Erika Galbraith, Management Operations & Multimedia Sponsorship Integration, ESPN

Barney McCoy Author

11/15/2020 Added

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[00:00:26.500]And we are recording.
[00:00:27.680]And Ericka Galbraith from ESPN.
[00:00:29.850]Where are you coming from today, Ericka?
[00:00:32.320]So, I am at my home in Duncan, South Carolina,
[00:00:35.620]but previous to March, I worked in our Charlotte office.
[00:00:42.280]Okay, all right.
[00:00:43.370]And what's your, how far is Charlotte
[00:00:46.190]from where you're at in South Carolina?
[00:00:48.410]So, I'm about an hour and a half drive away,
[00:00:50.810]but my husband works for Clemson.
[00:00:53.430]So we're right in the middle with about an hour,
[00:00:56.860]hour and a half commute each way.
[00:00:58.740]All right, well thanks for taking the time
[00:01:01.140]to join us today.
[00:01:01.973]I just kinda gave people a thumbnail sketch.
[00:01:04.700]I basically mentioned that you were a student here,
[00:01:07.670]you're from Omaha originally,
[00:01:09.610]and you are a 2000 graduate in broadcasting
[00:01:12.480]from our college.
[00:01:13.540]And almost immediately you jumped in
[00:01:16.370]to ESPN as a production assistant.
[00:01:19.130]That's right.
[00:01:20.023](laughs) And you're still stuck there!
[00:01:22.480]No, I take that back.
[00:01:24.000]You're with ESPN.
[00:01:24.833]You've really had, I was looking over your bio,
[00:01:27.520]and you had an illustrious career.
[00:01:30.270]You've worn lots of different hats.
[00:01:32.410]You had lots of different experiences.
[00:01:34.760]You've worked in all kinds of major sport venues
[00:01:39.130]along the way.
[00:01:39.963]You wanna talk a little bit about
[00:01:42.010]your progression chart there?
[00:01:44.350]Sure, sure.
[00:01:45.183]So, and I can tell you when I was a student,
[00:01:48.309]I know that a lot of people's aspirations
[00:01:51.210]are to go into on-air,
[00:01:54.130]but the foundation that I got in the broadcasting world
[00:01:58.220]and learning about all of the different aspects
[00:02:00.370]of production, was really intriguing to me as well.
[00:02:04.020]And I can tell you that while I was in school,
[00:02:07.220]I got the opportunity to be a runner for ABC,
[00:02:10.370]and Fox, and whoever would come to town
[00:02:13.120]to cover our college football games.
[00:02:14.900]And from there, it led to a job as a stage manager
[00:02:18.740]at the College World Series
[00:02:20.040]right after I had graduated college.
[00:02:23.380]And they were hiring production assistants in Bristol,
[00:02:26.620]and so I was really, really fortunate to work
[00:02:30.810]with a lot of production people.
[00:02:32.710]And then immediately following the College World Series,
[00:02:35.010]I flew to Connecticut,
[00:02:37.170]got the job as a production assistant,
[00:02:38.990]and so worked in our studio department on college football,
[00:02:42.390]which was amazing, especially in 2000.
[00:02:48.288]And from there, my career, you know,
[00:02:50.300]really took off in a bunch of different directions,
[00:02:52.460]but I got my production foundation
[00:02:54.840]through being a production assistant,
[00:02:56.630]and an associate producer,
[00:02:57.870]and was on the path to being a live truck producer.
[00:03:01.900]But at one point, I really liked the management side,
[00:03:05.170]and an opportunity to help run college football for ESPN
[00:03:09.190]as a production manager, and help run a lot of
[00:03:11.550]our NCAA championships, and our College World Series,
[00:03:14.480]that came open.
[00:03:15.700]So that's when I started getting into
[00:03:17.500]the more management side of things.
[00:03:19.090]And from there, I was very curious
[00:03:20.930]about the sales backgrounds and how some of our sponsorships
[00:03:25.560]make it on-air.
[00:03:26.860]And so I latched on to some of our executives
[00:03:31.480]in that area and started to bridge the gap.
[00:03:33.680]And now, not only do I help
[00:03:36.180]with the business side of production,
[00:03:37.700]but I also help with our sponsorship integrations
[00:03:41.590]for college football and a lot of our NCAA properties,
[00:03:45.780]SCC Network, ACC Network, and those types of things.
[00:03:48.260]So, I work with our production teams, and our sales teams,
[00:03:51.380]and some of our clients to figure out
[00:03:54.150]how do we get sponsorships on the air,
[00:03:57.410]how do we protect our content,
[00:03:59.420]how do we drive our revenue, and how do I bring those groups
[00:04:02.250]together to make those decisions?
[00:04:03.970]That's where I am 20 years in and in a nutshell.
[00:04:07.151]You're, you know, you were talking about
[00:04:08.605]kind of being the go-between between sales and production.
[00:04:11.893]I mean, so you're kind of a fixer. (laughs)
[00:04:14.270]Yes. (laughs)
[00:04:15.450]I'm a mediator.
[00:04:16.283](laughs) Yeah, okay, but talk just for a second,
[00:04:19.920]talk about what that requires.
[00:04:23.200]Patience, and balance, and neutrality,
[00:04:26.330]and it's an interesting skillset,
[00:04:30.100]because when I say, you know, sometimes my best days
[00:04:34.330]are when I'll get off of a really contentious call
[00:04:36.640]between our sales team, whose mission is just
[00:04:39.530]to sell and drive that revenue,
[00:04:41.690]and our content team who's like,
[00:04:42.867]"I don't wanna clutter the screen
[00:04:44.407]"with so many sponsorships.
[00:04:45.767]"These are terrible, they're manufactured,
[00:04:47.577]"they don't make sense."
[00:04:48.800]And so, my best days are when I get a call after the meeting
[00:04:52.810]from both sides, and have to try to negotiate, and listen,
[00:04:57.720]and understand, and find out what their sticking points are,
[00:05:00.890]and then try to help them to see the other side.
[00:05:03.730]And when we can get to a good point
[00:05:06.710]where that neutrality comes in and it can help both sides
[00:05:11.230]understand the other one's position, then I've done my job.
