Honoring Mike McVay: Lessons, Leadership, and What’s Ahead
Radio has faced seismic shifts with the rise of streaming, podcasts, and AI, yet for industry leader Mike McVay, recently named the 2025 NAB National Radio Award recipient, its heartbeat is stronger than ever. In this exclusive CMB interview, Mike reflects on his career lessons and offers his perspective on where broadcasting is headed. He shares both the risks radio must take and the inspiration that fuels him to keep pouring into others.
Q: Radio has gone through seismic shifts with streaming, podcasting and AI. What’s the heartbeat that keeps it alive for you?
A: The pace of my heartbeat quickens when I think of the many places where we can be heard today. There’s a continual debate about whether what we do should be called “Radio” or something else. What should matter is where listeners consume audio as they often refer to it as radio no matter the source. Where we are today is about content, regardless of where you consume it. Content is delivered Over The Air (OTA), Online Streaming, Smart Speakers, Apps, Podcasts (On-Demand), and on Social Media. Radio is truly omnipresent.
Q: If you could sit down with 25 year old Mike McVay, what’s the advice you’d give him about navigating a career in broadcasting?
A: Listen more than you talk. Satisfy your employer and you’ll be satisfied. Be prepared to work more hours than your peers. Every day, commit to focusing on continual improvement as a performer, as a programmer/content creator, leader, and never stop learning. Be driven to succeed. Learn from your failures. Live and work by the Golden Rule. These are things I’ve endeavored to do through my career, and while it’s been beneficial to my success, there’s always a question in the back of my head as to what I could have done better.
Q: You’ve coached some of the biggest names in radio and beyond. What’s one lesson you’ve taken from talent that changed the way you see programming?
A: My belief from the beginning has been that as a Program Director, and as a Consultant or Talent Coach, I work for the talent. If they win, I win. To your question; If I can understand who they are, what they’re good at doing, what they feel most comfortable doing, I can then help them do it at a high level. Trying to get a talent to do what they’re not comfortable with, or that they don’t believe will be successful, seldom if ever leads to a winning performance.
Q: Where do you see broadcasting in the next five years?
A: Broadcasting will grow into a multiplatform media business. Be it Radio, TV, Podcasting, or Streaming … we’re going to see a morphing and merging of entertainment/information streams. The bundling of broadcasting is inevitable as a means to continuing to grow topline revenue. The mobility of the medium will also become more commonplace.
Q: You often talk about innovation. What’s one bold risk radio needs to take in the next five years?
A: This is such a tough question because the answer has as many layers as an onion, yet it’s really an obvious solution. That one thing would be to improve the listener experience. Peeling back the layers of that answer would be to lower the commercial load (Unit Count as well as Minute Count), invest in Personalities, research the target audience for their wants and needs so you can then satisfy them, and commit to marketing for Top of Mind Awareness.
Q: You’re constantly pouring into others. Where do you personally find inspiration?
A: This business is something I love deeply. My ability to succeed has been because of what others have given me. I’ve been mentored by some amazing people and that’s led me to invest my time in serving as a mentor. The thought that mentoring others only enriches them is incorrect thinking. I learn as I mentor. It sometimes challenges my thinking and that forces me to leave my comfort zone, which is a way of learning. My career has allowed me to live a blessed life. I don’t take that for granted. It’s only right that I give back to something that’s given me so much.
