2. He is a head agent. He has his own firm. He has a lot of clients. Why Ken Pavia?
3. Background Head agent and founder of MMAagents. Graduated from UCLA in 1989. Got his law degree from Miami School of Law in 1991. Began his career as a sports agent in 1992. Primarily focused on baseball and hockey before transitioning to Mixed Martial Arts. Now heads the largest and most successful MMA sports management company in the industry.
4. 55 Elite level fighters including Dan Christiansen James Thompson Josh Hendricks Justin McCully Mark Kerr Ricco Rodriguez Who does he manage?
5. I went to law school to better prepare to conquer the worlds as a sports agent. While I often had side deals to help supplement my income and build the practice, I began the agency the first day out of law school in January 2002. How did you get started?
6. It was my calling from an early age. Try as I did to be a pro athlete I was always restricted by my natural ability. Hard work can only take you so far. With more brains than brawn, a knack for stats and the gift of gab it was my calling. Why did you choose to get into artist management?
7. The first few clients were football players that were fringed guys at the best. They were a lot of work. I think my very first was a Tight End out of Miami that never really made it. My first real clients were hockey players. Who was the first artist that you managed?
8. I represented primarily baseball and hockey players for 12 years. I also had football players, basketball players and golfers. No really big names even though they made quite a bit of money: Jerry Spradlin, Terry Yake, Rick Burleson, Brian Warren, etc. Now I own the biggest agency in MMA, MMAagents. We represent 55 elite level fighters. Our roster is available at www.MMAagents.com. We are the best AND second best MMA agency in the business. Who have you managed in the past, who are you currently managing?
9. The lessons are too numerous to describe. The most important lessons in my 18 years of management are: teach the client that it is not going to last forever so enjoy it and save, be humble and always listen. Most importantly don’t ever lie. The repercussions of being caught in a lie are much worse than the short term benefits realized from that lie. What have you learned as an artist manager?
10. The mistakes are too numerous to list. The ones that come to mind are don’t get too close to your employees because they will get complacent and comfortable, get everything in writing and don’t lie. I made the mistakes that led to these conclusions. What are some of the mistakes you have made?
11. The most important is interpersonal skills. You have to be a people person, an actor, educated so as to be able to adapt to all situations, and you have to have a marketing gene in your body. What skill sets does an artist manager have to possess?
12. Every day I make a TODO and phone call list. I spend my time reacting to problems and opportunities. This requires organization and the ability to adapt on the fly. What are some of your daily tasks?
13. We as agents are more mediators then advocates. Part of the skill set necessary to succeed in this business is the ability to solve problems on the fly. How do you resolve conflict?
14. Probably Alex Rodriguez [A-Rod]. He makes 250 million over 10 years so the commission on his contract alone would be 12.5 million. But the ancillary opportunities associated with him would probably double that. If you could manage any artist in the world. Who and why?
15. Experience. I have created departments in my firm that model some of the bigger firms in other sports. We have a legal department, a sponsor department, a compliance department (commission compliance, contract and travel), and a PR department. We are staffed to handle any issue and we are efficient. What makes you stand out from the competition?
16. Running the biggest firm in my chosen sport. What is your biggest accomplishment in the industry?
17. Focus on your goals. Don’t lie. Even though it may benefit you short term it will always end up hurting you long term. If establishing a new business look at how the industry leaders are structured and structure accordingly. What I learned about artist management
18. Don’t procrastinate. Don’t count on people to do what they say they are going to do. My original interviewee decided it was more important to go to an award ceremony with Akon than to take the time to answer my questions. What I learned about myself
19. He got a chance to self reflect on how he got to where he is today. What did the interviewee learn from the process?
20. Prepare the questions ahead of time. Decide on a focus for the interview. It is very important to prepare otherwise both yours and interviewee’s time is wasted. What I learned about the need to prepare for a live interview
