Nova Chat: Why Athletes Make Great Chiefs of Staff
The Chief of Staff role may look different on the sidelines than in the boardroom, but the fundamentals are the same: strategic execution, team dynamics, & operational efficiency.
Join Nova host Maggie Olson for a special Nova Chat featuring Jared Blank, Chief of Staff for the Texas Longhorns Football Program, and Kevin Carroll, internationally recognized speaker, author, and mental performance coach.
Together, they’ll explore what top teams and high-performing organizations have in common—and how Chiefs of Staff and strategic operators can apply lessons from sports to drive impact.
We’ll also introduce Nova’s new Sports Industry Track, a 12-week professional development experience that blends Nova’s certification curriculum with exclusive insights from leaders across sports operations.
Whether you’re a CoS, EA, or strategic operator inside or outside of sports, you’ll walk away with practical lessons on leadership, influence, and building winning teams.
🎟️ This session is free and open to all
📹 Can’t make it live? Register anyway, and you’ll receive the full recording in your inbox
Maggie Olson Bio
Maggie Olson, founder of Nova Chief of Staff, is a recognized thought leader in strategic operations, people leadership, and the Chief of Staff role. Her expertise comes from 20 years of experience building high-impact teams across retail, food/beverage, and tech sectors. At T-Mobile, she developed the CoS role for the President of the Business Group, boosting executive efficiency and creating a structure to support thousands of employees. Maggie now delivers critical insights from the cutting edge of modern business as Nova’s Founder and course instructor, the host of regular CoS events, and via her 50K following on LinkedIn. Through Nova’s work, she supports organizations with the tools and talent they need for lasting success.
Jared Blank: advocate + athlete + operator
Jared Blank is Chief of Staff at the University of Texas Football. He has been the Director of Ops at USC and the University of Washington. Jared completed the World Marathon Challenge, which is 7 marathons, 7 continents, in 7 days. He authored a book titled " Running The Distance." At the age of 5, he discovered he had sensory processing issues and dyslexia. Jared is an advocate for dyslexia awareness and continues to raise funds for the Running the Distance Scholarship at Park Academy in his home state of Oregon.
Kevin Carroll: author + speaker + creative katalyst
Kevin is a globally recognized and highly sought-after expert who consistently delivers game-changing results. He believes that play is serious business! Kevin brings a playful curiosity, a keen understanding of human nature and a lifelong love of competition to all of his endeavors.
Kevin is the author of four highly successful books published by ESPN, Disney Press, McGraw-Hill and A Kids Company. He has helped turn creative ideas into reality for organizations such as Nike, Starbucks, adidas, Walt Disney, Target, Proctor & Gamble, Columbia Sportswear, Mattel, the National Basketball Association and many others. Kevin was named by SUCCESS magazine as one of 19 “SEERS – changing the world!”
Kevin served in the United States Air Force for ten years as a language interpreter and translator. He has worked at the professional, collegiate and high school sports levels as an athletic trainer and sport performance consultant. Kevin holds a MS in Sport Psychology from National University, a MS in Health Education from St. Joseph's University, a BA in Speech Communication with a minor in Physical Education from Angelo State University and a Specialization in Foundations of Positive Psychology via Coursera/The University of Pennsylvania.