When It’s Time to Look at Your Manual Process
The NFL Chain Gang Still Does Things Manually – Should You?
In the age of automation, there is still something to learn from manual processes. Now, don’t get me wrong. I’m not saying manual processes are good. Sometimes there is a reason for a process to be manual – it could be a good reason or maybe not. Since it’s NFL playoff season, let’s use the NFL chain gang as an example.
My favorite thing in any football broadcast is the manual measurement of the first down. The pause in the downs. The 3-person crew running onto the field with a big orange ruler. The expectation and suspense of things measured in inches. Inches! And most of the talking heads (and viewers) already know the answer based on broadcast booth technology.
In the age of automation across sports – speed clock, tennis line calls, replays – the football first down is still measured manually. Why?
According to NFL Films (2009), the method for measuring first downs has not changed in over 100 years. Helmets, goal posts, footballs, everything else has evolved, and yet this critical measurement is still done in an error-prone, imprecise way. NFL Films' conclusion? It’s because of the history, the theater, the suspense, and because players and coaches like it that way.
In researching the chain gang, I found a few references to the USFL which in 2022 switched to a new method: a football with a chip that connects to a measurement system. No more chain gang. Maybe it’s telling that we do not hear anything about the USFL. I admire them for taking a risk with a beloved aspect of the sport. Key point, though, is that you do have to think it through. I’m hopeful they did not go out of business because they got rid of the chain gang for more accurate first down calls (assuming their tech was more accurate).
Perhaps the NFL could learn from professional tennis, another sport not known for quick adoption of new ways of doing things. In 2021 and 2022, the US Open and the Australian Open pushed ahead with eliminating line judges in favor of the Hawkeye system that had been in place for television broadcasts and replays for years. It was a big decision, but a small technical jump to go to all-automated line calls based on what was already in place for line challenges.
The French Open and the Association of Tennis Professionals will follow suit in 2025. Wimbledon is still going with the humans.
One of the key aspects of adoption was that players trust the automated system to be more accurate. There were added bonuses like needing a solution that was more efficient, more accurate, and in 2020-2021, offered less COVID risk. You can find many quotes from the greats of tennis talking about how much they like the automation.
The Parallels:
Does your process have manual aspects that, theater and suspense aside, expose you to financial, operational, or customer risks unnecessarily?
This is when you need to start asking why. Why do we do it this way? Have we looked at other ways? What are the options?
If you have not looked at the process in 5 years, that is an eternity in our tech-driven world. Let alone 100 years like the NFL.
It’s time then to start asking some process and technology architecture questions that focus on hand-offs and things that create errors or long cycle times. It’s another reason for asking why.
From an adoption perspective, do your agents and customers trust your automated systems to give the right answers?
This has two angles – does your new process or solution work more accurately than the manual process, and have you invested in ensuring that users of the process understand it?
Have a manual process that needs some work? Please reach out – we would love to help you retain the necessary theater and personal service for your brand while eliminating the risks.
If any of this resonates with you or your organization, take a moment to share this newsletter with your colleagues who may be struggling with similar challenges.
Blue Orbit Consulting guides you through methods that will transform your IT team and contact center’s operations into a world-class experience.
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I founded Blue Orbit Consulting in 2014 after running staff organizations in contact centers and building consulting practices in customer service, process improvement, complex program management, and channel operations. My approach – and my firm’s approach – is fundamentally pragmatic, and our clients often achieve benefits in excess of 10x their investment. We develop and deliver world-class customer interactions for our clients, whether it is troubleshooting and optimizing what they already have in place or creating strategic transformations to deliver outstanding customer interactions every time.
Photo credit: Rickyrab at the English-language Wikipedia, GFDL, via Wikimedia Commons