Frank Supovitz is the senior vice president of events for the National Football League, a position he’s held for nine years. He’s responsible for the production of all major N.F.L. events, including the Super Bowl.
1. Be prepared for anything. Prioritize and maintain focus on the most important missions; train, empower, and trust your staff and contractors; and most of all, try to develop a thick skin. Based on the last nine Super Bowls, knowing that “anything” will almost always happen—that challenges large and small will pull attention away from the essential objective of kicking the ball at 6:30 p.m., but that a great roster of professionals will work together to overcome issues—takes some of the pressure off. I’m still working on the thick skin.
2. You can never fully let go of the reins, but you have to identify what decisions can be made “on the ground” and what must be elevated to a higher level. The vast majority of decisions are made by knowledgeable, empowered employees at the time and place they need to be without running everything up the chain of command. Decisions on public safety, major impacts on the game or broadcast, the fan experience, or running schedule are shared with higher decision makers, but those are much, much smaller in number.
3. Instill a sense of “team.” There are more than 10,000 credentialed staff members for the Super Bowl, and the vast majority will work for us on game day for the very first—and perhaps only—time. It is up to us to make sure everyone feels as though they are part of something very special, historic, and exciting, and that their role—regardless of what it is—is essential to the experience. We do this with a series of training and recognition programs designed to “catch people doing something right.”
4. Involve the local community. Almost every N.F.L. event includes opportunities to engage the local fans, from festivals and music events to venue-based attractions at low or no cost. We also understand the responsibilities we have to the local community, especially given the impact and inconvenience caused by the largest events. As a consequence, we undertake environmental, business development, and community legacy programs.
5. Stay focused year-round, even on smaller events. Be an air traffic controller. Keep all the planes flying, but land one at a time.
6. Be open to opportunities, especially when first starting out. Try new experiences and discover what you love to do (and what you don’t). I didn’t start out in events, or in sports. I was in front-of-house operations at Radio City Music Hall. After years of experiencing a series of new responsibilities with the organization, from operations to marketing to event production, I discovered that organizing events was the most fulfilling thing I had yet done. I would never have known that until I was presented with the possibilities and worked my butt off to learn everything I could.
