Chief People Officer

Job Requisition

Job Closing Date: 20/09/2026

Salford, MAN, G , M50 2QH
| Glasgow, G , G511DA
| Cardiff, G , CF10 1FT
| London, G , W1A 1AA
| Belfast, G , BT2 8HQ
| Birmingham, G , B1 1AY

Band:
Ex Co

Contract type: 1 x continuing (permanent) role

Location:

Salford, Birmingham, Cardiff, Belfast, London, Glasgow

The BBC has engaged an executive search firm, Korn Ferry, to manage the selection process for this role. Please be aware that your application will be managed by Korn Ferry, who will have access to your CV and personal details for the purpose of this vacancy only.

Should you want any further information about the role, or to speak with someone, please contact Ellie Filler of Korn Ferry, at the following email address:

This is a rare opportunity to join the BBC at a defining moment. As a member of the Executive Committee, the Chief People Officer will play a pivotal role in shaping the future of one of the world's most recognisable and trusted organisations.

As Chief People Officer, you will lead the BBC's people and culture agenda, driving organisational transformation as the business accelerates its evolution into a digital-first media organisation. You will help build a future-ready workforce, strengthen organisational effectiveness, and ensure the BBC continues to attract, develop and empower exceptional talent in an increasingly competitive and fast-changing landscape.

Combining strategic influence with operational leadership, the successful candidate will lead large-scale cultural and organisational change, helping the BBC navigate an evolving funding and media environment while preserving the creative excellence, innovation and public service values that make it unique.

• Re-shaping the organisation to achieve a leaner BBC with an effective, agile, and process-light operating model and working culture that is fit for the future and embeds creative and editorial excellence.
• Leading industrial and employee relations strategy through enterprise-wide transformation, building constructive, trusted relationships with recognised trade unions and employee representatives, to enable sustainable organisational change.
• Setting a path for how people can both start a career in the creative industry as well as develop exciting career and development pathways at the BBC.
• Supporting the continued alignment of the talent pipeline to ensure succession, retention, attraction, diversity and inclusion objectives are achieved.
• Upholding a culture that is values-led, focused on maintaining the highest creativity and editorial excellence, and which reinforces the strategy to create a modern BBC.

• Lead the people strategy underpinning a multi-year transformation programme, reshaping the organisation's operating model and workforce to deliver substantial cost efficiencies, organisational simplification and enhanced organisational effectiveness.
• Drive cultural transformation across the organisation, embedding a high-performance, accountable and values-led culture that supports innovation, agility, editorial and operational excellence.
• Design and execute workforce restructuring and organisational redesign initiatives, including the delivery of significant headcount reduction programmes, ensuring business continuity and alignment with long-term strategic priorities with a view to re-organising how the corporation operates, as opposed to consistent restructuring programmes.
• Provide executive leadership of employee relations across a highly unionised and publicly scrutinised environment, leading collective consultation processes, workforce engagement and negotiations with recognised trade unions and employee representatives.
• Partner with the Director-General, Board and Executive Committee to define the future workforce required to support the BBC's strategic evolution, including workforce planning, capability assessment and skills transformation.
• Lead enterprise-wide change management activity, ensuring leaders are equipped to communicate, implement and sustain large-scale organisational change while maintaining colleague engagement and performance.

The BBC's next CPO will be a transformational, Board credible executive, adept at navigating complex, high-scrutiny organisations either as the sitting CPO, or as a strong number two with sufficient Executive and Board level experience and…