Want a Good Job in Radio? Bring Attitude and Character!

Michael Hedges July 1, 2006

As summer arrives full-force and new graduates start to consider career opportunities broadcasters find a steady rise in the number of job applicants. Broadcasting careers are always challenging, with more competition across all media and new skills to be learned. Four essential characteristics for new workers are on the minds of most European radio managers: knowledge, attitude, character and flexibility.

Broadcasters look for individuals with a knowledge base that fits the station’s style and format. CR Radio Wave’s program director Ladislav Lindner-Kylar, searching for a news-editor and weekend show host for the new youth channel, wants applicants to have good knowledge of local and world topics as well as the Czech youth scene. Of course, he wants to hear an air-check, each applicant must have “at least the basics of radio work,” but he also wants to see each applicants “personal Top 50” songs.

Radio Wave Host
Veronika Mayerova

Lindner-Kylar expects applicants to be educated, “preferably bachelor or masters degree,” native Czech speaker, good in English and PC/internet skills with “knowledge of audio editing skills a big bonus.” On top of all this, he looks for creativity and flexibility. Typically he will select ten people meeting all these criteria. “The main work comes later,” he said, meeting with them and doing some trial recordings in the studio.”   

The interview is essential for KISS Radio (Prague) General Manager Andrew Dower, both to find out what motivates and individual and let them know what the company expects. “Generally speaking, people with backgrounds in jobs where there was no focus on getting results - where a no-pressure lifestyle is the principle motivation – usually discover for themselves during the interviewing process that they would not be comfortable working in our company,” he explains.

Broadcasters see their work-force reflecting their audiences but also the times. And the times are multi-platform. “Danmarks Radio (DR) is a multi-media enterprise,” said radio director Leif Lonsmann,” and we seek to recruit people who have both media specific skills and cross-media potential.”

Being “well-rounded” is another criteria high on every employer’s list for hiring.  Günter Heuberger, president of Radio Top (Switzerland), likes to know that people have media interests, particularly “cross-media and interactive interests” but also interests outside the station, like “interesting special hobbies” which make for more well-rounded workers.

Broadcast managers, regardless of the station’s size, emphasize “the team.” Jobs may vary, task to task, but the station’s output is clearly team effort. “It is very important to find a loyal and intelligent person who can work as a member of the team,” said Trio LSL Radio Group CEO Priit Jogi.

“We put a high priority in our company on how this person will fit with the current group, “ said Slager Radio (Budapest, Hungary) General Manager Barbara Brill, echoing the need for that team spirit. “The skill set obviously depends on the job, “she repeated. But key qualities expected are “ethics, honesty and trustworthiness.”

“Principally we are looking for company fit,” said KISS Radio’s Dower. “Naturally we are looking for the right experience, knowledge, talent and skill sets, but what sorts the wheat from the chaff are people with a winning attitude.”

For Trio LSL Radio Group company, which owns several stations in Estonia including top rated full-service Radio KuKu, Jogi wants team members “oriented to get the best results in the market and in the industry.”  That means team members “have no problem working with intensive schedules.”

Günter Heuberger also mentioned “flexibility in thinking” and “emotional competence,” applied to any position with the company.

When it comes to hiring people for on-air positions, managers are looking for strong personalities, who they can train for specific needs. Quite often this is to set apart their station from competitors. “Above all we look for personalities with strong character,” said Swiss public radio youth channel Couleur 3 Director Jean-Luc Lehmann. “At a time when youth radio channels are very formatted, candidates are all alike. Our job is to unearth rough talent and train them so they learn our trade.”

Strong characters can, says Radio Alpha (Perm, Russia) General Director Maxim Kunin, be a challenge. “In Russia, especially in regions, hiring for radio is a great problem,” he says. “Media is a magnet for mad and crazy people.” This could be a universal trait.

Kunin, managing a medium-size market operation of two stations, admits that the bright lights of the big city are another challenge. “From the one side,” he said, “the industry in Russia is rather young, so we have no system of hiring and training.  From the other side, personalities who know something – even a little – dream of going to Moscow where they are sure their genius will be recognized and they can be come the Russian Howard Stern.”

For Kiss Radio (Prague) General Manager Andrew Dower recruiting is also difficult, but for another reason. “It is interesting to me that there appears to be resistance in the non-English speaking European countries to relocating for better job opportunities,” he said. ”It is the accepted practice for getting ahead in the Anglo radio industry; most people have made the same journey. This trend appears to be less common in Europe as people are often reluctant to look for opportunities outside their own region.”

The hiring cycle is different for every enterprise. “I'm glad that we have stable team in our company and I don't have to look for new people too much,” said Priit Jogi. “But, sometimes it's necessary, of course.”

Since the beginning of this year Slager Radio has hired a production person, a new music director and more.  “We've hired salespeople, receptionists, and an executive assistant and we're just about to hire a new Finance Director,” she said.

Radio broadcasters face hiring in different ways, hoping to satisfy the company needs as well as those of the workers. They challenge themselves, as Priit Jogi said, to hire “the best people.” As well they know hiring is an imperfect undertaking. Says Andrew Dower: “We remind our managers that there is nothing wrong hiring the wrong person. No interview process is perfect and every manager has made the wrong hire at least once in their career. The only mistake a manager can make is keeping the person after they have discovered they don't fit the company.”

Previously published in Radio World International, June 2006, in a slightly different form