RIGHTS HOLDER SPOTLIGHT, Lorraine Childs, NXT Sports

RIGHTS HOLDER SPOTLIGHT

Lorraine Childs, NXT Sports

What circumstances led you to begin working at NXT Sports?

I was working in high-profile event planning from the security registration side. The company I was working for managed credentialing and access control for large-scale events like all BET Networks awards shows, NBA All-Star & NBA China Games, the 2013 Presidential Inauguration, Concacaf Gold Cup, New York Road Runners marathon, and many more. I started my career with a strong focus on the event rather than the sport. Many people in this industry begin in sports or business, leading them into the events side.

I got to see and be a part of the world’s largest stages at the time. I worked seven years on and off the road throughout the states and other countries, acting as an extension to different companies or brands that contracted us. It was a truly unique experience because I got to float from one event to the next in various industries and see how they all operate from the backend. My job was getting employed staff or talent in the building or event perimeter to do their job while helping to keep everyone out who wasn’t credentialed or a ticketed attendee through software and data scanning checkpoints. From this event perspective, I learned a lot about how the departments of the companies were operating at the events, and I took that knowledge and embedded it into what we do at NXT.

In 2015, I was looking to change things up. At the time, I spent seven years on the road and gathered a lot of life and personal experiences that I thought could be applied in a different way, but I loved events and wanted to stay in events. That’s when NXT Sports popped up, and I applied. NXT was a perfect blend of events, sports, and a fun working culture. During the interview process, I knew this was where I wanted to be, and I was thankful they also felt that way. April 2015 was my start date, and I haven’t looked back. I originally applied for a sales role, but that quickly changed into an operations role due to my knowledge base from previous work.

What was the first thing you did when you learned you got the job?

I was in Los Angeles at a production meeting for the BET Awards at Nokia Theatre. I took the call from Robin Baxter, a former NXT employee now at Go4, in a quieter area of the mezzanine area where everyone was meeting. Joyfully but calmly, because of where I was, I thanked her for the fantastic news. I completed that meeting and walkthrough. Flew back to Philly a couple days later and accepted with all the excitement! I closed out my commitments to events I was assigned to operate and walked into the new chapter of youth lacrosse events!

Tell us about NXT’s seasons and where the more well-known tournaments occur. Why has NXT selected these destinations or facilities?

NXT has become an around-the-calendar company, but our high seasons are Summer (late May to late July) and Fall (mid-October to late November). Those two seasons are our main tournament seasons. In the early parts of both seasons, NXT heads south to Mooresville and Huntersville, NC, and has a few stops in between, then we go farther south into Lewisville and Dallas, TX area.

After the event season openers, we head back to the Philadelphia region, where we host most of our marquee events with Chester County CVB at United Sports and Valley Forge CVB at the Proving Grounds. NXT is also very successful in the Mid-West at Grand Park Sports Campus, where we host six events annually.

One of the event mottos or taglines we work with at NXT is that we operate at elite venues. United Sports, Proving Grounds, and Grand Park are just that – an elite venue for an elite experience. From the site visit to venue operations to the execution of the events, everything runs smoothly.

The NXT team has much respect for this industry as a whole. We know how much time and resources go into the day-to-day for the venues and our CVB partners, so we view each venue and CVB relationship as part of our success, but more importantly, our team.

We are also in the process of growing the sports in the winter through Box Lacrosse. We have had a few of these events in the NXT event portfolio for years, but this is one area of growth for the sport. This male-dominant sport has expanded to girls, and now girls are putting on the pad and joining the “box”, which is boards and glass surrounding a playing area – similar to ice hockey minus the ice. NXT operates 70+ lacrosse events/tournaments annually. In the spring, NXT operates a spring training and a spring league, which are showing tremendous growth.

Describe why NXT Sports events are so meaningful to you.

I have my stamp on every event at NXT, but so do every single current employee and the employees of the past. I have been with NXT Sports for nine years, and in those nine years, I have developed many processes and procedures, which I highly enjoy, but the friendships and relationships we developed made NXT ‘our’ brand. The team’s culture unified us all to be great together and made this job so fun. From that, energy, culture, and passion are how we grew this brand and this sport.

We were/are just a well-oiled machine because we cared. We cared about the little things, but we cared more about each other, and that shined through to what we were delivering to the athletes and their families. Personal achievements are significant, but the interconnectedness of those accomplishments alongside others on the same path can be incredibly motivating. What is meaningful to me is the people I work with and the people we interface with, which help us stay motivated to do more.