[00:05:14.120]And sometimes that's even more taxing
[00:05:16.760]when I'm dealing with a client or an agency specifically
[00:05:20.530]who has a serious priority, and we're trying to protect,
[00:05:25.390]like I said, our content too,
[00:05:26.850]to make sure that what you see on game day,
[00:05:29.700]or what you see in the ABC primetime game,
[00:05:31.760]doesn't, makes sense within the flow of the game
[00:05:35.060]or the flow of the show.
[00:05:36.930]What you're describing, they, I can only guess,
[00:05:40.180]was something that you never even dreamed
[00:05:42.360]that you might be doing 20 years ago.
[00:05:44.560]No, not at all, not at all.
[00:05:47.140]And that's the fun thing of, you know, in school,
[00:05:50.760]just learning as much as you can
[00:05:53.300]about all of the different aspects of the business,
[00:05:55.590]because even, you know, broadcast law,
[00:05:58.640]and learning the ins and outs of what we can and can't do,
[00:06:01.870]now applies in different ways
[00:06:03.970]of the different business decisions
[00:06:05.910]that I help make with our production team.
[00:06:08.470]So, everything that you're doing,
[00:06:10.790]whether it's broadcast writing, or just learning,
[00:06:13.420]you know, how to direct, or do graphics,
[00:06:15.810]or things like that, it really strangely
[00:06:19.020]all comes back into play, regardless of what direction
[00:06:22.720]you're going or think you might want to go.
[00:06:25.950]Did you ever, along the way in your professional career,
[00:06:29.960]Ericka, did you ever, like suddenly it dawned upon you
[00:06:33.113]that, "You know, I remember learning about this
[00:06:37.737]"at the university of Nebraska-Lincoln,
[00:06:39.397]"and at the time I thought, 'Yeah, you know,
[00:06:41.027]"'what do I need this for?'"
[00:06:43.040]And then it suddenly dawned upon you that,
[00:06:44.957]"Well, here's the answer"?
[00:06:46.590]Yes, oh.
[00:06:47.423]"I need to know this now. (laughs)
[00:06:48.907]"I'm glad I took that class."
[00:06:50.450]How about, and I'm such a nerd and it's okay,
[00:06:53.490]but I accept that about myself,
[00:06:55.560]but I took all of the books that I had kept
[00:06:59.510]and my binders full of my coursework with me
[00:07:02.780]to Connecticut for my first job.
[00:07:05.400]And I was like, "I need to reference some of these,
[00:07:08.027]"you know, some of these things along the way."
[00:07:09.580]But the one thing, when I was in the videography class
[00:07:13.170]and we were cutting our own stuff on Avid,
[00:07:15.170]and spending, you know, all-nighters editing our own stuff,
[00:07:18.890]and I got to ESPN and I was cutting different highlights
[00:07:21.850]along the way, and the one thing that was so fascinating
[00:07:24.630]to me is that there are people that are just editors.
[00:07:28.240]Like, at that point I became just the producer,
[00:07:30.430]and I'm like, "Well, I can help you with
[00:07:32.337]"that Avid function over there."
[00:07:33.670]And they're like, "Oh no, no, no.
[00:07:34.827]"We've been doing this for years.
[00:07:36.467]"This is our main role."
[00:07:37.700]And what I didn't realize that I had gained
[00:07:40.240]throughout school is learning how to do it
[00:07:42.600]as a one-person band.
[00:07:44.820]And when I got to specialize in just the producing aspect,
[00:07:50.670]it was so helpful to understand what some of my editors
[00:07:53.340]were going through, and referencing the things
[00:07:56.580]that I had learned along the way to be patient with them
[00:07:59.420]or for them to be patient with me.
[00:08:01.080]So, it was really, really.
[00:08:03.250]I'm very, very thankful and grateful
[00:08:05.610]for the experiences that I got in my college career
[00:08:08.610]that helped shape where I, you know,
[00:08:11.370]that first step coming out of college.
[00:08:14.060]Give us some context.
[00:08:15.120]So talk about, like describe what ESPN,
[00:08:18.350]in terms of the size of the organization
[00:08:21.020]and its primary mission was back in 2000
[00:08:24.060]when you first joined it, and where it's at today.
[00:08:28.087]So, ESPN right now, I believe, and don't quote me on this,
[00:08:33.040]but I believe we have about 6,500 employees.
[00:08:37.750]Our mission is to serve sports fans anytime, anywhere.
[00:08:41.710]And I think the good thing about our mission statement
[00:08:44.530]that existed in 2000 when I first began
[00:08:47.350]and where it is now still reigns true, you know?
[00:08:50.460]Like, so we're changing and evolving as a company
[00:08:55.100]with the changing time.
[00:08:56.280]So, while we're very much in the direct consumer space now
[00:09:00.270]with, you know, Hulu, and Disney Plus, and ESPN Plus
[00:09:03.820]versus the linear broadcast networks and cable networks,
[00:09:07.570]because our subscribers are, you know,
[00:09:09.890]we're losing traction there.
[00:09:11.460]And so we're evolving with it, but we haven't lost sight of
[00:09:15.240]what are we gonna do to serve our fans anytime, anywhere?
[00:09:19.140]So that still very much holds true.
[00:09:22.410]Okay, I'm gonna take it back here.
[00:09:24.200]I've got some questions that are popping up.
[00:09:25.850]If you don't mind,
[00:09:26.683]can I drop the questions in along the way here?
[00:09:28.350]Yeah, please, please. (laughs) Okay, so,
[00:09:30.387]I'm gonna take you back.
[00:09:31.890]Philip Pickard, you're on the call, I think.
[00:09:33.980]You wanna ask a question to our guest?
[00:09:36.820]Yeah, sure, that's fine.
[00:09:38.460]So, my question's just like.
[00:09:44.060]Oops, you're on mute.
[00:09:46.810]I think we lost you there for a second.
[00:09:48.819]Try it again, Philip.
[00:09:50.210]How long after graduating did you get your first job
[00:09:52.230]as a production assistant?
[00:09:54.240]So, I think I graduated, I wanna say in May,
[00:09:58.640]and then in the first like two, three weeks of June,
[00:10:02.560]I worked the College World Series
[00:10:04.070]as a production assistant, or a runner.
[00:10:06.770]And then from there, I started with ESPN in July,
[00:10:11.100]so it was a very short turnaround,
[00:10:13.270]but I had lots of experience with ESPN and ABC
[00:10:16.550]starting in my senior year of college to kind of set me up.
