From todays Guardian. Note they are using a "Headhunting firm". Lots of managementspeak forthcoming there then!

‘[The successor] must show demonstrable resilience’
Job specification for BBC director general

The next BBC director general could be based outside London, as the broadcaster formally launches the search for a leader who can secure its future in the face of changing media habits and a battle for funding with Boris Johnson’s government.

The official job specification released yesterday makes clear the scale of the challenge facing the individual who replaces Tony Hall. Issues highlighted include the government’s consultation on decriminalisation of the licence fee, finding ways to adapt output to meet the changing media habits of younger audiences, and dealing with “unprecedented scrutiny over the breadth, quality, content and value of its services”. Due to the level of stress associated with the job, they must also show “demonstrable resilience”.

The job specification, produced by the headhunting firm Odgers Berndtson, says that although the role will require significant time in London, it “can be based in any of the BBC’s main UK bases”. However, there is little expectation that the successful candidate will break with tradition and work from Glasgow, Salford or Cardiff given the importance of close negotiations with Downing Street and Whitehall officials in the coming years.

“The right candidate is likely to have experience of managing a large, diverse organisation, dealing with significant budgets and delivering change on a significant scale,” according to the specification.


Potential hopefuls have begun lobbying support for the £450,000 a year role, with applications due by the start of March. The decision will be made by BBC Trust board members, who were largely appointed by the government.

However, some candidates linked to the role have privately expressed concern about the level of scrutiny that would come with taking a job that could become a poisoned chalice, given the scale of challenges facing the corporation and the highly politicised nature of the director general position.

The government is considering whether to decriminalise non-payment of the licence fee, while signalling that the funding model may need to be replaced – moves that could leave the next director general overseeing cuts while trying to ensure the BBC remains relevant. Recent directors general have tended to possess experience of hands-on programme making but the board could be tempted to choose a figure with more experience in politics.

The role was posted on the BBC’s careers website alongside other jobs including a property supervisor at Television Centre in London and an assistant principal timpani player for the BBC Philharmonic in Salford, inadvertently highlighting the breadth of the corporation’s output.

He/she could "work from home" too?