BBC misses BAME leadership target

BBC director general Tim Davie has admitted the corporation must “do better on diversity” as it emerged that it missed its 2020 target for BAME leaders.
In 2018, the BBC committed to a 15% BAME leadership target by 2020 at least two BAME members on every senior leadership group by the end of 2020.
Despite BAME staff accounting for 15.7% across the organisation, only 12.3% of leaders, according to the BBC’s annual delayed annual report, published today.
Among the worst offenders are the 52-strong corporate, policy and external affairs leadership team and the 104-member chief customer officer group, which are respectively 90.4% and 88.5% white. Among commissioning, 87.3% of leaders are white.
Meanwhile women make up 45% of BBC leaders against a 50% target.
Savings target
The BBC delivered double its target of £200m worth of savings in the year to 31 March.
Licence fee income has fallen by close to £200m in the past year, due to the government pulling its funding for over-75s, while planned “investment in services” has been delayed by the coronavirus crisis.
Davie said he wants the BBC to “keep up the momentum of reform”, while “being as efficient an organisation as we can be”, adding: “This work has already started and will mean some tough decisions to come.”
Chief financial officer Glynn Isherwood warned of a “challenging year” ahead.
“We will continue to simplify the organisation, changing our size, shape and working practices,” he said. “We will use insights from our emergency measures, combined with existing work on business efficiencies, to effect practical and accelerated change.”
The report also revealed that BBC Studios won 77 commissions over the year, with more than a third – 28 – coming from third parties such as Apple and Netflix. The production and distribution divisions’ profits rose by 14% and revenues were up 17%.
The publication of the report came as Broadcast revealed the BBC was looking for a new BBC1 controller as Charlotte Moore steps away from commissioning to focus on the strategy and shape of the new BBC Content division.
Entertainment controller Kate Phillips will take temporary charge of the channel until a permanent controller is found.