Future-proofing the consent experience for high performance athletes

Australian Sports Commission

Better Government, Human-Centred Digital Transformation, Strategic Insight & Foresight

“Just wanted to let you know that I was very pleased with the presentation last Friday and really appreciate the exceptional work done by your team.”

Data Governance Custodian,
Sports Intelligence & Analytics | Australian Institute of Sport, Australian Sports Commission

The Australian Sports Commission’s (ASC) is part of Australia’s intricate and increasingly digital sports ecosystem. The ASC engaged Tobias to help them take a human-centred approach to understand and futureproof the athlete consent experience for recorded data. This needed to take into consideration regulatory complexities, and align with Consumer Data Rights as well as upcoming privacy reform requirements. Equally importantly, the consent engine had to be understood by, and meet the needs of users, the athletes.

High-performance athletes are the subjects of vast amounts of data collection, from health data, performance data, personal data, social media and contract requirements. Ensuring that all these data types receive the appropriate consent they require is a multifaceted problem with increasing complexity as privacy acts change.

All illustrations by Storyset from https://storyset.com/

A project kick-off identifying relevant cohorts and output requirements was followed by stakeholder engagements which gave valuable insight into the complex data governance surrounding athletes, including the key legislation that applies to this context.

Equipped with clear goals and thorough understanding of the legislative landscape, the Tobias team engaged in rapid prototyping, creating four different prototypes that represented different consent patterns. These were then used as stimulus in research enabling us to make valid observations and have fruitful conversations with athletes. We collaborated in the creation of realistic prototype environments including creating mock emails that brought to life the experience beyond the prototype interface interaction.

A total of 39 in-depth interviews were conducted with athletes and parents[BH1] of minors. Participants were recruited in collaboration with the ASC, which helped control budget and ensure relevance in cohort distribution.

An ethical approach to research and design was critical as many high-performing athletes have a difficult relationship with data and privacy and uncertainty with who will have access to it or what it will be used for. Our researchers therefore had to take extra care in interviews, in order to gain trust and not trigger participants. And in the reporting, we had to balance participants’ need for privacy with their need to have their voices heard so that changes to processes can be made.

During research sessions, we built in pause points to check in with research participants to ensure they’re comfortable and we had a protocol for escalating staff, observers and participants to counselling services as required [BH2] [BT3] [BT4]. The archetypes and insights created were all free from personal or sensitive information so that important findings in research could be communicated efficiently without jeopardising the privacy of research participants.

This collaborative approach allowed us to move at speed whilst maintaining the integrity of our objectives. In summary, the project achieved the project goals and delivered the additional value that comes with deep collaboration and a human centred approach:

• We developed design patterns for the consent engine which will allow users to easily view, review, provide, alter and withdraw consent
• We created a set of design principles informed by research with all major stakeholders which will guide the development phase of a Sport Consent Engine
• Formed a high-performing design and research team collaborating with the ASC team
• Optimised recruitment of athletes, who are an over-surveyed, vulnerable and difficult-to-access cohort
• Deliverables included; an insights report, archetypes, principles, consent prototype screens, design flows and design recommendations

By listening deeply to the experiences of participants, gaining a thorough understanding of the regulatory landscape and by spending time and effort imagining future challenges created by emerging technologies, we were able to create a more sustainable and future-proof consent model for Australian athletes.