Summary Report for:
27-2012.05 - Technical Directors/Managers
Coordinate activities of technical departments, such as taping, editing, engineering, and maintenance, to produce radio or television programs.
Sample of reported job titles:
Director, Technical Director, Production Manager, Engineer, Production Director, Master Control Operator (MCO), Broadcast Engineer, Engineering Production Operations Director, Operations Manager, Master Control Supervisor
Tasks | Knowledge | Skills | Abilities | Work Activities | Work Context | Job Zone | Interests | Work Styles | Work Values | Related Occupations | Wages & Employment
Tasks
- Direct technical aspects of newscasts and other productions, checking and switching between video sources, and taking responsibility for the on-air product, including camera shots and graphics.
- Test equipment to ensure proper operation.
- Monitor broadcasts to ensure that programs conform to station or network policies and regulations.
- Observe pictures through monitors, and direct camera and video staff concerning shading and composition.
- Act as liaisons between engineering and production departments.
- Supervise and assign duties to workers engaged in technical control and production of radio and television programs.
- Schedule use of studio and editing facilities for producers and engineering and maintenance staff.
- Confer with operations directors to formulate and maintain fair and attainable technical policies for programs.
- Operate equipment to produce programs or broadcast live programs from remote locations.
- Train workers in use of equipment such as switchers, cameras, monitors, microphones, and lights.
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Knowledge
| Communications and Media — Knowledge of media production, communication, and dissemination techniques and methods. This includes alternative ways to inform and entertain via written, oral, and visual media. |
| English Language — Knowledge of the structure and content of the English language including the meaning and spelling of words, rules of composition, and grammar. |
| Computers and Electronics — Knowledge of circuit boards, processors, chips, electronic equipment, and computer hardware and software, including applications and programming. |
| Administration and Management — Knowledge of business and management principles involved in strategic planning, resource allocation, human resources modeling, leadership technique, production methods, and coordination of people and resources. |
| Telecommunications — Knowledge of transmission, broadcasting, switching, control, and operation of telecommunications systems. |
| Customer and Personal Service — Knowledge of principles and processes for providing customer and personal services. This includes customer needs assessment, meeting quality standards for services, and evaluation of customer satisfaction. |
| Sales and Marketing — Knowledge of principles and methods for showing, promoting, and selling products or services. This includes marketing strategy and tactics, product demonstration, sales techniques, and sales control systems. |
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Skills
| Monitoring — Monitoring/Assessing performance of yourself, other individuals, or organizations to make improvements or take corrective action. |
| Operation and Control — Controlling operations of equipment or systems. |
| Active Listening — Giving full attention to what other people are saying, taking time to understand the points being made, asking questions as appropriate, and not interrupting at inappropriate times. |
| Time Management — Managing one's own time and the time of others. |
| Critical Thinking — Using logic and reasoning to identify the strengths and weaknesses of alternative solutions, conclusions or approaches to problems. |
| Speaking — Talking to others to convey information effectively. |
| Coordination — Adjusting actions in relation to others' actions. |
| Troubleshooting — Determining causes of operating errors and deciding what to do about it. |
| Active Learning — Understanding the implications of new information for both current and future problem-solving and decision-making. |
| Reading Comprehension — Understanding written sentences and paragraphs in work related documents. |
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Abilities
| Oral Comprehension — The ability to listen to and understand information and ideas presented through spoken words and sentences. |
| Oral Expression — The ability to communicate information and ideas in speaking so others will understand. |
| Problem Sensitivity — The ability to tell when something is wrong or is likely to go wrong. It does not involve solving the problem, only recognizing there is a problem. |
| Deductive Reasoning — The ability to apply general rules to specific problems to produce answers that make sense. |
| Inductive Reasoning — The ability to combine pieces of information to form general rules or conclusions (includes finding a relationship among seemingly unrelated events). |
| Speech Clarity — The ability to speak clearly so others can understand you. |
| Speech Recognition — The ability to identify and understand the speech of another person. |
| Information Ordering — The ability to arrange things or actions in a certain order or pattern according to a specific rule or set of rules (e.g., patterns of numbers, letters, words, pictures, mathematical operations). |
| Selective Attention — The ability to concentrate on a task over a period of time without being distracted. |
| Near Vision — The ability to see details at close range (within a few feet of the observer). |
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Work Activities
| Making Decisions and Solving Problems — Analyzing information and evaluating results to choose the best solution and solve problems. |
| Getting Information — Observing, receiving, and otherwise obtaining information from all relevant sources. |
| Communicating with Supervisors, Peers, or Subordinates — Providing information to supervisors, co-workers, and subordinates by telephone, in written form, e-mail, or in person. |
| Establishing and Maintaining Interpersonal Relationships — Developing constructive and cooperative working relationships with others, and maintaining them over time. |
| Coordinating the Work and Activities of Others — Getting members of a group to work together to accomplish tasks. |
| Guiding, Directing, and Motivating Subordinates — Providing guidance and direction to subordinates, including setting performance standards and monitoring performance. |