[00:10:21.210]So I was very fortunate to get in with them
[00:10:24.720]in July of 2000 when having just graduated
[00:10:27.530]a few months prior to.
[00:10:29.800]Good question.
[00:10:30.810]I'm lookin' at your stat sheet here, Ericka,
[00:10:32.810]and some of the venues you've worked at
[00:10:34.790]as a production assistant or coordinator,
[00:10:38.140]managerial skillsets involved.
[00:10:40.990]So we're talking about the,
[00:10:42.690]you mentioned that the College World Series,
[00:10:45.440]ESPN College Football, the NCAA Championships.
[00:10:50.500]What have been some of the highlight moments
[00:10:53.160]experientially for you in those things that you've done?
[00:10:57.320]Oh gosh.
[00:10:58.290]It's so hard to, it's so funny.
[00:11:00.500]Someone else asked me this not too long ago,
[00:11:04.690]and I think it's interesting when I think about,
[00:11:07.890]I've been to a lot of really cool events,
[00:11:11.160]national championships, and game days, and things like that,
[00:11:14.140]and gotten to experience it from a nonfan perspective,
[00:11:17.730]and I think at the beginning of my career,
[00:11:20.260]I was very much still a fan of it all.
[00:11:23.030]And now as time has shifted,
[00:11:24.780]and I'm a little bit more desensitized to a few things.
[00:11:27.960]Like, we'll say like big, really impactful stories,
[00:11:31.550]still get me choked up, and I love that piece of it.
[00:11:35.240]But more than anything, you know,
[00:11:38.140]when I was working the College World Series,
[00:11:39.750]and I'm originally from Valley, Nebraska.
[00:11:42.160]So, for any of you in the surrounding
[00:11:44.760]Waterloo, Elkhorn area, like that's where I'm from,
[00:11:47.360]very small town.
[00:11:48.210]And my mom and stepdad were at the game
[00:11:51.100]where I was on the field trying to, you know,
[00:11:54.690]hold back a coach and help coordinate a few things there,
[00:11:58.840]or being with President Bush when he was in the booth
[00:12:01.460]with the guys.
[00:12:02.293]Like, those moments like don't just come every day,
[00:12:06.030]and kinda seeing the pride that my mom had in the stands
[00:12:09.320]and coming back home after being in Connecticut,
[00:12:12.500]like those are the moments that really,
[00:12:16.260]you know, hit home for me.
[00:12:17.470]Or, you know, one that stands out,
[00:12:19.107]and this is kinda funny, but I met my husband on,
[00:12:23.600]and I don't know if anybody has seen it on-air,
[00:12:25.300]but the DirecTV drive to the national championship bus.
[00:12:29.610]And so I was on the bus mediating between a bus driver
[00:12:33.580]and an engineer who didn't care for each other very much,
[00:12:36.700]and so I was going in to try to figure out
[00:12:38.440]what was going on there,
[00:12:39.273]and I met my husband in 2009 on that.
[00:12:44.260]So like, some of those personal moments are what,
[00:12:47.740]you know, shaped my career and made me, again,
[00:12:51.760]very appreciative for this incredible industry
[00:12:55.713]that I get to work in.
[00:12:57.780]Challenges along the way.
[00:12:59.090]Everyone, you know, we're having students in my class
[00:13:02.310]do profile stories right now.
[00:13:04.600]And you can appreciate this.
[00:13:06.240]I say, "Listen, you need to tell us something
[00:13:08.097]"about the people you're doing a profile on,
[00:13:11.097]"about a personal challenge that has helped shape
[00:13:14.437]"the person they are today,
[00:13:16.237]"whether it happened in their career
[00:13:17.657]"or someplace along the way,"
[00:13:18.850]but they certainly informed themselves.
[00:13:21.260]Do you have anything like that for us?
[00:13:22.480]Do you have, can you think of a big challenge that you faced
[00:13:26.290]between the time you graduated here
[00:13:28.470]and where you're at today?
[00:13:30.730]Yeah, I mean, I think different challenges along the way
[00:13:34.100]only help you to grow and become even better.
[00:13:37.160]Some of the challenges that I've faced along the way of.
[00:13:40.950]I was in Bristol, Connecticut, at our headquarters
[00:13:43.450]for 14 years, and then made the choice
[00:13:45.330]to transfer to our Charlotte office.
[00:13:46.910]So I went from seeing thousands of people a day
[00:13:50.190]to working in an office of 200,
[00:13:52.627]and really forcing Zoom, and now being in a pandemic
[00:13:55.580]where we're all on Zoom all the time.
[00:13:59.470]It's a good thing and a challenge
[00:14:01.120]that you just have to work through things a lot differently.
[00:14:04.250]And for anyone who's read the news, it's not false.
[00:14:08.040]ESPN's going through more layoffs right now,
[00:14:11.100]which is really, really difficult,
[00:14:13.700]because having been there for 20 years,
[00:14:16.260]I am learning different names along the way
[00:14:18.940]of people that have been impacted.
[00:14:20.840]And so I anticipate that our business will continue
[00:14:24.500]to even change and evolve even more
[00:14:27.620]based on these unprecedented times.
[00:14:29.550]So, I will say, as nimble and forward-thinking
[00:14:33.830]as we can all be, it only helps us each
[00:14:36.390]to become better at our jobs and be an even better teammate
[00:14:40.240]to others who are, you know, are goin' through a lot
[00:14:43.530]of the same things that we are.
[00:14:45.320]Good point.
[00:14:46.310]Olivia Ramaekers, if you're on the call,
[00:14:48.090]do you wanna ask a question to our guest, Ericka?
[00:14:51.580]Yeah, hi.
[00:14:54.510]What advice do you have for students
[00:14:56.900]who are looking to go into production,
[00:15:00.280]broadcast engineering, things like that?
[00:15:02.180]And then, what internships would you suggest
[00:15:04.390]those students to apply for?
[00:15:07.540]So what advice do I have?
[00:15:09.600]I would say my best piece of advice right now,
[00:15:13.240]knowing we are in such strange times,
[00:15:16.185]is maximize every moment that you have, right?
