Our latest Role Call is with Steve Nash, Head of Social Media and Content for the TGR Haas F1 Team.
Formula 1 has now fully embraced social media with the sport, the teams, the partners and the drivers bringing F1 closer to fans between race weekends.
Role Call is Sector’s series spotlighting the people whose job titles do not always reveal the influence they have on the sport and Steve is the latest to take our Q&A.
Sector: How has the role of social media changed in F1 in recent years?
Steve: If you look back since I joined the sport in 2018, the landscape, expectation and demand is almost unrecognisable.
By that I mean, in 2018 you had fewer channels to populate, fans wanted very specific content, and the viewership of the sport and fandom isn’t what it is today.
Fast-forward to 2026 and there’s now a requirement to populate over six global channels, along with additional country specific channels, but all of those channels need their own content and captions, but that’s not necessarily a change in an edit, it’s a whole different concept and execution to please fans on that specific channel.
And it’s not let’s put it out and see what sticks, it’s hours of ideation, planning, and posting something at the right time or moving it depending on results.
It’s also a much bigger platform for partners to activate their brand.
They know they have millions of engaged followers that are consuming their brand, so we need to be thinking how do we further a partnership, how can we get the most of this relationship and, what are the most natural ways we can integrate them into our channels.
However, that’s just the side fans see. The operation which goes on day-to-day in the factory never stops.
Off-weeks aren’t off-weeks, the 5-week gap we had in April was anything but a break.
It’s constantly looking at opportunities to activate and engage when maybe another brand, team or person isn’t.
Sector: How did you get into Formula 1?
Steve: Back in 2018, I was working for an agency and one of its clients was the Red Bull Air Race.
I was covering the series social media, which was an incredible experience and gave me the fundamentals I needed for a career in social media.
Red Bull Racing were applying for a Social Media Coordinator, which sparked my interest.
An application and four interviews later, I joined the team! I was there for four years and experienced some of the most amazing memories of my career, while learning some lifelong lesson.
I worked across social media, content and digital areas, which rounded me for the role I am in today. I’m lucky that my boss supported and believed in me, to which we’re still good friends to this day, even if he does still work for a now rival.
I’m also lucky, that my current boss also shares those same fundamentals to allow me to flourish, which naturally unlocks the best in me and my team.
Sector: What skills matter most in your job that people wouldn’t expect?
Steve: It’s probably ones behind the scenes which fans wouldn’t see, such as stakeholder management/ relationship building.
Social media is such a big part of a sport and every business, so almost all conversations come back to me or involve my department.
So having confidence to communicate with a variety of people and explain what you can offer and what you can provide is an often-overlooked area.
Over the past season I’ve also found being involved and leading conversations outside of my day-to-day, purely through being the person to foster a relationship with an external stakeholder, being able to present the team in the right manner and then continuing to develop that relationship for the benefit of the team.
So strong stakeholder and communications skill are needed daily but can also open up areas which can benefit the wider team, all because of those fundamental skills of being confident in communication.
Sector: What does a good day look like in your role?
Steve: No day is the same in my role, which is also why I love it so much.
If I’m at a race or not, it can vary massively. I often say, when not at the race I’ve got one job, when I’m at a race, I have two jobs… my office job and my race weekend job.
My biggest motivation and what I provide time to in my day, is my team. I want to make sure they’re supported, informed and able to flourish in their roles.
So, it could be as simple as being a sounding board or collaborating on ideas or even catching up to see what’s next and how they’re doing.
Working with internal and external stakeholders, whether it’s being part of a project group on an upcoming activation, proposing ideas for a potential partner, meeting with agencies, or third parties about how we can work better together.
We’re lucky at Haas that we have a small team, with autonomy, but also belief in what we do from Ayao Komatsu. So going above and beyond, linking up with other departments as a sounding board is what I love about Haas.
Sector: What advice would you give to someone who wants to work in F1 but doesn’t know where they fit?
Steve: Experience.
Get it, no matter what it is, paid or unpaid, because I promise it makes a difference.
This works both ways too, you as a person needs to see is F1 and the high-paced, long hours and unsociable hours are right for you and your lifestyle. But also, is the job right for you?
Sure, social media and content looks like we just mess around with the drivers all the time, but that’s about 1% of what we do.
Also, having worked with two teams and a driver, I can honestly say they’re each so different. So, you might get some experience for one team and feel it’s not right but go to another and thrive.
As an employer and hiring manager, I’ll always look at experience. I’m interested in seeing if you know what our world is like, but also, do you have the fundamental skills. And I also understand, experience breeds confidence.
Reach out to teams and people, even on LinkedIn. You never know what door might unlock.
Sector: If you were starting again tomorrow, what would you do differently?
Steve: Believe in myself more.
I don’t look back and think I’d change my career path in anyway, as ultimately, it’s taken me to where I am today.
But I think if I believed in myself more in my earlier years, I’d have been able to voice my opinion more. Ultimately at whatever level you work at, you’ve been hired because you’re an expert in your field.
So, believe in yourself and don’t be afraid to share your ideas, opinions and go against the grain if you don’t believe.
I developed this skill when I was at Red Bull Racing and have carried it ever since, sometimes you just need that one person to believe in you for it to unlock.
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