sportsense × volleyball canada · pilot program

sportsense × volleyball canada

the pilot program

four pilots, starting august 29, to prove that sportsense works for volleyball canada coach development and certification before any decision to roll it out nationally.

prepared for james sneddon · coach development · volleyball canada

working draft for review · shape this with us

the program at a glance

four pilots, one sequence

each pilot builds on the one before it. the first two put the tools in coaches' hands in a learning setting. the last two test the evaluation workflow at the scale a real certification cycle demands. sportsense carries the full cost of all four pilots, and anything volleyball canada builds during them exports at any time. each pilot ends with a debrief and a decision.

pilot one
aug 29
in person workshop
12 coaches and 2 learning facilitators. film on court, review the footage in the classroom.
pilot two
october
online workshop
monday and wednesday evenings across 3 to 4 weeks, with the analyze performance module built into delivery.
pilot three
tbc
evaluation · scenario a
one evaluator to one coach. the full evaluation, start to finish, in a single feed.
pilot four
tbc
evaluation · scenario b
one evaluator to four coaches. the same workflow under a realistic caseload.

pilot detail

what happens in each pilot

01

in person workshop

august 29

the first time coaches touch the product.

who
  • 12 coaches
  • 2 learning facilitators, including james
  • in person, one day venue tbc
what happens
  • coaches download the app and create accounts
  • we confirm the accounts and extend usage for two weeks
  • coaches film each other on court
  • footage reviewed together in the classroom
  • side by side comparison against a reference model
  • first look at the reference library
what we are testing
  • can a coach set up an account, film, and analyze video with no training
  • does comparison change the coaching conversation
  • what facilitators need to run it themselves
what we provide
  • a coach setup guide, written and linked below
  • support on the day remote or in person
an athlete clip and the reference model side by side
a coach's clip beside the reference model, lined up on the same moment
02

online workshop

october

the same learning content delivered remotely, over several weeks.

who
  • cohort size tbc
  • learning facilitators leading delivery
  • monday and wednesday evenings, 3 to 4 weeks
what happens
  • coaches film their own sessions between classes
  • clips shared into a cohort feed for group discussion
  • analyze performance module integrated into delivery
  • facilitator gives feedback on the video
what we are testing
  • does it work without anyone in the room
  • do coaches keep filming between sessions
  • whether remote delivery holds attention across weeks
what we provide
  • cohort feeds set up per group
  • facilitator onboarding
  • a starter reference set clips needed
  • reference library available to every participant
a clip posted into the cohort feed
a submission in the cohort feed, ready to discuss
03

evaluation · scenario a

timing tbc

one evaluator, one coach, one complete certification evaluation run entirely in sportsense. this is the workflow that replaces the zoom compression, the five page instruction document, and the debrief that happens outside the system.

who
  • 1 evaluator
  • 1 candidate coach
  • certification level tbc
what happens
  • a private feed opened for the evaluation
  • coach films a full session and submits it
  • evaluator reviews, comments, records video feedback
  • feedback transcribed and returned in the feed
  • retest, if needed, in the same thread
what we are testing
  • a full length practice video uploads and plays back cleanly
  • evaluator time per evaluation, against today
  • whether the evidence is enough to certify on
  • audio quality with an earpiece on court
what we provide
  • evaluation feeds and evaluator accounts
  • long form upload, verified end to end before the pilot starts
  • airpod and earpiece audio capture confirm shipped
  • evaluator onboarding
video feedback transcribed and reposted into the feed
the debrief, transcribed and returned in the evaluation feed
04

evaluation · scenario b

timing tbc

the same workflow with one evaluator carrying four coaches at once.

who
  • 1 evaluator
  • 4 candidate coaches
  • run in parallel, one feed each
what happens
  • four evaluations open at once
  • evaluator works from a single home view of submissions
  • each candidate sees only their own feed
what we are testing
  • evaluator load and time saved at volume
  • whether feedback stays consistent across candidates
  • nothing slips through when several run at once
  • what the model looks like across 9,000 coaches
what we provide
  • multi feed setup for the evaluator
  • usage reporting across the four evaluations scope tbc
  • support through the cycle
the evaluator's home view listing every submission in order
every open evaluation in one view, so nothing slips through

the coach setup guide

ready for august 29

everything a coach needs in their hands for pilots one and two is already written: download and sign in, join the pilot feed, film, compare against the reference model, and send feedback. judge it before the workshop, and we will adjust it to what you see.

open the setup guide

how we know it worked

what we measure

proposed starting point. these are the numbers we would want agreed before pilot one rather than after pilot four.

efficiency

evaluator time per evaluation

hours spent per evaluation today, against hours spent in sportsense. includes the time currently lost to compressing files and booking a separate debrief.

adoption

coaches who film without being chased

how many participants submit video on their own after the session ends. the strongest signal that this survives past the pilot.

quality

consistency of the standard

whether evaluators reach the same judgement from the same footage, and whether coaches can point to what changed in their own technique.

reliability

submissions that go through first time

submissions upload to the feeds, and long form evaluations upload reliably.

facilitator load

can they run it without us

how much support a facilitator needs by the second pilot compared to the first. this is what determines whether it scales past 12 coaches.

readiness

the path to every coach

what we learn about rolling out to the full coaching population across the provincial associations, and what would need to be true first.

to run the program

what each side brings

sportsense provides

no cost to volleyball canada during the pilots
  • confirmed accounts for every coach, facilitator, and evaluator in the pilots
  • the evaluation feeds, set up per candidate
  • the reference library loaded and tagged to your skills matrix
  • onboarding for facilitators and evaluators
  • support through each pilot, and a debrief after each one

volleyball canada provides

what we would need from your side
  • the participants for each pilot, and the dates confirmed
  • reference model clips for the priority skills, filmed to a consistent standard
  • a point person for each pilot, likely the learning facilitator
  • any consent and security requirements

after pilot four

the rollout decision

we bring the results against the measures above, alongside a rollout proposal with pricing for a national program. volleyball canada decides, and if the answer is no, everything built during the pilots exports and stays yours.

before we lock this in

what we need from you

this is a working draft, built from what you walked us through. the questions below are the gaps we cannot fill without you, and they are what we would like to close on the call.

open questions for james
  1. is this the right shape overall, or is there a pilot missing that your director would expect to see?
  2. for august 29, does the setup guide linked above cover what coaches need in their hands on the day, or do you want a printed one pager as well, and do you want us there or is it yours to run?
  3. for the october workshop, what cohort size should we plan for?
  4. when do the evaluation pilots run, october and november or january and february? your january 1 deadline to finalize the process may decide this for us.
  5. which certification level do we evaluate against, and who are the evaluators?
  6. which skills do we build the reference library around first, and who films the model clips?
  7. are the six measures the right ones, and what thresholds would your director treat as a pass?
  8. what does your director need to see out of these pilots to say yes, and what would make it a no?
  9. on data and migration, how much detail does your director want on export and transition, and in what format?
  10. who else should be in this conversation, on both sides?