| Inspecting Equipment, Structures, or Material — Inspecting equipment, structures, or materials to identify the cause of errors or other problems or defects. |
| Organizing, Planning, and Prioritizing Work — Developing specific goals and plans to prioritize, organize, and accomplish your work. |
| Monitor Processes, Materials, or Surroundings — Monitoring and reviewing information from materials, events, or the environment, to detect or assess problems. |
| Developing and Building Teams — Encouraging and building mutual trust, respect, and cooperation among team members. |
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Work Context
| Indoors, Environmentally Controlled — How often does this job require working indoors in environmentally controlled conditions? |
| Telephone — How often do you have telephone conversations in this job? |
| Face-to-Face Discussions — How often do you have to have face-to-face discussions with individuals or teams in this job? |
| Importance of Being Exact or Accurate — How important is being very exact or highly accurate in performing this job? |
| Freedom to Make Decisions — How much decision making freedom, without supervision, does the job offer? |
| Structured versus Unstructured Work — To what extent is this job structured for the worker, rather than allowing the worker to determine tasks, priorities, and goals? |
| Impact of Decisions on Co-workers or Company Results — How do the decisions an employee makes impact the results of co-workers, clients or the company? |
| Duration of Typical Work Week — Number of hours typically worked in one week. |
| Frequency of Decision Making — How frequently is the worker required to make decisions that affect other people, the financial resources, and/or the image and reputation of the organization? |
| Time Pressure — How often does this job require the worker to meet strict deadlines? |
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Job Zone
| Title |
Job Zone Three: Medium Preparation Needed |
| Overall Experience |
Previous work-related skill, knowledge, or experience is required for these occupations. For example, an electrician must have completed three or four years of apprenticeship or several years of vocational training, and often must have passed a licensing exam, in order to perform the job. |
| Job Training |
Employees in these occupations usually need one or two years of training involving both on-the-job experience and informal training with experienced workers. |
| Job Zone Examples |
These occupations usually involve using communication and organizational skills to coordinate, supervise, manage, or train others to accomplish goals. Examples include funeral directors, electricians, forest and conservation technicians, legal secretaries, interviewers, and insurance sales agents. |
| SVP Range |
(6.0 to < 7.0) |
| Education |
Most occupations in this zone require training in vocational schools, related on-the-job experience, or an associate's degree. Some may require a bachelor's degree. |
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Interests
Interest code: RAE
| Realistic — Realistic occupations frequently involve work activities that include practical, hands-on problems and solutions. They often deal with plants, animals, and real-world materials like wood, tools, and machinery. Many of the occupations require working outside, and do not involve a lot of paperwork or working closely with others. |
| Artistic — Artistic occupations frequently involve working with forms, designs and patterns. They often require self-expression and the work can be done without following a clear set of rules. |
| Enterprising — Enterprising occupations frequently involve starting up and carrying out projects. These occupations can involve leading people and making many decisions. Sometimes they require risk taking and often deal with business. |
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Work Styles
| Dependability — Job requires being reliable, responsible, and dependable, and fulfilling obligations. |
| Initiative — Job requires a willingness to take on responsibilities and challenges. |
| Adaptability/Flexibility — Job requires being open to change (positive or negative) and to considerable variety in the workplace. |
| Achievement/Effort — Job requires establishing and maintaining personally challenging achievement goals and exerting effort toward mastering tasks. |
| Cooperation — Job requires being pleasant with others on the job and displaying a good-natured, cooperative attitude. |
| Attention to Detail — Job requires being careful about detail and thorough in completing work tasks. |
| Innovation — Job requires creativity and alternative thinking to develop new ideas for and answers to work-related problems. |
| Leadership — Job requires a willingness to lead, take charge, and offer opinions and direction. |
| Self Control — Job requires maintaining composure, keeping emotions in check, controlling anger, and avoiding aggressive behavior, even in very difficult situations. |
| Persistence — Job requires persistence in the face of obstacles. |
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Work Values
| Achievement — Occupations that satisfy this work value are results oriented and allow employees to use their strongest abilities, giving them a feeling of accomplishment. Corresponding needs are Ability Utilization and Achievement. |
| Independence — Occupations that satisfy this work value allow employs to work on their own and make decisions. Corresponding needs are Creativity, Responsibility and Autonomy. |
| Recognition — Occupations that satisfy this work value offer advancement, potential for leadership, and are often considered prestigious. Corresponding needs are Advancement, Authority, Recognition and Social Status. |
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Related Occupations
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Wages & Employment Trends
National
Median wages data collected from Producers and Directors.
Employment data collected from Producers and Directors.
| Median wages (2006) |
$27.07 hourly, $56,310 annual |
| Employment (2006) |
93,000 employees |
| Projected growth (2006-2016) |
Average (7% to 13%)
|
| Projected need (2006-2016) |
38,000 additional employees |
State & National
Source: Bureau of Labor Statistics 2006 wage data
and 2006-2016 employment projections
.
"Projected growth" represents the estimated change in total employment over the projections period (2006-2016). "Projected need" represents job openings due to growth and net replacement.
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