Name: Tyler Hale
Position: CBS Sports VP/Studio Production
Age: 42
Where I’m from: Syracuse
Where I call home: Eastchester, N.Y.
Focusing on right now: My job is in studio production, which encompasses all of our studio shows on both CBS Sports and CBS Sports Network, but as we head into the fall, football is certainly the lion’s share of the stuff that we do. In addition to the NFL show, the "College Football Today" product we work on takes up some time.
Best advice: I have a favorite word that I use a lot and it’s “hustle.” I think it’s very important to be proactive in whatever you do to take care of your responsibilities out of the gate, get the stuff you need to get done, done. And by doing so, ideally you give yourself an opportunity to be ready to react when various situations arise.
A must for a new hire: They have to ask questions. They have to observe what their responsibilities are and figure out a way that they can master what their requirements are as quickly and efficiently as possible.
Exec I admire most: I’m fortunate to work for HAROLD BRYANT, DAVID BERSON and SEAN MCMANUS, the folks that oversee our production operations. All three of those guys do a tremendous job of setting a direction for us, but then giving us the freedom, the autonomy to do what we think is best.
Best book I’ve read this year: I’m a big fan of biographies, and one of my favorites of all time is “THE POWER BROKER” about ROBERT MOSES, the former Parks Chairman of New York state. Generally, I’ll read anything that RON CHERNOW or A. SCOTT BERG have written. One book I’m excited to read is a book called “YOU NEGOTIATE LIKE A GIRL” by our own AMY TRASK. She’s a former CEO of the Raiders and she has a book coming out this fall about her time with the Raiders and her insights into football and business.
Talking tech: I am able to keep track of everything that goes on in our various control rooms centrally through my iPad. We have an IT-based connection that I can look at an output in the control room or look at a feature or something that’s coming out of a control room anywhere out of the country. It’s very helpful when I’m in a truck at “Thursday Night Football” if there’s something going on at CBS Sports Network that I need to take a look at, I can dial that up and see it in real time.
Must-have music: I’m a big GRATEFUL DEAD fan, but at the same time I love classic hip hop so the BackSpin station gets a lot of play in my car on SiriusXM. Of late, I’ve been listening to a lot of modern rock, bands like THE STRUTS or BECK or MGMT.
How I unwind: I like to ski in the winter, summers we spend at the beach. I’ll play golf anytime, anywhere. And ideally I’ll do all of those three things with my family -- my wife LAURA; son, ANDREW, who’s 12, and daughter, ELEANOR, who’s 9.
Day in the life: I get into the office normally around 8:30 from home, and most of the day is spent sitting in on editorial meetings for our various shows, long-term planning meetings, and generally I spend my time for the most part trying to figure out how to give our producers the resources, the insight and the tools that they need to produce the best shows that they can.
