Director of Commercial and Operations, BBC Studios NHU

Director of Commercial and Operations, BBC Studios NHU

About BBC Studios
BBC Studios is a world-renowned content studio and channels & streaming business, powered by British creativity, with a reach that touches audiences in every corner of the globe.
We work with outstanding creative talent who are responsible for platform-defining shows from Strictly Come Dancing to Bluey, Eastenders, Prehistoric Planet and Planet Earth III.
The range and quality of our content is unsurpassed, creating critical and commercial successes and global phenomena.
From BAFTAs to RTS Awards, BBC Studios is Britain's most awarded production company and the only producer with three of the top ten shows on IMDB; we're the home of bbc.com, the widest-read English language news website in the world; and the UK's largest distributor of British content.

About BBC Studios NHU
BBC Studios Natural History Unit (NHU) is the best-known and most loved producer of natural history content in the world, responsible for some of the most globally successful factual content of the past 10 years. With groundbreaking technology and innovation we reveal to audiences around the world the extraordinary wonders of nature through exceptional storytelling, jaw dropping imagery and cutting-edge science.
Our output includes everything from breath-taking landmarks (Frozen Planet II; The Green Planet; Seven Worlds, One Planet; Dynasties II; Blue Planet II; Planet Earth III), returning series and technically challenging live shows (Springwatch; Blue Planet Live), to Prehistoric Planet - the ground-breaking AppleTV+ Original, The Americas for NBCU, and Ocean Xplorers for National Geographic Disney+. Programmes made by the NHU denote quality, innovation, craftsmanship and world-class storytelling.

This is a career defining opportunity for an experienced and passionate business leader. This is a new critical senior business and operations role in the Natural History Unit. The Director of Commercial and Operations will work in partnership with the Head of Unit, to develop and implement strategic plans for future growth and transformation whilst leading on all business functions across the unit - production, operations and commercial activity, with responsibility for delivery of key business objectives and the strategic planning and delivery of the NHU long range business plan.

The Role
• Work in partnership with the Head of Unit to define and deliver the business and commercial strategy for the genre ensuring key milestones are hit.
• Responsible for the management of the P&L and delivery of the Long Range Plan.
• Lead on Change and Transformation of the business.
• Have high level oversight of all commercial, production and operational activity identifying and prioritising improvements and efficiencies wherever possible.
• Work in partnership with the Head of Unit and Head of Production to deliver the revenue and profit targets for the year, driving all financial planning and business optimisation for future years of the long-range plan.
• Develop strategies with the NHU leadership team to agree the short and long-term plans for their areas and how these contribute to the overarching business plan and goals for the unit.
• Lead commercial deal planning on behalf of the NHU across multiple areas of the business aligning on both long-term strategic planning as well as in year activity.
• Working closely with legal and business affairs and production to secure the best possible terms for the business, balancing revenue, brand and partnership upsides. These would include deals with key talent and IP owners, commissioners, co-producers, distributors, etc.
• In collaboration with key professional areas (Finance, Legal and Business Affairs, HR, Talent) and the Head of Production, ensuring business performance and progress against the long-range plan is clearly presented to COO Factual, MD Factual etc in a timely manner.
• Manage business relationships with key strategic partners, building strong relationships and delivering the best possible partnerships, ensuring commercial opportunities and return are maximised.
• Act as the company's business expert for the NHU, keeping abreast of all relevant media companies, their senior management and decision makers. Understanding the business landscape and market trends to develop corporate reputation and exploit business development opportunities.
• To identify and progress new business activity as markets develop and working closely with Head of Unit to ensure that editorial strategy is aligned to market needs.
• Responsible for engaging with all parts of the BBC Group and BBC Studios as required, ensuring that the NHU is represented where appropriate.
• Ensure timely communication of the pipeline to relevant areas of BBC Studios.
• Upskill other teams through the free flow of information and insight and a highly collaborative approach.
• Lead, motivate and develop the performance of direct reports including production, operational and commercial leads and business teams, building a high-performance culture with the skills and capabilities needed to deliver the required results into the future.
• Attend international markets, visit key BBCS locations and broadcast partners in territory as required.
• Represent BBC Studios as an industry expert at appropriate internal/external press and conferences.
• Contribute to the wider development and leadership of the unit, promoting and championing an inclusive culture of collaboration, creativity and diversity.

