If you say, “EQ” they might say, "Oh, that's too warm and fuzzy and emotional, and we're all about winning on the field." Q: Can you expand on what you talked about earlier regarding the importance of EQ in the organization? On the surface, this seems to buck the stereotype that sports organizations wouldn’t necessarily prioritize emotional intelligence. Do we have internal people that represent the fan base and bring that perspective? So we’re starting to shift the interview process in terms of where we’re willing to go to find the talent.įrom a diversity standpoint, we look at our fan base too. It’s great if somebody has sports experience, but we also want to consider someone with experience from outside the industry, to bring different thinking and innovation to us. We tapped into your own network to find candidates.īut I’ve seen a switch, especially on the business side. It used to be that to get hired within a sports organization, the NFL in particular, you needed to know someone. Nancy: On that front, I’ve seen a shift in thought process since I’ve been here. Q: It seems like more and more organizations are treating the interview process cross-functionally, which can also impact how they’re hiring or the talent pool they draw from. You need the ability to form relationships and have the EQ to understand and empathize with what somebody in football is going through right now. It's very competitive on the field and internally. I interviewed with our CEO and our general counsel, but they had other key business people interviewing me as well. I've been with the club now for seven years. I can speak to the interview process I went through, as an example. While someone might be a functional expert, we need to ensure they can also interact with other people and departments
On the front office side, we try to get different perspectives involved in the interview. These employees have to be outgoing and personable and understand that they’re going to be here for 10, hopefully 12, home football games.
Nancy: The Guest Relations department, which hires the majority of the part-time workers, know what they’re looking for. Q: With the diverse roles in your workforce, how do you determine culture fit and keep it consistent for the broader organization? Things like performance reviews, salary increases, benefits administration – that's happening in the offseason, and a lot of our training happens then as well. The busiest time for HR is when we're in the offseason, because when we're on the field playing, we're all focused about what's happening on the field.
People always say, "You must be really quiet in the offseason." No. On the player front, our involvement is more the administrative side of HR. There’s a lot of movement and you learn to understand the cycles of football. Some of these employees will work throughout the year, because we have various events at the stadium, but the majority of them are game-day (part-time) staff members – anything from the PA announcer who's calling the game to our guest relations staff who are greeting our fans and part-time security officers who are needed on game-day. During the season, we spike to about 1,100-plus employees. We have about 230 full-time staff members which includes coaches, football operations, public relations, digital media, marketing, ticketing operations, corporate sponsorships, IT, finance, and stadium operations. Nancy: I oversee the HR function for both the Denver Broncos and Stadium Management Company, Q: As a people leader for an NFL team, what does your workforce look like, and what are some of your challenges from an HR perspective? Here, she shares her strategies for managing a disparate workforce, and discusses being a female exec in a male-dominated industry and bringing emotional intelligence to football. Svoboda oversees the Broncos workforce, a mix of full-time and part-time workers that expands and contracts with the season and cycle of football. Entering her seventh season with the Denver Broncos this year, she’s the team’s EVP of HR. So how do you manage your people in that environment, juggling everything from recruiting and training talent, keeping players happy, managing the team’s reputation, and maintaining a strong culture.Īsk Nancy Svoboda. It’s a game of high stakes, high drama, and high-profile people. Athletes are building their personal brands through social platforms and strategic partnerships. Calls for changes – to both football’s culture and its rules – are in the headlines. Technology advancements are changing how fans engage with the game. The sports landscape is changing, and the NFL is no exception.
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