[00:15:20.240]So, whether that's learning as much as you can,
[00:15:23.730]talking to as many people as you can,
[00:15:27.050]getting as many shadow opportunities,
[00:15:29.460]or just widening your circle.
[00:15:32.690]So then when that career opportunity does come along,
[00:15:35.640]and not knowing when that will be
[00:15:37.030]or what that will look like,
[00:15:38.450]you've expanded your network the best way that you can.
[00:15:42.480]I think that's probably my best piece of advice,
[00:15:45.200]because there are so many times where you can't even see
[00:15:48.880]where you're going to go,
[00:15:50.320]but the better that you are prepared
[00:15:53.320]and have a wider circle of people
[00:15:55.470]that can be allies for you,
[00:15:57.100]or think of you when certain positions come open,
[00:15:59.700]the better position you'll be to, you know,
[00:16:02.210]to start to jump into those types of roles.
[00:16:05.950]So I would just say, as an employer
[00:16:09.420]or somebody that's hired different people
[00:16:11.170]along the way, the lower risk it is for us,
[00:16:14.130]because you've already had some of those experiences,
[00:16:16.520]whether they come in the form of internships
[00:16:18.510]or shadow opportunities,
[00:16:19.700]or just people that you've talked to along the way,
[00:16:23.030]and the more that you know about the industry
[00:16:24.970]or the profession that you're going into,
[00:16:26.830]the better suited you'll be in the lower risk,
[00:16:29.110]and then it becomes a no-brainer on the hiring end.
[00:16:32.230]And I'll follow up on that in just a second here,
[00:16:34.550]but just, again, if you have a question
[00:16:36.430]for Ericka Galbraith from ESPN,
[00:16:38.010]please drop them in the chat bar there.
[00:16:40.410]And you use the term risk.
[00:16:44.160]So, when you're talking about the expectation
[00:16:46.350]that goes with that, what do you really mean?
[00:16:49.200]Yeah so, and risk is probably not the right choice.
[00:16:54.010]Opportunity is probably a better one.
[00:16:55.760]But I will say, so, and this was several years ago,
[00:16:59.670]but I was hiring specific for production assistant,
[00:17:03.730]and when you submit your application
[00:17:06.230]and you're amongst say 12,000 people
[00:17:09.370]applying for say 20 jobs or so,
[00:17:13.760]it was low risk for us on the hiring end
[00:17:17.140]when the person had experience with the keywords
[00:17:22.110]that were on the job description.
[00:17:25.200]So if they've clipped and cut highlights,
[00:17:27.660]and done a bunch of the different tangible things
[00:17:30.640]that are required within the job,
[00:17:32.100]than they were lower risk, versus someone who had,
[00:17:35.530]you know, a broadcasting background
[00:17:37.810]but no experience in that area.
[00:17:39.870]Then you're like, "Okay, what do they know?
[00:17:42.287]"What can they know, should, you know?"
[00:17:44.530]And so when someone has that experience
[00:17:47.300]to back up what the job they're stepping into,
[00:17:49.960]then they're a lower risk hire
[00:17:51.610]because you're not taking as much of a gamble
[00:17:55.100]on someone who may not have a clue
[00:17:57.260]what they're getting into.
[00:17:59.570]Olivia was talking about, you know,
[00:18:01.430]what kinds of internship should we take right now?
[00:18:03.750]But one of the problems we have with the COVID pandemic
[00:18:06.130]is a lot of these internships are,
[00:18:09.620]they're in limbo right now because of COVID.
[00:18:12.080]So, what is the policy there at ESPN,
[00:18:15.177]and if there are fewer internship opportunities
[00:18:18.540]available right now, which there are,
[00:18:20.920]then what would the workaround be?
[00:18:23.090]So, it's interesting, because earlier this week
[00:18:25.720]I was on a call where I asked a specific question
[00:18:28.190]about our internships, because generally speaking,
[00:18:31.450]on ESPNcareers.com, or Disneycareers.com,
[00:18:35.430]we open up a bunch of internships for next summer,
[00:18:38.980]and that's in a wide variety
[00:18:41.420]of different divisions within ESPN.
[00:18:44.440]So I had to ask the question by someone in production,
[00:18:47.810]like, "What do internships look like for us in the summer?"
[00:18:50.480]And was told that, you know,
[00:18:51.460]they're still working through those things,
[00:18:52.970]but the process is that they're still going to try
[00:18:56.720]to have at least a few in-person if they can.
[00:19:00.300]So it is, it's such an uncertain time
[00:19:03.930]of what this is going to look like
[00:19:05.930]in the months ahead of us.
[00:19:07.010]But I would say that, you know,
[00:19:08.510]the workaround in the meantime is nothing stopping any of us
[00:19:12.880]from getting on a Zoom call or, you know,
[00:19:15.780]reaching out via email to say,
[00:19:17.277]"Hey, I just want to talk to you a little bit more
[00:19:21.217]"about what I'm interested in,"
[00:19:22.420]because odds are when you start to open up those connections
[00:19:25.600]and at least have those conversations,
[00:19:29.330]someone knows someone who knows someone
[00:19:32.420]who can get you and steer you in the right direction,
[00:19:34.840]or at least get you into that pipeline
[00:19:36.990]of where you're staying on people's radar,
[00:19:39.580]and then when something does open up, they do think of you.
[00:19:42.510]So it is, no question, it's not an easy time,
[00:19:45.900]but I think and I hope that things will open up in 2021.
[00:19:51.370]If and when they do,
[00:19:52.310]could you describe the types of internships?
[00:19:55.280]And I know they're paid. Yep.
[00:19:58.030]And I remember that Ashley used to help
[00:20:00.340]with some of the housing for students too
[00:20:02.490]that have come from across the country,
[00:20:04.290]but please tell us some more about that.
[00:20:07.010]Yeah, so one of the most interesting things
[00:20:11.400]I hear about ESPN interest,
[00:20:13.150]our ESPN internships, is they are some of
[00:20:16.360]the hardest internships to get in the country,
[00:20:20.210]and it's easier to get an entry-level job at ESPN
[00:20:22.593]than it is to get an internship.
[00:20:25.590]Reason being is there's not very many of them,
[00:20:28.360]they are paid, housing is subsidized,
[00:20:31.430]and in a lot of cases, you will be on the Bristol campus.
