Content Strategy Manager – On-Demand Music, BBC Sounds

Job Introduction

BBC Sounds Content Strategy team sit at the heart of Sounds HQ. We use data, editorial insight, and market intelligence to set on-demand speech & music commissioning strategies with Genre Directors and their teams to build a world-class content offer.

We collaborate closely with Radio & Music Directors, Commissioners, Heads of Networks, and content makers across the BBC (Nations, Regions, News, Children’s, and World Service) to shape a universal slate of speech & music content that brings listeners to BBC Sounds and keeps them coming back. Day to day we work closely with BBC Sounds Content Discovery, Marketing, and Curation teams to build a stand-out listener experience that will grow our UK on-platform audiences and with commercial third parties including BBC Studios on ex-UK commercialisation of our content slate.

Our on-demand Music offer has evolved significantly over the last few years, including development of new on demand music shows, Radio 1 Relax and the launch of Back To Back Sounds. Over the next year we’re looking to build on this work, with teams across BBC’s much loved music stations, Radio 1, 1Xtra, Radio 2, Radio 3, 6 Music and Asian Network.

This role is a content strategy role NOT a scheduling and planning role. Please tailor your application to the information you will see in the appendix of the job description which clearly describes what the role involves. In other organisations this job might be called Creative Strategist OR Editorial Strategist.

Main Responsibilities

As Content Strategy Manager, On-Demand Music, you will support on a range of priority projects being led by the Content Strategy team in close collaboration and support of senior stakeholders across the music stations, including:

• On-demand content strategy and development – support Head of Content Strategy and editorial leads across BBC Music in shaping a distinctive offer in BBC Sounds that truly reflects the needs and interests of audiences across the UK and realises the best of our much-loved radio stations (Radio 1, Radio 2, Radio 3, 6 Music and 1Xtra).

• Performance analysis – lead with slate manager on regular data-led reviews of music content performance in BBC Sounds to inform planning for Directors of Music & Sounds, and their senior teams.

• Opportunity spotting – use a combination of data, editorial judgement, and industry knowledge to inform decision-making on content investment into our on-demand music offer, working with heads of stations and digital music teams to bring it to life

• Bringing the outside in - competitor analysis and trend spotting across global music industry to feed into all teams working on on-demand music. We want someone who will challenge the status quo but understands the BBC’s music output.

• This role will be focused on On-Demand music in Sounds, but you will likely also work on ad hoc projects across speech content strategy, including music podcasts.

Are you the right candidate?

Previous / current job titles aren’t important to us. The right candidate will…

• Be passionate and knowledgeable about audio and music in particular
• Bring fresh thinking to the BBC music challenge
• Be committed to making a positive impact on BBC Sounds and the music industry
• Be a strong strategic thinker with sound editorial judgement
• Understand how to interpret data and insight for creative development
• Be able to influence and persuade senior decision-makers
• Have experience working in audio (production, commissioning, social, comms)
• Understand and have views on how music discovery is evolving
• Have experience leading and delivering complex projects
• Be collaborative and able to work with a wide range of disciplines and divisions
• Desirable but not essential is experience at a label and/or platform

About the BBC

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 in the document attached below.

Diversity matters at the BBC. We have a working environment where we value and respect every individual's unique contribution, enabling all of our employees to thrive and achieve their full potential.

We want to attract the broadest range of talented people to be part of the BBC – whether that’s to contribute to our programming or our wide range of non-production roles. The more diverse our workforce, the better able we are to respond to and reflect our audiences in all their diversity.

We are committed to equality of opportunity and welcome applications from individuals, regardless of age, gender, ethnicity, disability, sexual orientation, gender identity, socio-economic background, religion and/or belief. We will consider flexible working requests for all roles, unless operational requirements prevent otherwise.

To find out more about Diversity and Inclusion at the BBC, please click here

The BBC is committed to redeploying employees seeking suitable alternative employment within the BBC for different reasons and they will be given priority consideration ahead of other applicants. Priority consideration means for those employees seeking redeployment their application will be considered alongside anyone else at risk of redundancy, prior to any individuals being considered who are not at risk.

Package Description

Band: D
Contract type: Continuing contract
Location: Ideally office base is MediaCityUK, Salford. This is a hybrid role and the successful candidate will balance office with home working

We’re happy to discuss flexible working. Please indicate your choice under the flexible working question in the application. There is no obligation to raise this at the application stage but if you wish to do so, you are welcome to. Flexible working will be part of the discussion at offer stage.

• Excellent career progression – the BBC offers great opportunities for employees to seek new challenges and work in different areas of the organisation.
• Unrivalled training and development opportunities – our in-house Academy hosts a wide range of internal and external courses and certification.
• Benefits- We offer a competitive salary package, a flexible 35-hour working week for work-life balance and 26 days (1 of 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.

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