Broadcast industry speaks out on challenges for recruiting and retaining broadcast engineers

Broadcast industry speaks out on challenges for recruiting and retaining broadcast engineers 20 January 2015

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Broadcast industry speaks out on challenges for recruiting and retaining broadcast engineers

The inaugural Tom McGann Memorial Summit brought together broadcasters, vendors, academics and students from eleven countries across Europe to discuss the importance of the broadcast engineer and the future of the role.

Organised by the IABM Educational Foundation in association with EBU, and held at EBU headquarters in Geneva in November, new research was unveiled to delegates which identified how the shortage of qualified staff risked stalling the growth of the industry. Technological advances and the shift to IT platforms and IP connectivity has placed a greater demand for computer skills and mathematics alongside audio and video on those hoping to enter the broadcast industry.

With broadcast engineering courses at European universities meeting this expectation why is it still difficult to attract sufficient numbers of students to the courses?

One of the principle findings of the meeting was that the real issue is at the input level. Not enough school students understand the attraction of an engineering career in broadcasting, so are not preparing the right subjects and looking at the right universities.

The second key finding was that the move to IT and IP in broadcast means that the industry can no longer count on retaining all those who have been trained in its special skills. The industry is increasingly competing with other sectors for systems architects, network specialists and data managers.

Chairing the event was independent consultant Niall Duffy who emphasised the importance of communications. He spoke about the need to share best practice, reach young people and foster talent before they decide their career is going to lie in a cubicle farm at a big IT company.

The broadcast industry is a stimulating environment that can provide fantastic lifelong careers that are full of satisfaction and fun. This is where broadcasters and vendors can help each other out to address the skills shortage, through mentoring, work experience and drop-in days. These are simple initiatives which will bring the allure of the industry to a wider, younger audience. Similarly, presence and co-operation between broadcasters and universities was encouraged.

The Tom McGann Summit is part of the work of the IABM Educational Foundation, the charitable body supported by IABM. Named in honour of one of the IABM's founders, the 2014 summit was the first in a series of events, taking place in locations around the world, developing initiatives with industry to encourage recruitment and retention of the brightest and best staff.

LINK:	http://www.theiabm.org/news/news_detail.broadcast-industry-speaks-out-...
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