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10 Questions with ... Tom Hanrahan
February 7, 2016
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BRIEF CAREER SYNOPSIS:
Hanrahan is a radio programming vet who joined the iHeartMedia/Birmingham cluster in 2002, rose to OM in 2006 and currently serves as iHeartMedia Alabama SVP/Programming, while continuing day-to-day programming of Country WDXB. Hanrahan first attended CRS in 1996; he's been involved with planning Country Radio Seminar (CRS) for the past four years as a member of the Agenda Committee. Now, two decades after his first CRS, Hanrahan is serving as Agenda Chair for the event. Along with Co-Vice Chairs Greg Frey and Judy Lakin, he's overseeing more than 20 educational panels at CRS 2016 - set for this week: Monday, February 8th through Wednesday, February 10th.
1. Tom, thanks for taking the time to tackle "10 Questions!" CRS 2016 is upon us this week - congrats on a fantastic agenda. A lot of people don't realize this has been nearly a year-long process for you, starting with the selection of your committee, the initial draft of the agenda in June, and the lead up to CRS. Being Agenda Chair is pretty much a second, full-time job, isn't it?
Oh, absolutely! It starts in April, but look - it's a second full-time job that you don't mind not getting paid for, because you do it for the love of the business, for the love of the industry. You just do it because you love Country music; you love everything about it. So, it is a second job, but it doesn't feel like a second job when you love it. But you're right, it starts in April when we form the committee - Greg [Fry], Judy {Lakin], and I along with Sheree [Latham] from the CRB - and then we have our first meetings in June. We start with a lot of blank pieces of paper, and we spend two and a half days in June hashing out ideas and what we think will be engaging, informative, and educational for our attendees. Because, at the end of the day, we want the information to be sticky. We want the content to be the best it can be. And, by the way, every year it becomes tougher and tougher to do that, because of the great leadership we had from Jeff [Green] last year and from past agenda committee Chairs and members, that gets tougher to do. So you've got to up your game and look for better content. But I'm so proud of what Greg and Judy and the committee have done this year, because I really do feel - content-wise - this is going to be our best year ever. And that's certainly no offense against anything done in the past, I've just seen the body of work of what this committee has done, and I'm so impressed. I'm excited, and I can't wait for these days to go by quickly - let's open CRS, and let's get it going!
2. You mentioned your Vice Chair, [Cumulus Corporate VP/Programming Operations] Greg Frey and [Cox Media Group/Houston Dir./Sales] Judy Lakin. You three have made a cohesive and effective team - let's give them some well-deserved props right here and now. How did you divvy up the work, and what do Greg and Judy bring to the table in terms of the leg work?
No doubt about it! Not only have we really just split it in thirds, with everybody taking their set of panels - they've got theirs that they manage, and I've got mine, and we work together on communication throughout the year. We check in with, "Okay, how's it going?" We ask, "Where do you need my help?" Sometimes they'll jump in and help me on some of my panels that I'm managing, and sometimes I'll jump in and help them. But besides just the splitting of the body of work and their great work ethic, what I love about what they bring is diversity of thought. I'm proud of the fact that we actually have me, Greg, and Judy as part of the leadership team from three different companies - from iHeart, Cumulus, and Cox. And I think that's pretty cool - I think that speaks to the real diversity of this Board, that we have committee members and leadership from corporations, and from small market, medium market, and large market, different ownership groups - that's the dynamic thing about CRS. It's about markets of all sizes, it's about all attendees, and it's about everyone. Especially with Greg and Judy's help on just having diversity of thought, and being from different companies.
3. Every year at CRS, as a board member - and I'm sure for you as an agenda committee member - I'm approached by people who want to serve on your committee. So talk to our readers about the kind of person you're looking for on the agenda team.
Well, and huge props to [Curb Records]Annie Sandor and to[CRS Executive Dir.] Bill Mayne and [CRS President] Charlie Morgan on the board as well, and also [Big Loud Records President] Clay Hunnicutt. Because if it weren't for those individuals, I wouldn't be speaking to you today as agenda committee Chair. Also, I would have to say thanks to iHeartMedia SVP and leader of our iHeartCountry team, Rod Phillips, and certainly iHeartMedia/Birmingham GM Ray Quinn. Ray encouraged me to go for it and obviously there's no way to tackle a project like this without approval and support from your boss. But back to the question - you're right, it takes people that just want to work - that's the bottom line. Don't raise your hand if you want to do this for resume padding and for networking - which is all great - but if you're afraid of work, then this isn't for you. Now, if you love working hard for the greater good of our industry, all you need is tell me or tell anyone on our agenda committee, "Hey, I want to do this. What's it about?" Ask the questions. "What do you really do all year long?" And if you want to do it, raise your hand. But I would encourage you - don't do it if your heart is not in it, because this is work. But it's work that is fulfilling and exciting - but at the end of the day, you're right - it's work!
