Live From Super Bowl LVIII: Program Productions Taps Local Labor for Live Productions Throughout Vegas

Crewing company fills 90% of 1,200 broadcast-tech positions from the community

With dozens of broadcasters onsite and countless live productions taking place in addition to the Big Game itself, there is an almost unquenchable demand for talented broadcast technicians in Las Vegas this week. Thankfully, Program Productions Inc. (PPI) is up to the task, providing 186 people to fill more than 1,200 tech positions for productions in Vegas over the past month.

Among the key clients PPI is serving: Allegiant Stadium, NFL Network, TelevisaUnivision, NEP, Rush Media, and SOS Global. With a community of highly skilled broadcast technicians in Vegas, PPI was able fill about 90% of all positions locally.

“Our goal,” says Amy Scheller, EVP, strategy and development/chief sales and marketing officer, PPI, “is to crew locally first, then turn to our national network of technicians to pull in when needed. We’re lucky in Vegas not only to have local crew to cover labor needs but also that the crew has the skill to support the highest-caliber event.”

PPI Crew Manager Mike Harris oversees PPI’s efforts in Las Vegas, assembling the 186 technicians needed to fill 1,200 positions over 30 days of work.

“Mike Harris is on the ground in Vegas supporting clients and our crews as changes are made and issues arise,” says Scheller. “Of course, he couldn’t do it without the support of many others on our crewing-operations team. The crewing effort doesn’t stop when the event starts; our HR and payroll staff in the Chicago and Scottsdale [AZ] offices are also busy supporting the effort.”

The busy month in Vegas is nothing new for PPI, which has been involved in large-scale events like Super Bowl Week festivities for more than three decades.

“As a longtime partner to broadcasters involved with the most spectacular sporting event of the year, we are humbled and take immense pride in playing a critical role in bringing the game to millions of viewers,” says Bob Carzoli, chairman, PPI/XLT/ ProCrewz. “Our crewing managers on the ground and the highly skilled technicians in Vegas are essential to ensuring the world-class quality and seamless execution the production demands.”