During these tumultuous times in traditional radio, the most obvious overlooked area is communications. With all the downsizing, rumors of more change, and salary reductions, employees need more personal attention than ever. It takes little effort to briefly interact with co-workers.
Program Directors and the Workplace
One of the most important things for a program director is to understand the duties of other departments in a station. It’s a process, but casual lunches work well. These situations help people understand the job duties of others and open doors to mutual exchanges of information.
Always be careful not to expose personal information, as it could be used for gossip. Do not speak ill of other office workers or station policies. Listen, and the other person will teach and inform. It is one of the best ways to form a business relationship with co-workers. Increased knowledge is a valuable work tool, providing clarity to how all departments are connected to numerous problems and solutions.
Organizing
Program directors and operations managers need to be aware of the pulse of a radio station. The trick is to do it in a timely fashion without letting anything interfere with daily duties. It is very important to get as much work done as possible before walking the halls.
During business hours, encourage co-workers to place memos or proposals in a slot outside your door. If such a slot does not exist, have engineering construct something. After business hours, instruct employees to slide information underneath your door. Keep the slot emptied for security reasons and so employees can see their communications have not been ignored.
Article comments
1 - Dr. Juliann Mitchell, PhD
Sam.
You really do seem to know a tremendous amount about all aspects of the ins and outs of the radio industry.
Best wishes,
Juliann