4. We touched on it earlier, but can you share more specific on the process for planning the CRS agenda? Doesn't it start right after you assemble your committee and before the actual Summer planning meeting?
Absolutely, and I think that has really been a change in the last couple of years. By the time we hit that first meeting in June, we have already fleshed out a number of ideas. And when we walk in, we've already vetted ideas. We've asked the committee members to vet their top three to four ideas even before getting to the board room in June. And so, when we start in June, instead of just a typical purging of "Hey, what do you think? What are your ideas?" - we've already done that. And we try to do that at least 45 days ahead of June. That's why getting the committee wrapped up and in place by the end of March, getting everybody notified mid-April, and then getting those ideas that they've submitted during the application process about what they would think would be interesting panels is so crucial to get that done so early. This year, after CRS closes, we'll already be working on CRS 2017, because when we get in to Nashville in June, we already come in with what we think are the ideas that we are most passionate about. And then once we get in to that room over that two and a half days, we start landscaping out what are the best of the best of the best. Then we'll start developing the panel and start developing people to go deeper. So, now that we've got the topic, who do we want on the panel? Who do you know, who could we go after, and who do you think will be stimulating and engaging? So, you're right - it has been a little bit different in the past couple of years. But I would argue that the content is much more dynamic and deeper in the last couple of years because we have started much earlier on the vetting process.
5. I suppose all these panels on the 2016 agenda are like your kids - you can't choose a favorite. But can you highlight two or three that you might be especially proud of or excited for?
Well, it's one that I am heading up, but it's also one that I'm very passionate about, and that's the one that Carolyn Gilbert has been cheerleading - it's called "Radio As The Insurgent." Carolyn is President of NuVooDoo Media and has really been the brains behind this. She brought the idea in to us in June, and we all just said, "Wow! That's awesome!" So she's done an outstanding job developing this panel with a lot of great people from the industry - and some outsiders, like John Owen from the University of Cincinnati. That has been dynamic. We're working on a coaching panel that I think it just going to be outstanding for talent coaching, but we're going to be paralleling talent coaching with one of the greatest football coaches out there, Barry Switzer from the University of Oklahoma and the Dallas Cowboys. That's going to be really cool, because we'll be talking about high performers in radio and high performance athletes, what are the parallels, and trying to coach them and keep them coached. Coaching coaches, which another sub-topic that has come out of that panel, is how do you coach the coaches, and how do we develop that farm team of coaches. I'm also excited about a women's "Breaking The Barriers" panel that we've been working on. [Premiere Radio's]Jenny Shields has been heading that up, and we're going to be talking to a number of notable and high-profile female leaders in Country music throughout the industry, from the record side, the management side, and all different walks of the industry, on how they have achieved success in their field. That's one I'm excited about, as well.
6. Historically, CRS has been very much on point in creating a curriculum that is completely in touch with the key issues facing our format. How do you guys stay on top of that when the initial plans start six months before the actual event?
Well, we have to be what I call "Serial Noticers." We've got to know what is happening when we hit that board room in June and be aware of what the pulse is going on in the industry from all different sides so we can be representative in addressing what is really hot and what are the topics people are talking about on all sides of the industry. And at the same time, while we're developing those from June to the end of the year, we've also got to keep one eye open behind us saying, "Well, okay. What else is going on?" So it's really a two-prong approach. We've got to keep our head down, develop the panels, but at the same time we always talk about leaving one of the panels open for what we call a "Hot Topic." That enables us to have the flexibility that - as the year progresses from our June meetings - if we need to go, "You know what? This has bubbled up as a really big deal right now, and we need to address it," allows flexibility. So it's kind of like a two-step process - noticing what's going on all year long, planning, and then at the same time while we're planning , we still need to be watching what's going on in the industry so we can react and address it if we need to.
