Senior Journalist Team Manager, WSL Europe Digital Production Hub

BBC Turkish journalists working in Content produce stories primarily for BBC Turkish platforms and are also a key part of the effort to offer best videos and texts to wider Languages and global audiences.

Europe DPH and BBC Turkish are recruiting a Senior Journalist Team Manager to head up the Istanbul Content team and input into the management of the Europe hub more widely. The role encompasses planning and leading the production and quality assurance of the team in Istanbul whose content is offered directly to BBC Turkish output platforms as well as often travelling to wider audiences – Languages and BBC News in English.

Main responsibilities

The successful candidate will be required to work on content production alongside the team, leading by example.

Line management, promoting staff development and coordinating commissioning are vital aspects of the role.

Reporting to the Europe DPH Editor with a dotted line to the BBC Turkish Editor in London, the successful candidate will work closely with all team members within BBC Turkish, particularly the Senior Journalists in London, as well as wider WSL Content.

The role requires a combination of outstanding journalistic and leadership skills, including experience of setting the editorial agenda, directing the work of a team and allocating resources to best serve our audiences. Clear communication and managing multiple stakeholders are key to this role.

You will help maintain effective workflows in the Istanbul bureau and communication and coordination with the teams in London.

Are you the right candidate?

You will have demonstrable experience of leading a team in a media environment. You will also have a proven ability to make sound editorial decisions and to provide editorial guidance and feedback to team members.

Native proficiency in Turkish and an excellent knowledge of English are essential, as is a thorough understanding of the Turkish politics, international affairs, social issues, and cultural trends, as well as Turkish media and social media environments. You will have a strong understanding of what drives audiences to BBC Turkish digital platforms and how to grow traffic in a competitive environment.

You will also have creative and practical ideas of what stories from Turkey are important to wider WSL audiences and have the potential to travel globally and will actively engage in the process of commissioning and producing them.

Excellent organisational skills are another must. The role will entail allocating limited resources effectively, efficiently and creatively. Strong interpersonal skills are equally vital to unlock the full potential from all team members and ensure the cohesion of the wider team.

Job package

Job Title: Senior Journalist Team Manager, WSL Europe Digital Production Hub/BBC News Turkish - Istanbul
Job Reference: 20045

Band: D

Contract type: Permanent role – local terms and conditions apply

Location: Office Base is Istanbul, Turkey

Final date to apply: Monday 30th December 2024

Any offer of employment with the BBC will be conditional upon you having the right to work in Turkey.

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 – including Private medical insurance for the staff member (Elit plan) and for their partner and children (up to 2 and until 18 years old) if any (Standard Plan), travel allowance and optics allowance. You can find out more about working at the BBC by selecting this link to our candidate pack.

If you need to discuss adjustments or access requirements for the interview process please contact the reasonable.adjustments@bbc.co.uk. For any general queries, please contact: bbchr@bbc.co.uk.

Please note that the application process will require you to upload a CV and complete the online application form with the opportunity to detail your experience, skills and knowledge required for the role.