[00:20:34.790]And the great news is they try to spread the internships out
[00:20:39.790]among different departments.
[00:20:41.400]Like I said, so programming team may get an intern,
[00:20:45.320]or our sales team, or our production teams,
[00:20:47.680]or our finance teams.
[00:20:48.810]Like, so there's so many different opportunities,
[00:20:51.510]and that ability to network amongst different people
[00:20:55.650]at ESPN is pretty tremendous.
[00:20:58.450]And the conversion rate is pretty significant too
[00:21:01.920]of someone that's come in for an internship.
[00:21:04.880]And I think they have to still be, don't quote me on this,
[00:21:07.490]but I think you have to be within a year of graduating
[00:21:10.690]maybe to get an internship.
[00:21:13.580]And then the goal is to bring you back
[00:21:15.500]once you finish your school year,
[00:21:18.510]to convert that into a position,
[00:21:20.340]an entry-level position within the business.
[00:21:22.590]Good point.
[00:21:23.990]And when and where should students
[00:21:26.310]look for those announcements of internships
[00:21:30.083]that they might apply for?
[00:21:31.760]So, our career website is Disneycareers.com,
[00:21:36.910]or, and I think you can still get there
[00:21:38.710]from ESPNcareers.com,
[00:21:40.450]but it's a pretty great tool to navigate,
[00:21:43.580]even for internal employees.
[00:21:44.950]That's where all of our positions are posted.
[00:21:48.420]Usually internships, the summer internships anyway,
[00:21:51.350]are posted in, I wanna say early December,
[00:21:54.260]which if you keep kind of checking back along the way,
[00:21:57.950]all of a sudden you'll see a slew of postings
[00:22:00.750]for internships there.
[00:22:01.730]And again, that includes internships for Disney,
[00:22:06.200]if you're interested in that.
[00:22:07.640]And that's, again, one of the best things
[00:22:10.080]of working for ESPN is if I decided tomorrow,
[00:22:14.327]"Gosh, sports just isn't for me,"
[00:22:16.570]there's no reason that I can't try to leverage
[00:22:18.760]some of my contacts in Orlando or California
[00:22:22.380]in the parks world to go, you know,
[00:22:24.450]extend my business knowledge somewhere else
[00:22:26.550]within the overall Disney organization.
[00:22:30.300]The other thing I can tell you outside of internships,
[00:22:33.160]and while we're in a bit of a holding pattern,
[00:22:35.760]for obvious reasons right now,
[00:22:37.020]is on some of the entry-level jobs, they're posted as well.
[00:22:43.030]So you, you know, look at the job description
[00:22:45.290]and see if you're aligned.
[00:22:48.210]You know, your experiences are aligned
[00:22:50.030]with some of the things that they're looking at
[00:22:51.560]in the production assistant or the coordinator range,
[00:22:55.100]because those are more of the entry-levels,
[00:22:57.300]and it'll tell you how much experience is needed,
[00:22:59.560]and that should give you an indication
[00:23:01.540]as to whether or not you'd be qualified there, too.
[00:23:04.700]Some of our students, you know,
[00:23:06.540]maybe they couldn't get an internship,
[00:23:08.090]but they here have formed clubs, interest clubs,
[00:23:11.595]where they're actually having an opportunity
[00:23:13.750]to practice a lot of skillsets
[00:23:15.571]that would be required. Yep.
[00:23:17.540]What are your thoughts on that,
[00:23:18.702]I mean, just someone taking the initiative
[00:23:20.550]to do things like that?
[00:23:22.380]I think the more initiative that you can take,
[00:23:25.160]a, the better idea that you're going to have
[00:23:27.460]if something is something that you're interested in,
[00:23:31.010]or a passion, or a path that you wanna go down,
[00:23:34.680]and again, it's a resume builder along the way, too.
[00:23:38.050]So the more active you can be
[00:23:40.110]in pursuing these different things,
[00:23:41.610]it'll help shape the direction you want your career to go.
[00:23:45.330]And in some cases, and I've had this happen
[00:23:48.510]in my career, too, where I'm like,
[00:23:50.797]"Oh, I'm really interested in this group."
[00:23:52.810]And then you start to observe them and go,
[00:23:54.567]"Nuh-uh, (laughs) not what I thought it was gonna be,
[00:23:57.747]"and not a direction I wanna head."
[00:23:59.980]So, I think any type of experience you can get
[00:24:03.980]is really, really cool, and will be valuable
[00:24:06.390]in some way or another.
[00:24:07.960]For the women who are contemplating, you know,
[00:24:11.500]getting into sports media, and specifically ESPN,
[00:24:17.660]you know, historically there was always this,
[00:24:19.657]"Well, that's kind of a guy thing,"
[00:24:21.910]but it's not that way, is it?
[00:24:23.360]And are there opportunities for women to be able to succeed?
[00:24:27.070]And I mean, you're a great example, (laughs)
[00:24:29.620]and you've probably been through some of that yourself
[00:24:31.980]over the last 20 years.
[00:24:33.010]So, what advice might you have for women
[00:24:35.970]who are really interested in sports media?
[00:24:38.610]I say, I am case in point.
[00:24:43.410]When I started ESPN in 2000,
[00:24:45.950]there were not very many women at all.
[00:24:48.640]And so it was one of those
[00:24:51.830]hold your own type of tribal situations.
[00:24:54.820]But now the amount of diversity
[00:24:57.810]that we have at ESPN is tremendous.
[00:25:00.480]And when I'm sitting in some of these meetings,
[00:25:03.010]in these, you know, big Zoom meetings, too,
[00:25:05.560]the ratio of men to women is so much more balanced
[00:25:10.060]than it was 20 years ago.
[00:25:12.640]What I like to tell a lot of women who are just starting out
[00:25:15.930]in the company too, is just remember,
[00:25:18.120]like they hired you for you, not to transform into someone
[00:25:21.940]who you think you should be based on
[00:25:23.900]some of my, you know, male counterparts
[00:25:26.010]and things like that, and to bring your unique skillset
[00:25:29.360]and values to the table, even though they look
[00:25:31.810]and feel very different than some of your peers.
[00:25:35.420]Because if you look at our fan base, they're made up of,
[00:25:38.910]you know, of all of us.
[00:25:40.150]So, they need that unique perspective
[00:25:42.240]that each and every one of us individually brings from,
[00:25:44.690]you know, brings to the table.
