been completed mainly exploring the application and effectiveness in different sport settings. Despite the continued growth of research on PA there is little known about the working condition of the analysts. Working conditions studies are completed to gain an understanding of the work environment and identify ways to better support practitioners.

Aim: The aim of this research is to understand the working conditions of performance analysts employed in the Oceania region

Method: An online survey distributed to performance analysts in Oceania collected data on PA demographics, job type, remuneration and job satisfaction. Sixty-five performance analysts completed the survey. Data analysis involved descriptive statistics, a T-test and a Mann Whitney U.

Results: The performance analysts were predominantly 25-34-year-old males on $62,000 per annum, with six years of experience. The majority of the participants held a Bachelor’s degree or higher qualification and frequently travelled and worked above their agreed hours unpaid. The participants primarily responded ‘strongly agree’ or ‘somewhat agree’ to six out of the nine intrinsic work quality questions.

Discussion: The low number of females and older analysts are possibly due to the lack of family-friendly or flexible hours being worked and the travelling often involved. The work demands of a performance analyst could lead to burnout as found in other industries where employees were stressed and working long hours. Overall the analysts felt valued in their workplace and were satisfied with their job.

Keywords: performance analyst, sport analyst, working conditions, employment, sport

This research was supervised by Codi Ramsey and Richard Humphrey.

License 

This thesis is available under Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives licence CC BY-NC-ND 4.0 International.

 CC BY-NC-ND