CBS Sports Promotes Power to EVP, Ops and Engineering; Aagaard to Focus on Innovation

In a move to step up its level of technological broadcast innovation CBS Sports has named Ken Aagaard as EVP, Innovation and New Technology and promoted Patty Power to EVP, Operations and Engineering. Power will succeed Aagaard in overseeing the CBS Sports operations department and will handle day-to-day management of the CBS Sports and CBS Sports Network Operations management teams while Aagaard will lead CBS Sports’ enhanced efforts focusing on innovation, research and development.

Patty Power has been named EVP, Operations and Engineering of CBS Sports.

“Patty is a terrific manager who has been able to gain the respect of all of the production and technical personnel,” says McManus. “She’s a real leader and this sets us up for years to come.”

Power, an executive integral to CBS Sports Network’s growth and success since the Network’s inception, expanded her management responsibilities in 2013 to include the CBS Sports broadcast platform. She will take over as the head of Operations, responsible for overseeing operations, engineering and production management for all CBS Sports and CBS Sports Network field events and the CBS Sports studio productions, including logistics and technical support.   The areas reporting to her include operations, engineering and production services management, as well as all production managers, field technical managers and engineers, and Sports studio and coordination operations.

“I’m excited about the opportunity to work with our production teams, rights partners and vendors to deliver great live sporting events,” says Power. “I’ll be focusing on day to day operations while Ken and his group will create, test and evaluate all of the latest technology options available. Our styles complement each other very well and I look forward to continuing that partnership.”

“I have a ton of confidence in Patty and there a lot of great things happening at CBS and she has a really good team,” says Aagaard. “I am excited for her and CBS Sports and we are going to work on improving the team over the next couple of years.”

Ken Aagaard is now Ken Aagaard as EVP, Innovation and New Technology for CBS Sports.

Aagaard, who has been leading all operational and technology efforts for CBS Sports since 1998, will now be responsible for the development and creation of new on-air production and technological enhancements and innovations, furthering CBS Sports’ position as a leader in broadcast innovation, a position it has held since the first-ever use of video Instant Replay in 1963 during the Army-Navy football game.

McManus says that Aagaard has been an important part of the leadership position CBS Sports has staked out with respect to new technologies.

“Whether it was HD, Swingman, EyeVision 460 and now 4K Ken has been at the forefront and this will allow him to focus more of his energies and certainly puts us in a better position to take advantage of new technology. He is so well versed in that area and it will help us find the next great technical innovation.”

As for his own new role, Aagaard says there is no question that the pace of technological change and its impact on nearly every aspect of the business requires organizations like CBS Sports to dedicate more full-time resources to it.

“The cool thing for me is this is the fun stuff, like the EyeVision 360 technology we used at the Super Bowl this year,” he explains. “But there are also a lot of boiler-room technologies that need to be addressed, like new distribution models, how to use digital media, moving files, archiving, and even how to record more channels of audio for golf coverage.”

The future of remote production will be defined by the proper deployment of next-generation IP workflows, 4K and HDR-capable cameras, VR systems, and more. And with 45 years of innovation at CBS Sports the shift in Aagaard’s duties is designed to make sure that a network that was a leader in everything from 5.1 Surround Sound to HD to super zoom and more continues to move the industry forward.

“This is an extension of what I’ve been doing at CBS since 1998 but I will just have a little more time to focus on it because there are so many moving parts,” says Aagaard. “This is one of the most exciting times and the best times to get into the business and learn about new technologies because content can be produced at all kinds of levels.”