My Journey To Sky Sports Production – #14: Lewis Grant (Production Coordinator)

How It Started

What was your first ever job?

I worked in an Italian restaurant making pizzas during my A-levels, which is Incredibly ironic because I failed my Food Tech GCSE.

What brought you to Sky?

I knew for a long time that I wanted to work in film or broadcasting. I remember when I was about 10 wondering how it’s possible that a football match is being played in Manchester and I can see it live in Watford? So really, I had a lot of questions I wanted answers to. In August I will have been here for 4 years, and I still have a lot of questions and a lot of things to learn which is great.

How has your role evolved over the years?

No, I started in Media Management, a big team who work 24/7 (literally) to make sure that all our content is delivered and up to spec. Shoutout to those guys because they are important to Sky and what we do.

What were your biggest professional challenges and how did you overcome them?

My biggest challenge and achievement were at my first job out of university as a Sales Executive working across international banking events for Central Banks. We had a lot of banks that would attend fairly consistently but we had nine that had never attended. I pulled together a list and managed to get six out of the nine to attend. To be honest, I’m still slightly annoyed about the other three…

How It’s Going

What does your day to day work life look like?

My day to day varies, but for me, Monday to Wednesday is about attending to travel and accommodation needs for our team as they prepare for our Rugby League OBs on a Thursday and Friday – which has certainly been interesting during the pandemic. Raising guest contracts and anything else that pops up, as well as supporting my Production Manager with any ad-hoc stuff he needs help with. Thursday and Friday are usually dedicated to taking care of the admin, raising costs, and looking towards the next week.

What’s been your SPS career highlight and why?

There are a few: multiple Rugby League Grand Finals at Old Trafford (as a United fan that’s always a good one), and the NFL & NBA London games that I’ve worked on. However, in all honesty, I think the stand-out is landing the job in the first place. It was a proud moment for me and my biggest career highlight so far. I was on my way into the office on the day of the World Cup Semi-Final when I got the call. Sadly, England didn’t hold up their end of the bargain, but it was a good day all the same.

What can you see yourself doing next?

Well in the immediate future, I’ll be joining our Golf team which will be a new challenge. Our plans at Elstree are certainly exciting, so maybe there or maybe in Sport, but I like staying open to ideas.

How It Can Be Done

What are your top 3 tips for becoming a Production Coordinator?

• If you’re not organised become organised.
• Be prepared to work hard (it’s rewarding though!).
• Be willing to listen and learn.

What would you tell your 16-year-old self?

Listen to your Mum (somehow, she’s always right) and be confident in your decisions and ideas. Take all your money and put it on Leicester to win the Premier League in 2015-16.