October 30th, 2014

New York, NY

Plan for the worst. At some point every event planner will have to deal with a crisis—big or small. Frank Supovitz’s crisis was broadcast to a global audience, when, as head of events and entertainment for the N.F.L., there was a blackout at Super Bowl XLVII in New Orleans. When disaster strikes, don’t panic or blame anyone—instead assess the situation and be a leader, said Supovitz, now president and C.E.O., Fast Traffic Events & Entertainment. For major events, Supovitz recommended a rehearsal to go over the logistics. At a tabletop simulation 10 days before that Super Bowl, a facilitator disrupted the exercise with “monkey wrenches” that the team then had to deal with. The simulation built communications and trust that allowed them to work smoothly when the blackout happened. “No one gets away from this life or this career unscathed,” Supovitz said. “You have to make sure you know what dominoes are going to fall.”