[00:25:46.180]And that's not just a gender thing.
[00:25:48.420]That's also, and I say this proudly of being from Nebraska,
[00:25:52.110]like that's a Midwestern thing too,
[00:25:54.950]versus the Northeast, or, you know,
[00:25:57.100]different parts of our country.
[00:25:58.420]We all bring something different,
[00:25:59.840]so to be your authentic self
[00:26:03.140]adds value to any job that you have.
[00:26:06.710]Ericka, one of the, I think one of the greatest
[00:26:09.330]sporting events around, just down the road,
[00:26:12.500]and you've been personally involved in that,
[00:26:13.910]is the College World Series,
[00:26:15.850]and ESPN covers it every year.
[00:26:18.510]Jack Bubala, if you're on the call,
[00:26:20.160]I think you had a question about that.
[00:26:24.370]Yes, I did.
[00:26:25.203]I wanted to know if you would advise
[00:26:27.390]that the College World Series would be a good internship
[00:26:30.250]to try and get for anyone interested in sports broadcast?
[00:26:33.780]Yes, 100%, I do.
[00:26:36.340]And it wouldn't be as much of an internship,
[00:26:38.290]but it would be as a runner.
[00:26:41.360]And for all of you on this call,
[00:26:44.140]Professor McCoy has my email.
[00:26:46.010]Please email me after this meeting
[00:26:49.900]if you're interested in anything
[00:26:51.270]or need some connections anywhere,
[00:26:53.220]especially with the College World Series.
[00:26:55.200]They do hire runners along the way they,
[00:26:57.930]they do like to have repeat runners that know the drill.
[00:27:00.820]And again, it gets you inside into that production
[00:27:04.090]and where that's going.
[00:27:05.640]And it is one of the coolest events that,
[00:27:09.450]and I've been a part of a lot of events,
[00:27:11.010]but one of the best events that we do
[00:27:14.770]from feeling pride in working in this industry, for sure.
[00:27:20.410]Can you give us an idea, when you say,
[00:27:22.520]when you talk about runner, what specifically?
[00:27:25.057]And I know it means lots of different things. (laughs)
[00:27:27.380]Yeah, no, that's a great question.
[00:27:29.520]So a runner for the College World Series
[00:27:31.490]is really a support level person in production.
[00:27:37.150]So there are operations' runners,
[00:27:39.230]and there are production runners,
[00:27:40.830]and some of the operations' runners
[00:27:42.490]will handle the technical capability,
[00:27:45.800]so they'll work with a camera person.
[00:27:47.640]They'll, you know, it's more of a utility type of position.
[00:27:50.680]And on the production side,
[00:27:52.370]it's working with our producers and our director.
[00:27:54.650]So some of the tasks are as simple as making sure
[00:27:57.940]that they have what they need for meetings,
[00:28:00.230]whether it's copies, or running cards to the booth,
[00:28:03.110]or things like that.
[00:28:04.750]A runner can also be, you know, a stage manager
[00:28:07.470]and working with some of our on-air talent
[00:28:09.600]in that regard, or logging different things.
[00:28:13.270]And, you know, there's, you know,
[00:28:15.160]MLT video coming down the line of a post game,
[00:28:18.190]and you're literally logging, you know,
[00:28:21.040]who the player was, what the action was,
[00:28:23.050]what the result was.
[00:28:24.210]And so that's really helping the production team.
[00:28:26.210]And then you get to watch how they're editing
[00:28:29.230]different pieces along the way,
[00:28:31.670]and how it's being implemented into the broadcast.
[00:28:34.810]There's also truck runners.
[00:28:37.430]So you're sitting inside of the truck,
[00:28:39.440]and this is in a traditional pre-pandemic state,
[00:28:41.920]but you're in the truck, and if something needs to go
[00:28:45.340]to the booth, or to the offices,
[00:28:47.040]or what have you, you are the eyes and ears
[00:28:49.230]and a helper there.
[00:28:50.640]So you get really like firsthand knowledge
[00:28:53.470]of what it looks and feels like inside of that,
[00:28:56.290]you know, national broadcast truck.
[00:28:58.320]So there's a bunch of different runner roles,
[00:29:00.100]and that's why I say that's a really good start.
[00:29:02.768]And by the way, I put your email address
[00:29:04.890]in the chat board there, so. Perfect!
[00:29:07.060]Any of you would like to copy Ericka's email.
[00:29:10.030]And Ericka, thank you for opening the door
[00:29:13.034]for them to ask you,
[00:29:13.867]or should you email questions, that's fantastic.
[00:29:18.430]And yeah, does anybody out there have a question
[00:29:21.050]you'd like to ask right now?
[00:29:22.080]I don't see anything in the chat board,
[00:29:23.350]and I've got plenty of questions to ask,
[00:29:24.950]but anybody have a question for Ericka?
[00:29:34.020]All right, that's the 10-second clock right there. (laughs)
[00:29:37.220]I love it.
[00:29:38.270]Okay, Ericka, I have a question.
[00:29:40.510]So, talk about how competitive it is to be able
[00:29:46.420]to get an entry-level job at a place like ESPN today.
[00:29:50.800]And again, obviously, you know,
[00:29:53.410]students oftentimes are thinking,
[00:29:55.507]"But what do I need to pass in class?"
[00:29:57.520]But the real question is, "What will I really need
[00:29:59.457]"to get ready for the career that I think I want?"
[00:30:02.920]And so what are the answers to those questions?
[00:30:06.230]So, how competitive is it?
[00:30:09.100]For a place like ESPN, it's very competitive, as you know,
[00:30:14.960]and as you can imagine with this pandemic,
[00:30:17.740]there are fewer and fewer jobs that are likely
[00:30:20.960]going to be available, right?
[00:30:23.160]Like that's kind of just the reality that we live in
[00:30:26.420]for the moment, but I think the best that you can do,
[00:30:30.320]like I said before, is really maximize this time
[00:30:33.270]to learn, and extend your resources,
[00:30:35.920]and take advantage of everyone
[00:30:37.410]being Zoom-friendly right now.
[00:30:41.180]And hopefully that won't ever change,
[00:30:43.180]'cause I like it a lot, too.
