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BBC people and talent

Overview

The main strategic business of BBC People (the new name for Human Resources & Internal Communications) has been continuing to develop and implement the Making it Happen culture change process designed to transform the BBC into the world’s most creative organisation. There have been new initiatives to improve the quality of leadership, succession planning, recruitment and induction.

As well as training its own staff, the BBC acts as a trainer to the wider broadcasting industry and it has continued to develop its free online courses.

An important part of the BBC’s role is to find and develop new talent, on and off air. BBC Talent is the key project in this area.

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BBC Annual Report and Accounts 2003/2004

Leadership

In April 2003 the Governors approved a significant new Making it Happen initiative, the BBC Leadership Programme, designed to improve the quality of leadership and management in the BBC. This followed a widespread staff consultation in 2002 which revealed a strong desire by staff for “a better relationship with our managers and … consistent leadership at all levels of the BBC”. The BBC Leadership Programme, based at Ashridge, was developed as a result and launched in September 2003. Over the next five years almost 7,000 managers, from leaders of small teams to senior managers, will complete the programme. The Governors have asked for the success of the training to be measured.

Succession planning

Alongside the BBC Leadership Programme, a succession-planning framework has been developed to identify and develop a pool of talent ready for senior leadership roles across the BBC – and to help identify gaps in the talent pool to inform external searches. A valuable by-product should be more movement of the most talented and best-trained individuals across the BBC. However, sharing and moving talent around the BBC has traditionally been very difficult to achieve. The Governors will view success in this area as a litmus test of a more positive attitude towards collaboration between divisions.

Feedback

The BBC carries out a staff survey each year as a way of identifying areas that need work. One such area is insufficient feedback to staff. The 2003 survey indicated that only 40% of staff receive regular feedback on how they are doing and only 35% of managers have regular conversations with staff about their development. Measures are being taken to improve performance through a new feedback and development process.

Recruitment

A new approach to recruitment is being introduced, with a new advertising style, website and literature – and useful experiments have been made in placing advertisements in a broader spread of media.

Induction

This year has seen the first full year of the new induction programme, Upfront. All eligible new staff are expected to attend this four-day programme, whatever job they do in the BBC. In the last quarter of 2003 attendance across the BBC stood at 97% with most divisions achieving full attendance. All new BBC Governors attend Upfront sessions.

Holby City’s Jaye Jacobs – got her break through BBC Talent

New BBC staff get a taste of programme making

Industry training

As well as training its own staff, the BBC continues to play an important role as a trainer to the wider broadcasting industry. BBC Training & Development now provides free online training modules for freelances covering aspects of television and radio production, editing and journalism. This is the first stage in building a learning portal for the broadcast industry providing a range of free online courses.

BBC Talent

BBC Talent was launched in 2000 and it continues to provide an important way for the BBC to find and nurture new talent throughout the UK. Nearly 600 people have been talent-spotted so far. New schemes in 2003/2004 included finding radio DJs for 1Xtra, writers for BBC Wales, sitcom writers for BBC Three, specialist classical presenters for BBC Radio 3 and young singers for a BBC Two children’s opera, Little Prince. Little Prince attracted some 25,000 applicants for the nationwide auditions of whom 6,000 were seen.

Awards

In 2003/2004 the BBC received over 250 programme-related awards across television, radio and new media. These included 28 BAFTAs, two Golden Globes, 22 Sonys and 54 RTS awards.

Outside of programme making, the BBC has received awards for a range of other activities such as property design, environmental schemes and good customer services.

BBC Annual Report and Accounts 2003/2004

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