7. Let's go back a bit - how long have you been involved with planning CRS, and how did you first get started?
This is only my fourth year! I've been so fortunate. I got involved four or five years ago as a committee member and was just very persistent with Annie Sandor, a former committee member, Agenda Chair and now CRB board member. And every year, I would just go, "Hey! I want to do more! Hey, I want to do more!" And I don't know if it was a combination of just wanting me to go away or if she really believed in what I was doing - maybe both! But honestly, that's how I got on the agenda committee, I just wouldn't let go of it. And I was just like, "You know what? I'm passionate about it, I believe in it, and I'll wait my turn." And I think that's important for people to know. This is a very - there is a lot of people who want to be on this committee, and I've had people, naturally, as I did for many years - just try not to be disappointed. "Oh, they don't want me this year," or "They don't need me this year." But don't take it personally. There are a lot of people who want to serve on this committee, and sometimes you just have to be patient. I waited for almost eight years, but I was glad to wait. I was glad to sit it out. And I didn't really start persistently hammering Annie until about four years out. But I would always kind of casually say, "Hey, I want to do more." But, really it has only been in the last four or five years. And then I was asked to be on the committee, and when Jeff Green was running the committee along with [EMI Records regional Mgr.] John Trapane as Chair and Co-Chair, we all served alongside him as Co-Chairs when Jeffrey was the lead. And then last year, as he rotated off, I applied and got the position. I hope to continue to serve in the next couple of years. There will come a time, I'm sure, when I'll want to give others a chance to do this, because it is such a privilege to serve in this capacity. But right now, I'm having so much fun, it's almost like I don't want to take my hands off the steering wheel.
8. Okay, now let's go back even further - tell us about your first-ever CRS and the impression it made on you.
My very first CRS was in 1996 at the Opryland Hotel. I remember a couple of things - being lost the entire week in that hotel, and sitting around the Pickin' Parlor. For those that have been going to CRS for a long time, everything happened at the Pickin' Parlor. As a newbie and a new programmer in 1995-1996, I was just enamored with sitting at the Pickin' Parlor and seeing my heroes. Not only my programming heroes, but the artists that would come by, the managers that would come by, the talent that I always looked up to and really wanted to be. So for me, my first impression was the Opryland Hotel. Then I thought it was interesting that by the end of the week, I finally figured out how to get around the hotel, and then it was time to go home! It all looks the same, and you stayed in that place for four or five days and were trapped. I remember everybody getting sick the next week, because everyone had been breathing everyone else's air for that four or five days - you never left! You were in that building the entire time.
9. There is a lot to take in at CRS, not only the agenda, but everything else. If you were to advise a first-time attendee, what main takeaway would you want them to go home with after three days in Nashville?
Well, first and foremost, go to the panels! And it's not just because we've put a lot of work in to them, but I believe that the heart of what CRS stands for - yes, networking, and yes fellowship, and yes, having fun, and yes, being in the middle of Nashville and having fun with live music which is awesome - but go to the panels and absorb as much as you can. Yes, you're paying to attend, but I'd argue that it is a great investment in an education. As far as continuing education in your field, I would just hit as many panels as possible and soak up as much information as possible. I would listen. I learn a lot by listening. So sometimes, even if I'm not in a panel, I will stand around and observe and listen to people's conversations. Listen to people's conversations and what they're talking about - why they're talking about it, and why they're passionate about it. That helps me with my perspective, and trying to understand and learn instead of me talking all the time. I like to flip it, since I'm on the air and talk for a living. When I get out to these events, I just like to stand around and listen. I learn a lot by listening, but that's me.
10. What should readers, or attendees of CRS, know about it that they may not be aware of right now?
I think one of the things they may not be aware of is how much work Bill Mayne and his staff have put in to making the transition as easy as possible. Bill and the CRB staff have - I can't even tell you the number of hours they've worked - on making this transition as easy as possible. That's the one big takeaway I can tell you; no one understands the work that went in to that. And kudos to Bill who got ahead of this 18-24 months ago when this event was moving down to the Omni and started to think about logistically, how is CRS going to layout and how it's going to play out, and how we're going to navigate that huge thing called the Omni. And he has done an outstanding job of just making it easy. Making it compact, making everything vertical, and making everything accessible. That's the one thing I don't think people really understand, is just how much time and thought have gone in to the transition, because we kind of got on auto-pilot in the old convention center. We just kind of showed up, and we just walked around and knew where we were going. But this time, they've done a great job at making sure that everything is compact and in the same place, and that everything is easy for the attendees to know where to go, where to be, and how to navigate the Omni.
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