[00:30:44.750]But then right now I would say,
[00:30:47.870]way before you're ready to apply for those jobs,
[00:30:50.700]go onto the website, take a look at some of
[00:30:53.240]the production assistant positions,
[00:30:55.320]see what the job requirements are,
[00:30:58.680]and then make sure you're trying as hard as you can
[00:31:00.990]to tailor your experiences, or your shadow opportunities,
[00:31:04.420]or your knowledge base in those areas
[00:31:06.390]that match the job description.
[00:31:08.650]So then when it does come time to apply for those jobs,
[00:31:11.990]you can tailor your resume to match
[00:31:14.450]some of those buzzwords.
[00:31:16.100]So if there's an automated system
[00:31:18.830]that's combing through all of the different resumes
[00:31:21.370]and you have matching keywords,
[00:31:24.290]your resume will pass through to the next,
[00:31:26.920]you know, the next funnel I guess,
[00:31:29.280]and will be reviewed by appropriate people.
[00:31:32.020]And so then, you know, always using your resources.
[00:31:35.190]If you apply for a job, say at ESPN,
[00:31:38.710]but then also shoot me a note to say,
[00:31:40.557]"Hey, Ericka, you may remember me from, you know,
[00:31:43.637]"Professor, McCoy's Zoom class.
[00:31:46.217]"I just applied for a production assistant job.
[00:31:48.707]"Any info that you can give me."
[00:31:50.670]That gives you a second in at the company to say,
[00:31:54.447]"Hey, I know the hiring committee,
[00:31:55.877]"let me put in a good word, or let me let them know
[00:31:59.557]"that you've just applied."
[00:32:00.870]And I would say that holds true
[00:32:02.070]for anywhere that you want to apply.
[00:32:04.450]If you know someone there, on top of applying,
[00:32:07.350]you've matched the resume,
[00:32:08.420]you think it really is a good match.
[00:32:11.060]Make sure you're utilizing as many resources as you can
[00:32:14.080]to let people know that you've applied for that position,
[00:32:16.228]and that you're really interested.
[00:32:17.760]So to summarize, the importance of networking
[00:32:20.610]and having contacts.
[00:32:21.950]Number two, I thought that was really interesting
[00:32:22.790]how you talked about matching up keywords
[00:32:25.390]in the position description with your skillsets.
[00:32:28.990]And do they actually use some software
[00:32:31.700]to comb through that and see if they
[00:32:33.140]could match up those words if they're going through
[00:32:34.960]thousands of applications?
[00:32:36.580]Mm-hm, yeah, I really.
[00:32:38.150]So, I imagine a lot of people
[00:32:38.983]just probably don't know of it.
[00:32:40.330]Yeah, well and I had, I will tell you,
[00:32:42.510]I learned that when I was on a recruiting trip
[00:32:45.500]a long time ago talking with someone from HR
[00:32:48.760]about their process, and I had asked a question,
[00:32:51.667]"When you're getting," and I keep using 12,000,
[00:32:53.777]"When you get 12,000 resumes,
[00:32:55.987]"how many do you actually go through?"
[00:32:57.920]And was told like they spend about 30 seconds per resume
[00:33:02.080]once it's already filtered through that automated process.
[00:33:05.250]Now again, that was several years ago.
[00:33:07.060]I don't know if they use the same process,
[00:33:09.050]but I do like to tell people that,
[00:33:11.210]because if you think about your resume,
[00:33:13.270]if it's not aligned with the job that you're applying for,
[00:33:16.800]if someone doesn't know you or know anything about you,
[00:33:20.210]what would make them want to have that conversation,
[00:33:22.930]or that interview, which is the next step?
[00:33:25.440]But the resume really does get you in the door,
[00:33:27.990]and then the interview, I believe, gets you the job.
[00:33:31.380]You have to be ready to research yourself
[00:33:33.220]when you're looking for a job.
[00:33:34.203]You have to be able to say,
[00:33:35.590]"I'm the person that you need for the job
[00:33:38.737]"that you're advertising for, and I can explain why,
[00:33:43.652]"and I can deliver," right?
[00:33:44.910]I mean, again, we're talking about risk, right?
[00:33:46.930]The risk for the employer is, is that,
[00:33:48.647]"Can this person do the job that we're paying them for,
[00:33:52.937]"providing benefits, you know, giving them training for?"
[00:33:56.460]That's always the risk of the employer.
[00:33:59.580]The risk for the employee is, you know,
[00:34:02.837]"Can you live up to those expectations and not only perform,
[00:34:05.887]"but hopefully over-perform and make such a big impression
[00:34:08.747]"that you're invaluable," right? (laughs)
[00:34:11.550]Yes, absolutely.
[00:34:13.280]And for you, the employee,
[00:34:14.840]just knowing what you're getting into,
[00:34:16.610]knowing that if you want to work, say on SportsCenter,
[00:34:21.090]that you know a lot of our shows are happening at night,
[00:34:24.680]and on the weekends, and different things like that.
[00:34:27.460]So, not having a false sense of expectation
[00:34:30.810]is what will really, you know, help along the way, too.
[00:34:33.910]So then it is a good match.
[00:34:36.210]Somebody else said that, "You know,
[00:34:37.807]"there's one thing Professor McCoy,
[00:34:39.317]"when you, or Ericka, or somebody else,
[00:34:42.017]"was telling us what they thought
[00:34:43.177]"we needed to have to be ready."
[00:34:45.400]And this was one student told me, they said,
[00:34:47.627]"You know, I really learned,
[00:34:49.157]"I mean the rubber hit the road when I started
[00:34:51.527]"actually doing interviews, and I learned a lot
[00:34:55.757]"from being rejected so many times,
[00:34:58.797]"because I really then got a firm sense,
[00:35:02.767]"a really great understanding
[00:35:03.853]"and what they're really looking for.
[00:35:06.297]"I was asking for feedback along the way by them,
[00:35:09.027]"so if I got turned down, I'd just say,
[00:35:11.067]"'Can you just tell me, where do you think
[00:35:12.277]"'I can improve my skillsets?'"
[00:35:14.971]And that really gave them, they felt, you know,
[00:35:17.420]the invaluable, real-world advice, if you will,
[00:35:21.140]just by willing to go through the process,
[00:35:24.170]by being willing to be told that,
[00:35:25.837]"Well, you're not ready." (laughs)
[00:35:28.330]Or, "There were some great candidates and you were close,"
[00:35:30.670]and you know, all that stuff that you hear along way,
[00:35:32.850]but how important is that, just to be willing
[00:35:35.810]to go through that process?