Lorraine, you are known in the industry as someone who specializes in logistics, processes, and organization. How do these traits contribute to increasing the experience for all NXT athletes, coaches, parents, and spectators?

My job is to elevate the brand, the tournament directors, and the event experience without being seen. NXT is a high-volume tournament company. We run about two to eight events weekly/weekend at two to ten venues. The internal operating staff stays the same whether we operate two or ten venues, but so does the product we deliver. We had to build an operating model to scale to the volume of events we host, but with the athletes, families, coaches, and hired staff thinking they were the only event we were hosting that week. To make this happen, a lot goes on behind the scenes.

My job isn’t to be the face of NXT to the athletes, club coaches, or families. My job is to support the sales team or tournament directors at NXT in building the events. Not interfacing with athletes, coaches, or families doesn’t diminish how much work is going into creating the platform for the events to be successful and grow. My team and I are the behind-the-scenes crew.

Everything we do is to support the brand, event structure, and the people who walk on-site at an NXT event. The list of things we manage is long, so I’m not getting into that, but everything we do is diligently managed through documentation. We set clear goals, develop resources, and ensure everyone involved feels valued and supported.

When an attendee drives or walks on-site from parking, player check-in, vendors, amenities, staff, venue appearance, etc., the ops team at NXT has thoroughly planned that out for months. Regardless of whether you’ve been doing an event one day or nine years, there’s no perfect way to operate outdoor events, though. We operate in a fashion of doing everything we can on the backend or pre-event, so when we are on-site, we can manage the ‘unknowns’ that come with live events. All of us in this industry have stories of ‘what the … just happened” so I’m sure that is relevant to most.

What were the biggest reasons for this approach, and how does it work to your advantage?

The layout of NXT is interesting because there is a dedicated sales team focusing on communicating to Club Directors and individual athletes coming to Showcase events. On the flip side, there’s a full operations team just focusing on event logistics. This really leaves room for the sales team to focus on growing the events and the ops team to scale.

I come from an industry where I managed all law enforcement accreditation for the Presidential Inauguration in 2013, which is 12,000 badged law enforcement from 250 organizations with 75 distribution meetings and points of contact. When you’re doing that kind of work, you have to be highly detail-oriented because every minute matters when there is a hard deadline for the distribution of materials for such an important event. A lot of what I did in my past work was implemented into the strategy of the process and procedures that elevate us to expand our event portfolio without hurting the quality or showmanship of the product we were delivering.

What was the most significant moment you experienced last season?

Last year was our biggest year to date! We added more teams to existing events and created some new events in new regions. There are a lot of idea makers at NXT, and without those people thinking outside the box, new event development would be hard to come by in this competitive industry.

Two events that have been so rewarding to participate in are the Circuit and the Continental Cup. The Circuit is comprised of middle school-age boys trying out for national teams from the US to Canada. This event is played under college rules and shot clocks. Teams compete in two events where we capture players’ stats and rank the teams based on performance. The highest-ranking teams compete in the Circuit Finals in Philadelphia around the NCAA Lacrosse Championship. The Continental Cup is the top girl’s clubs from the US and one from Canada battling to see who is the best in the continent. This event brings in about 200+ college coaches from all over. Let’s NXT showcase our hosting abilities for the elite players and college coaching staff.

In what way, or ways, are you a different person today because of your experience working at NXT?

NXT taught me a lot over the years! It allowed me to pursue an avenue of growth and innovation I’m not sure I would have gotten anywhere else. Being in a small business, you have your hands in a lot of different areas. If you’re a creative thinker, you can take all that information and combine it to create one grand plan. NXT trusted me, allowed me to grow and become a person who can lead. I got to be a part of a team that relies on each other, and that dependency on each other develops a sense of responsibility for the job and the people around you. When I came to NXT, I was an unsure, not-so-confident, but eager young adult. People around me believed in me and my ideas, which helped me be who I am today.

What advice would you give to others in a situation like yours?

Listen.

Listening is a must-have skillset in managing operations and logistics, especially in the context of collective experiences. By listening to the needs, concerns, and feedback, you can better understand the dynamics at play and make informed decisions that consider everyone’s point of view. It goes beyond hearing words; it’s empathizing with others’ experiences and hardships, especially with staff traveling and working the events. Hearing feedback is essential for improving any issue, or if it isn’t an issue, improving or building a process to make things easier.

What would “today Lorraine” share with “first day on the job Lorraine?”

Trust yourself!

What goals do you have for your career and NXT in 2024?

My goal is been the same for years and will continue to be the same. Commit to continuous improvement and being more effective. Identify the strengths and areas where we can enhance our performance.