M
ore people report in to Jodi Markley than just about anyone else in sports media.
Markley oversees more than 2,000 of ESPN’s behind-the-scenes employees in production operations (both event and in-studio) and studio directing. It’s a daunting task to manage such a large group, but Markley, who has been with ESPN for 26 years, embraces the role.
“I never want anyone to feel that they’re one of 2,000 people. That’s a pretty bad feeling,” she said. “So we work really hard as a management team to make sure that there is a low supervisor-to-employee ratio.”
Such a sizable team is needed at ESPN, which operates 18 linear and digital networks out of Bristol, Conn., at any one time. When Markley started in ESPN’s production department eight years ago, the company handled 1,000 live
Jodi Markley
ESPN | Senior Vice President, Operations
events a year. That number has grown to 3,500 today.
Markley has an office in Bristol but travels to as many events as she can. “I want to be there so that I have a touch point with these folks that are out on the road for weeks on end,” she said.
In the coming months, Markley’s focus will be on opening two more studios in ESPN’s gleaming Digital Center 2. She’s also preparing for “SportsCenter” to expand its live telecasts to 7 a.m., starting in the new year. Time and attention will be spent testing new technologies as well.
“We used to have a quiet time back in the day, where summer would be a little bit quieter than the fall and spring,” she said. “We do not have a minute of downtime anymore. It’s always big event after big event after big event.”
— John Ourand