[00:35:37.570]And you know, go up for the rejection, (laughs)
[00:35:40.880]and deal with that, and, you know,
[00:35:42.910]and then celebrate the success of actually getting a job.
[00:35:46.060]Well, I met, that's so strange about the whole process
[00:35:49.720]is sometimes you go through it and you're like,
[00:35:51.647]"I aced that interview.
[00:35:53.447]"I was so good,"
[00:35:54.390]and then you didn't get the job and you're let down.
[00:35:56.420]But I think what you said is absolutely critical,
[00:35:59.580]of being open to the feedback
[00:36:01.810]and what you can do for next time
[00:36:04.290]in order to improve your chances in getting a position,
[00:36:08.960]if that's what you're going for.
[00:36:09.970]But just being receptive to feedback,
[00:36:13.030]even when you're in the role,
[00:36:14.170]because we can all get better all of the time
[00:36:16.670]if we're willing to just accept that we're not perfect,
[00:36:20.170]and we wanna do our best.
[00:36:21.360]And then again, for you all, which is even harder
[00:36:25.780]than what any of us have had to experience in the past,
[00:36:28.610]is knowing that the times that we're in
[00:36:31.590]are so unprecedented, and are even gonna be
[00:36:34.130]that much more competitive,
[00:36:36.010]of just staying true to yourself,
[00:36:37.740]and to what you're passionate about,
[00:36:39.170]and what you believe in,
[00:36:40.230]and working really, really hard to round yourself out,
[00:36:44.370]to make you the most competitive that you can be
[00:36:47.020]for that position.
[00:36:47.853]Like, that's all you can do, but it's a tough world,
[00:36:51.760]and I, you know, I don't envy anyone
[00:36:55.330]going into the job market right now,
[00:36:56.850]but I am here on the other end to help any of you,
[00:37:00.070]you know, should you wanna go into the Disney,
[00:37:02.160]ABC, ESPN industry or business.
[00:37:06.659]We have about a minute and a half left.
[00:37:08.150]So, number one, any students out there in our Zoom audience
[00:37:11.810]of the university out there, do you have a final question
[00:37:14.583]you'd like to ask our guest?
[00:37:16.691]And thank you, Ericka, for being with us this afternoon.
[00:37:19.520]Any questions for Ericka?
[00:37:23.060]Hi, yes, I have one.
[00:37:24.120]I'm sorry, I don't have my video on.
[00:37:27.490]But I am just wondering in terms of entry-level positions,
[00:37:32.580]how do you just encourage people to stay the course
[00:37:37.210]and to not become discouraged,
[00:37:39.130]especially through this COVID pandemic,
[00:37:42.400]going through this process,
[00:37:43.610]especially if you're a senior about to enter the job market?
[00:37:47.340]You know, there are, what'd I say?
[00:37:48.850]There are a lot of things right now
[00:37:50.630]that are out of our control,
[00:37:52.230]and so do your best to control the things that you can,
[00:37:55.480]which are, you know, learning and paying attention
[00:37:58.240]to what's most important to you, whether that's,
[00:38:01.090]you know, learning, school, experience, family,
[00:38:04.580]and being as true to yourself as you possibly can be,
[00:38:07.970]because it is a competitive time,
[00:38:10.410]but I do believe that things will get better.
[00:38:13.410]Things will open up even more.
[00:38:15.040]Jobs will become more plentiful as this, you know,
[00:38:19.710]especially the media industry continues to change.
[00:38:22.070]So you're going to be at the forefront
[00:38:23.640]of the evolution of what we've known for a year.
[00:38:26.450]So if you can stay ahead of the changing time
[00:38:28.670]and add value, you're gonna be right there in it,
[00:38:31.590]and things will get better.
[00:38:33.810]We just have to be patient and do everything that you can,
[00:38:37.990]that is, like I said, in your control.
[00:38:40.620]And again, Ericka's email address,
[00:38:43.592]Erika, E-R-I-C-K-A, dot Galbraith,
[00:38:48.230]G-A-L-B-R-A-I-T-H@ESPN.com
[00:38:51.350]It's in the task bar there too on the chat room,
[00:38:54.730]so that should be out there.
[00:38:56.870]All right, Ericka closing comments.
[00:39:00.230]No, the only thing I can say is,
[00:39:02.840]I am a proud Nebraska grad.
[00:39:05.150]I am happy to help each and every one of you
[00:39:08.700]the best way that I can.
[00:39:09.670]And if you're like me and don't love asking questions
[00:39:12.940]in a large group setting,
[00:39:14.890]please, please email me and ask me,
[00:39:17.910]or we can set up some time,
[00:39:19.120]but I am, I am absolutely here to help,
[00:39:22.120]and I mean that, and good luck,
[00:39:24.050]and we'll all get through this time together,
[00:39:27.160]and we'll be better for it.
[00:39:28.880]Can we come back in the spring
[00:39:30.218]and maybe have another pep talk from you? (laughs)
[00:39:32.690]I would love that!
[00:39:33.653]I would love that!
[00:39:34.486]Thank you so much for asking me to join.
[00:39:37.210]I really mean it when I say that I am happy to help,
[00:39:40.530]especially this class that is so near and dear to my heart.
[00:39:44.780]Well, you've been a great mentor
[00:39:46.020]for our college and our students,
[00:39:47.620]and it's just wonderful to see you again.
[00:39:49.780]And thank you so much, Ericka Galbraith,
[00:39:52.580]and that does it for our Zoom ConFAB this afternoon.
[00:39:56.530]I hope everybody has a great weekend.
[00:39:58.320]Take care of yourselves,
[00:39:59.380]and we'll see you back here next week.
[00:40:01.380]Ericka, you too, take care,
[00:40:02.760]and thanks again. Thank you, see ya.
[00:40:03.610]Okay, bye-bye, everybody.
[00:40:04.550]Bye-bye.
[00:40:06.100]Thank you Ericka.
[00:40:07.130]You're welcome.

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Erika Galbraith, Management Operations & Multimedia Sponsorship Integration, ESPN

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