Everything is better told as if you’re writing a story — even office memos,” laughs Kevin Martin (M’84), recalling a Harvard Business Review article he read early in his career. “Effective communication skills are really vital to building and growing relationships and taking intelligent risks.”
The importance of storytelling, critical thinking, and innovation was instilled in Martin as a child growing up in Fort Wayne. “My mother was steadfast in her belief that reading held the secret to success for anything I wanted to pursue. She loved literature, current events, and politics,” he says. “My father was a true entrepreneur. He was always restless with social conventions and sought experiences outside of the norms.” His parents’ influence directed Martin to Purdue, where he focused on accounting and envisioned becoming a partner at a CPA firm. While working long hours in the tax department of KPMG in Minneapolis, he happened to catch a riveting documentary on the local public television station. This chance encounter completely altered his career path.
Undaunted by his inexperience, Martin began researching the field of public media; what he discovered intrigued him. The complexities and possibilities — from production and fundraising to educational and entertainment aspects — fueled an excitement that hasn’t diminished after more than two decades in the business. “I feel like I am more fortunate than most people I know because I am a fanatic about the products and services that have been a part of my career for so many years.”
Executive positions at Twin Cities Public Television and KERA in Dallas led to an appointment at the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, where Martin gained an understanding of public media on a national level. Overseeing grant distributions to public television and radio stations gave him an inside look at the major US markets. This perspective emphasized one company in particular — KQED in San Francisco.
“In the Bay Area, there’s a spirit of innovation that permeates everything, but especially the media industry. There’s almost a license to innovate,” he says. When he joined KQED as senior vice president and chief operating officer in 2014, Martin took that license to heart. While the organization is known outwardly as one of the most cutting-edge public media companies in the United States, inwardly he was faced with outdated systems and complaints about innovation blockers. “What I learned is that it’s rarely the people — it’s more often the systems and processes they’re saddled with. If you don’t have support services like HR, legal, finance, and IT in alignment with the spirit of innovation, it’s ultimately going to hold the organization back.” Martin focused his efforts on addressing compliance policies and systems integration, allowing the station to position itself for the future.
“Public media has always been at the core of my life and my family’s household.”
—Kevin Martin
Today, Martin is anticipating seismic shifts in the media industry. With KQED’s proximity to Silicon Valley, he’s witnessing the advent of self-driving cars and virtual reality and knows these could significantly alter content delivery methods and audiences’ expectations. He describes a sense of excitement and opportunity and feels fortunate to have a career in an industry that is rapidly evolving. Fresh challenges inspire him; he hopes to be a part of revolutionary changes and positively impact his community. He understands the possibility of that impact intimately. “Public media has always been at the core of my life and my family’s household. I truly believe it has given my children, Taylor and Drew, confidence in their knowledge about a wide array of subjects and a sincere appreciation for and awareness of the world around them.”