What Does it Take?

• An expert in their field with proven expertise across the industry in a range of companies, in senior commercial, production, operational and business leadership roles of scale.
• Strong financial acumen with proven ability to manage a complex P&L and interpret and translate financial analysis into insight for informed decision making.
• Ability to influence and communicate confidently. Able to establish effective and collaborative relations across BBC Studios departments, Public Service and external stakeholders.
• Possess a strong understanding of the Media sector and BBC competitors, with relevant in-depth knowledge of current industry trends across the globe, and issues relating to both the NHU and wider BBCS.
• A deep functional/technical expert with broad and comprehensive understanding of theories, systems, and best practices relevant to their functional area.
• Strong awareness of the way in which programmes are commissioned, financed, and produced across the industry and how the landscape is changing.
• Global mindset: thinking and acting for both local and global needs.
• Ability to influence at a senior level with both business and editorial colleagues across production, distribution, and commissioning throughout industry.
• Accountability - proven ability to be able to make tough decisions and see them through to completion.
• Able to manage large teams within a matrix structure, through a clear vision, excellent communication, and the empowerment of others.
• Able to create a shared understanding of the business goals, direction of travel and the role of individual leaders in achieving those goals. (being transparent)
• Proven ability of complex problem solving and strong commercial acumen.
• A networker with existing relationships, with gravitas and industry know how to both open the doors to big conversations and engage credibly with executive creative leaders.
• Outstanding communication skills both written, oral and presentation.
• Strong analytical skills and intellectual rigour applied to decision making with the ability to think strategically about complex issues, to solve problems and unlock new opportunities in partner organisations.
• A collaborative style and someone who is comfortable dealing with ambiguity and working in a matrixed organisation with a significant amount of stakeholder management, and who can work well under pressure.
• A mix of strong commercial skills, and creative instinct who can represent the world leading IP and storytelling capability of the NHU.

Job Scope

• The accountability of this strategic business leadership role spans the full Natural History Unit P&L across multiple years.
• A strategic leadership role, overseeing commercial, operations, business transformation and growth.
• Business leadership of the NHU, which is a large business of c300 headcount.
• Working collaboratively with professional teams and individuals embedded in the NHU, within a wider BBCS matrix structure, including BLA, Production Accounting, Talent, HR, Comms.
• This is a full-time role, based in Bristol with some foreign travel required and 3 days a week in the office across Bristol and London.
• The role is required to engage and manage stakeholders across all lines of business in BBCS, including distribution, sales and marketing.

Life at BBC Studios
We don't focus simply on what we do - we also care how we do it. Our values and the way we behave are important to us. Please make sure you've read about our values and behaviours here.
The BBC is committed to building a culturally diverse workforce, that represents the audiences we serve, and encourages applications from candidates from any background, especially people from diverse communities. Equity of opportunity is important to us, and we endeavour to make our processes equal, fair and meritocratic for everybody.

Package Description
Band: F
Requisition: 18982
Start date: March 2025
Contract type: Permanent
Location: Bristol
Working Pattern: Hybrid
Interviews will be held wb 6th January 2025.

What will you gain from working at BBC Studios?

• We offer a competitive salary package
• Flexible 35-hour working week for work-life balance
• Parental leave for new parents, regardless of gender, of up to a year with 18 weeks fully paid
• 26 days holiday (plus an additional day which is a Corporation Day) with the option to buy an extra 5 days
• A defined pension scheme and discounted dental, health care, gym and much more
• A comprehensive Employee Assistance Program (EAP)
• Excellent career progression - access to courses, webinars, workshops and the opportunity to work in different areas of the organisation.

Reasonable Adjustments
As a Level 2 Disability Confident employer, we will ensure that a fair and proportionate number of disabled applicants that meet the minimum criteria for this position will be offered an interview. If you require any reasonable adjustments in order to apply please contact us on reasonable.adjustments@bbc.co.uk.