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Shortage of broadcast engineers?

At IBC this year MMC Committee members spoke to many exhibitors with the aim of understanding what the next big technology would be. But the biggest concern we encourntered was "where are the next generation of engineers going to come from?" Many companies are already reportdly struggling to recruit employees with the right skills. 


What do you think the answer will be?
  • Good question, Phoebe


    The IET's close relationship with the RTS should provide the vehicle for discussing this and to develop solutions that meet employers' needs.
  • Good morning, Sinead

    Apologies for not defining the acronym.

    RTS is the Royal Television Society - see their website at https://rts.org.uk/our-ceo.  That page is about Theresa Wise, CEO.  When I was IET Presdient, we had a couple of meetings about how the IET and RTS could work together, building on the joint prestige lecture (eg https://rts.org.uk/event/rtsiet-public-lecture-sir-paul-nurse), also seeking opportunities for qualifications and communities.  If you follow up one of the contacts o nthe RTS website, they should be able to point you in the right direction regarding potential employers.


    I've lost touch with how the RTS-IET relationship has developed, but Naomi Climer (our Immediate Past-President) is still involved.


    Speak to your Community Staff Contact for further advice.

    Good luck
  • Hi Sinead, I've worked in the broadcasting technology industry since the late 1980s and I can confirm that it's a great place to work as an engineer.  Currently I'm Chairman of the IET's Multimedia Communications TPN, and as you saw from Phoebe's post it was when we were were at IBC this year that the shortage of engineers entering the broadcasting industry was highlighted as a real issue.


    There are a number of professional organisations aligned with different aspects of television and broadcasting, including of course the RTS as Barry mentioned although their remit puts a lot of emphasis on content production whereas the IET definitely majors on the technology.  I have worked with a large number of broadcasters, cable companies, technology providers and studios over my time in the industry and I would be very happy to discuss what contacts I may be able to provide or to give any advice over aspects of the industry if that would be helpful.  Let me know, through the IET, but also by sending me a request to connect on LinkedIn (I assume you are probably already a member), where you'll be able to find me as Graham Turner at uk.linkedin.com/.../grahamturner


    Best regards,


    Graham

  • David James:



    The BBC (my employer) have created a number of schemes over the last couple of years, some of which are pan-industry. It is starting to fill the gap, but there is a problem that while 20 years ago broadcasting was attractive to a larger group, now the likes of Google and Facebook are seen as modern and exciting to graduates and "old media" has become less interesting. 


     




    That's a really interesting point, David! Particularly as companies such as Facebook are launching new services - Facebook Live springs to mind.

  • There are a number of things happening in the broadcasting, at least in Hong Kong:
    • Traditional TV broadcasting companies are also offering OTT services, so viewers can watch the programme on their smartphones or computers. Viewers can select to watch the programme live or on demand. Some services require subscriptions, some programme are free to view.

    • The number of viewers of broadcasting is decreasing, while the OTT viewers are growing fast.

    • OTT services are beyond the boundary of countries, so for example viewers from other countries can watch the TV programme from Hong Kong via their smartphones or computers.


     

    I see that broadcasting via the air or fiber will never be completely replaced by OTT service, rather the two complement each other. The biggest reason is the transmission bandwidth requirement, as an accumulation of OTT service will be very hungry for bandwidth, and so it is easier for example for broadcasting to provide quality 4K services. 

  • Former Community Member
    0 Former Community Member
    My son just left Salford University with a degree in
    music with sound engineering being his specialist subject. On
    application for consideration at BBC at Media City for either work
    experience or an apprenticeship in Sound Engineering he received an
    automated replies almost within seconds of submitting the
    application. This cannot be very encouraging, if indeed there is an
    automated "screening" system that relies on criteria that may or
    may not be valid. I think there may be a number of frustrated, but
    very competent, young folk out there who find the BBC's job
    application process a bit daunting.
  • When talking to a BBC R&D member last year at IBC they said they really struggle to find individuals with the right academic and technical skills but who have sufficient soft skills too - such as strong presentation and communication skills.



    In my own personal job applications I know many large organizations that deal with thousands of applications use filtering systems to scan CVs/applications or questionnaires and you receive an initial rejection within minutes.
  • Very interesting discussion considering the conversations going on in my house just now.

    My elder son is about to start year 10, so two years until GCSEs. He has an interest in this type of career. In June 2018 he has a potential week for work experience. What work experience opportunities could or should we be looking for? Any advice appreciated.

    I have already managed to get him backstage at SP and on Sunday last he (and I) had a quick look inside a Radio 3 truck at the Albert Hall. He is excited by it all - particularly the sound side.

    He already volunteers for his school productions but are there other outlets he should be looking at?

    Academically he does well, but university might not suit him. So are there other routes for him to aim for? How realisitc are those routes?

    Any advice welcome and appreciated - thank you.
  • Hi Cameron, there are a variety of possible visits that could help him to understand the options and places where he might work.  Partly the choices are dictated by whether he is primarily interested in using the technology to deliver programming or whether it is the technology itself that is likely to be his primary interest.  There are some colleges, such as Ravensbourne in London, which offer courses including degrees covering aspects of both, otherwise the BBC I think has links with Salford University and there are (I believe) also BBC accredited courses at Birmingham University.  It would be good if he could get on visits to a local television broadcaster (BBC, ITV, C4 for terrestrial or Sky for satellite) or to a cable company (Virgin Media in this country).  There are also exhibitions which could help to give him some insight, although some of them do their best to dissuade attendees at an earlier stage than being undergraduates or apprentices.  In London there is TV Connect in the spring, and the largest European TV technology conference and exhibition is in Amsterdam, the International Broadcasting Convention, held in September of each year.  There are also a variety of local IET events that will cover aspects of broadcasting technology from time to time and from location to location, as well of course as some content and comment being visible here on the MMC pages.  I hope this may be some help, but please get in touch with me directly if there could be something you'd like to discuss in more detail or where I may be able to make a contact or help in some other way.  It is really good to see people like your son wanting to enter our industry.
  • Hello Graham

    Thank you for the swift response.

    I shall pass this over to him to ponder. It is early days yet, but I think the sooner he starts to get the grey matter moving and think more proactively, the more choices will be open to him.

    Thanks again.