geting in contact with pros - BBC producer

after going to liverpool, I had a chance to talk to Jeff Anderson, current Head of Daytime Production for BBC and used to be the Editor of BBC One’s Watchdog.
He provides creative leadership for a portfolio of around 200 hours of Daytime output and holds the responsibility for Daytime development pan UK and for teams based in Cardiff, Bristol, Belfast and London.wile speaking to him, i asked if i could ask him some questions as working within media was something that really appealed to me. he said yes and to send them though to his email address.

As he isn't a creative but is someone who manages creatives within the bbc i wanted to tailor the questions to him and how he effects the the diffrent creative sectors within the industry.

Questions
Could you give me your full job title? 

Director of Factual, Channel 5 Productions

Can you explain the role of a producer?

It can mean different things, depending on  the type of programme. In a drama, the producer is the person who is ‘organisationally’ in charge, ie, he/she is responsible for hiring the key members of the production team, and then making sure the programme is delivered on time and on budget. The ‘creative’ decisions, e.g., the casting and the overall ‘look’ of the drama is left to the director.

In entertainment, there can be several producers working on one show, each looking after a different segment. For example on a show like Saturday Night Takeaway, one producer will be in charge of the ‘live’ portion, while others will be responsible for other individual elements, like the competitions. Each of these will report into an Executive Producer, who is responsible for the programme in its entirety.

In factual programmes, like documentaries the producer (who often doubles as the director) is responsible for everything: from developing the idea,  finding the contributors, choosing the other members of the production team, filming, supervising the edit, and delivering the programme on time and on budget.

How do you find working within the media industry and working alongside creatives?

Generally very rewarding. It is inspiring to work alongside other creatives who bring genuinely fresh and inventive ideas to a project. However, creative people also tend to be passionate, and will fight for their ideas to be put into practice. This can, and often does, lead to conflict when two people have opposing ideas.

Could you give an example of working with creatives e.g: designers, marketing, PR, advertisers, that made you change your producer style to accommodate accordingly?

Working for digital channels makes you more aware of marketing, as they have to work harder than the main terrestrial channels in order to stand out and get noticed. Often this will mean coming up with a much more brash and attention-grabbing title for your programme.

Can you give me a brief overview of how you tackle each new project?

Every project is different. First you need to assess what is do-able on the budget and in the time available. The next, probably most important, step is to hire the right people for the individual project. Once they’re hired, they need to be given very clear instructions and goals. As far as possible, they should then be given the creative room to develop their own ideas. However, you must be prepared to step in when things are not going to plan, or when people are going down the wrong path.

How do you measure your success in projects?

When working for a commercial TV channel, success is usually measured in raw ratings – the more people who watch the more successful it’s considered to be. For an organisation like the BBC, ratings are only one measure. Success is also measured by ‘qualitative’ research, which shows how much the people who watched the programme actually ‘enjoyed’ , it,  ‘valued’ it or fouind it ‘memorable’. For certain types of programmes, like investigative current affairs, success can also be measured by the effect the programme had, e.g., an expose of bad practices by a company, resulting in them changing those practices or firing the people responsible for them.