Making Decisions: Putting the Human Back In the Machine

In spring 2018, England cricket had a performance problem. Recently crushed in the Ashes, the test team hadn’t won a match overseas for nearly two years.

The England and Wales Cricket Board approached former player Ed Smith and asked him to bring in a whole new philosophy. Over the next three years, England won seven out of 10 completed matches – better than they had ever performed. Smith’s vision – combining cutting edge data analysis with the nuance of human contribution – was key to this success.

Smith takes his learning from his role as Chief Selector and lays out the toolkit needed to revolutionise a team’s performance at the highest level. Leadership, he argues, is increasingly about seeing the bigger picture, and bold decision making is about independent thought, risk taking and bravery to innovate. With transferable insights that reach beyond cricket and sport, Smith offers a unique framework for developing and maximising talent, spotting team weaknesses and explaining ideas that lead to stronger leadership, clearer judgement and ultimately, improved performance.

Interviewer Alan Marriott