Transcript From NYU Radio Interview With Zaga Studios VP, Jason Pierce.

Transcript from NYU Radio interview with Zaga Studios VP, Jason Pierce.

(PRWEB) October 7, 2004 -- Sean: As part 5 of a 10 part series of interviews with CEOs, VPs and Executives in the fast paced media industry, I was able to sit down with Jason Pierce, the powerhouse VP of Zaga Studios, a company known worldwide as one of the fastest growing threats in the international production industry. Jason, thank you for spending some time with me today.

Jason: Thanks for having me.

Sean: What did you want to be when you were growing up?

Jason: (laughing) You been calling me everyday for 3 weeks to ask me that? Im kidding. WOW! Let me think . . . oh I remember, I wanted to be a policeman and then a doctor.

Sean: What happened to change your mind?

Jason: Well, I think I just got hit with reality. I discovered that for the most part police just sit on the side of the road and ticket the hard working public as they rush to get to work so that they can pay their speeding tickets and I realized that physicians are more interested in the almighty buck than saving lives. I guess I just got pissed off and changed my mind (laughing).

Sean: How did you get into production?

Jason: Believe it or not, I wanted a chance to publicize the actions of crooked politicians and lying, conniving special interest groups and television was the perfect place to do that. I started out with the BBC in London. After a while it just got old. I quickly realized that their all scum. I know thats not a very gentle way of putting it but its true. We live in a world dictated by demigod judges, lying politicians, and ill-intentioned political correctness. I was rubbing shoulders with the muck of our society all day, everyday. I needed to get out of the reporting side but I still loved the media business and soon discovered that my real gifts were in management. I found Zaga Studios and joined their agent program in England. I started to really get involved with the recruiting and training end of things, then I had several sales teams working for me in the United States. I had some great ideas for growth and kept working hard and I was eventually voted in as VP and here I am.

Sean: What are the biggest changes youve made with Zaga Studios?

Jason: I focus more on expansion. We are constantly recruiting agents into our licensing program so that we can first compete, then dominate local advertising markets throughout the country. When I came on with the company they would only bring on a hand full of agents once a year. We now recruit three times per year and we have a more solid set of qualifications for new agents. Its not nearly as easy to come into our company now as it was 10 years ago. Also, Im not afraid to dabble in alternative marketing products. Growing the 30 and 60 second commercial portion of the company was one of the wisest things weve done. It was a risk focusing more on commercials than movie trailers but one worth taking.

Sean: Youre one of the only CEOs that I know that energetically and consistently hits the lecture circuit. Youre especially known for packing auditoriums at universities in the United States and Western Europe. What advantage do you feel you get from this type of promotion?

Jason: By lecturing, I am able to do several things like brand the company image and recruit those 'difficult to recruit executives. Im able to put a face with the company. But mostly, I am offering them the 'street knowledge that they wont get in the classroom and can only be learned through trial and error in an unprotected setting.

Sean: Is it true that you are actually directing commercials?

Jason: (laughing) Yeah! I never saw myself as a 'Director until I was speaking at a conference in Los Angeles and they introduced me as such. I fell into directing because I believe so strongly in leading by example. I never ask someone to do something that I cant do myself. So when was hired as CEO I just followed my instincts by reading every book I could get my hands on that talked about camera angles, interviewing talent etc. The less one knows about whats going on in their company, the easier it is to be taken advantage of, eventually leading to being taken over by a competitor.

Sean: Tell me about your agent program.

Jason: Well, we have two parts to that program. We have flagship offices which are independently owned and operated entities with Zaga corporate backing, then we have completely independent Agents who pay a fee to offer our line of media product services. Our goal with this concept is to offer an easy to follow program with a turn-key concept to qualified candidates with industry experience so that we can take full advantage of their promotional energy, while they are able to capitalize off of our concept and training.

Sean: Is it true that you personally recruit these affiliate companies?

Jason: Actually, yes, sometimes. We have a company that weve hired that does most of the quality control during the recruiting process but when Im available I love to talk to the new agents. One thing that I do is I hand pick those agents that are promoted to executive agents, these are the guys that have sales teams throughout the country. Its an honor getting to work with those guys. Out of almost 200 agents, we only have 7 executive agents. Its a big deal to get that call and be promoted.

Sean: What do you have to say to your competition?

Jason: Watch out! If we havent taken over your company yet, we will! No Im joking. Actually I have nothing to say to them. Im not the kind of guy that keeps my 'ear to the tracks trying to figure out what the next move is going to be from a competitor. We make moves on our own and the competition usually follows us.

Sean: How many smaller production companies has Zaga Studios purchased this year?

Jason: In 2003 we were able to acquire 11 editing companies and so far in 2004,we have been able to acquire 4 full-fledged production companies.

Sean: What do you get out of these take-overs?

Jason: Well, a lot of times these companies are struggling financially and they come to us with an offer to sell. But many times we will purchase these companies for their contracts. Thats how you measure the value of a company in our industry, by the number and length of the contracts they have with their clients. Buying an established company makes growth easier.

Sean: How did you get the nickname The Golden Boy"?

Jason: (laughing) Thats so funny. I cant believe that name has stuck. We were at a press conference with two of our investors who had given us a sizable loan to purchase a huge collection of music and video footage. The one investor announced that we had paid off the loan in less than six months, he had used the name Golden Boy" somewhere in his announcement. I had completely missed it because I was talking to my assistant. Next thing you know, everyone is calling me Golden Boy".

Sean: What is your geographic plan for expansion over the next 5 years?

Jason: Nationwide saturation while simultaneously strengthening and increasing our presents in Canada, United Kingdom and Australia. We are also finishing up negotiations to purchase a Japanese firm that we will enable us to open up Asia in less than a year. And of course we are going to keep our agent program going strong.

Sean: Last question. Youre in your early thirties and not even close to your prime. Youve achieved more at this early age than most people will achieve in a lifetime which begs the question: What do your parents think of your enormous success?

Jason: (laughing) Geeze! I have no idea. But now that you mention it really dont think they understand the level I am at. Honestly I dont think they would even care. I only talk to them 2 or 3 times a year anyway. Were a typical W.A.S.P family where you are expected to leave home at 18 yrs, go to college, take an executive job somewhere and you move on with your life. Its been years since Ive talked to them (laughing).

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