A new survey among media HR professionals identifies broadcast operations professionals as among the most sought after jobs in the content development sector.

According to The Content & Connectivity Human Resources (C2HR) Association’s Annual Compensation Surveys, content companies paid broadcast engineers (electromechanical) 25% more than last year—the highest among all jobs—which covered business/legal affairs, market research, PR and remote/studio operations. Broadcast coordinator was next highest on the list with 18%, followed by business/legal affairs at 14%.

Overall, the professional association—which serves 4,800 members from 50 companies spanning the technology, media and entertainment sectors— reported that compensation growth among connectivity providers (i.e. cable, telco, fiber) was moderate. Base salary increases were smaller than last year, but bonuses and long-term incentives pushed total compensation higher for management and salaried employees. For the third year running, customer care reps claimed a spot on the “high-demand” talent list at connectivity companies, as did construction positions and senior marketing jobs.

“Streaming continues to shape the compensation landscape for C2HR members,” said Parthavi Das, C2HR’s executive director. “The C2HR Compensation Surveys revealed that participants continued to reward talent with specialized skills necessary to excel in the fiercely competitive streaming market while simultaneously ensuring pay raises for all employees.”

Steady Growth for Content Developers
2024 compensation growth was consistent across content jobs, with the exception of executives, who made up for a sluggish 2023. For executives, average total direct compensation (TDC), which comprises base, bonus and equity, increased 8.9%, compared to 2.6% in 2023. The preponderance of that increase came from larger bonus and equity distributions, although base salaries also increased a healthy 4.1%.

In 2024, content middle management accrued 3.1% base salary raises and professional and operating individual contributors (ICs) (non-managers) garnered 3.2% base increases. TDC rose slightly for middle management: 4% versus 3.8% in 2023. TDC for professional ICs rose 3.1%, lagging last year’s 5.2%; and operating IC/support personnel garnered 3% TDC bumps in 2024, versus 3.7% in 2023.

Thirty-eight content developers, employing 39,357 workers, with 889 positions and representing a mix of cable programmers; television, satellite and radio broadcasters; and digital content creators participated in C2HR’s 2024 Compensation Surveys. (See list at end)

Moderate Raises for Connectivity Providers
The C2HR Compensation Surveys also revealed that pay among connectivity providers rose in 2024. Average TDC rose 4.5% for management, up from 3.8% in 2023. Management base salaries increased by 2.0%. Salaried employees achieved 4.4% TDC gains, up from 2023’s 3.1% TDC. Base pay for salaried workers rose on average 3.1% in 2024, which was lower than last year’s 3.9%. Hourly workers accrued modest hikes in 2024: base pay rose 2.6% compared to 3.8% in 2023; total cash compensation (TCC) rose 2.2% compared to 5.6% last year, signifying that bonuses were smaller.

Eleven connectivity companies with 623 positions participated in the survey, including multiple system operators, satellite cable providers and security companies. Together, they represent 98,487 employees.

Specialized Skills Spike Pay
Among the significant findings of C2HR’s Annual Compensation Surveys was the eagerly anticipated list of high-demand talent in content creation and broadband connectivity companies. Positions requiring sought-after skills, particularly those related to streaming, captured the largest salary increases.

“The hot jobs data allow us to identify whether we have any compensation problems at the moment or will in the future for these important positions,” noted Fernando Sanchez, compensation manager at TelevisaUnivision. “This knowledge allows us to take preventive or follow-up actions.”

Predicted Trends
What else can HR professionals expect in 2025? Sanchez expects to see the elimination of siloed jobs in linear and digital programming. “Currently, more dynamic positions are required that can serve both media types on different platforms,” he said. “I also expect to see increased growth of analytics positions that can provide key information for decision-making, trends and new market niches.

Renee Hauch, principal at JM Search and a member of C2HR’s board of directors, expects job candidates to continue valuing chemistry and company culture. “While pay remains an important factor in the decision-making process, it’s often not the ultimate deciding factor,” she said.

“Recently, we worked on a senior-level operations role where the candidate received two comparable offers. Their decision came down to how they felt about their prospective boss, the company culture, and their ability to make an impact,” Hauch continued. “Today, companies are operating with fewer resources and leaner teams. Ensuring the right fit has become more critical than ever.”

2024 C2HR Content Developers Compensation Survey Participants:
A+E Networks
Amazon.com Inc. (Reporting for: Amazon Prime Video)
AMC Networks Inc.
BBC Studios Americas Inc.
Charter Communications Inc.
Chicago Sports Network (“CHSN”)
C-SPAN
DIRECTV LLC
Disney Entertainment Television (Reporting for: ABC Disney Entertainment Television)
ESPN Inc.
FanDuel Group (Reporting for: FanDuel TV)
Hallmark Media United States LLC
INSP LLC
Jet Propulsion Laboratory, NASA
Lions Gate Entertainment Corporation (Reporting for: STARZ)
MLB Network LLC
National Basketball Association
National Football League
NBCUniversal Media LLC
Paramount Global (Reporting for: CBS Paramount Global)
PGA Tour Inc.
Playfly Sports
Public Broadcasting Service (“PBS”)
Qurate Retail Group (Reporting for: HSN and QVC)
REVOLT Media and TV LLC
Riot Games Inc.
Sony Pictures Entertainment Inc.
TelevisaUnivision Inc.
The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints
The E.W. Scripps Company (Reporting for: Scripps Networks)
TKO Group Holdings LLC
Warner Bros. Discovery Inc.
WGBH Educational Foundation (“GBH”)

2024 C2HR Connectivity Providers Compensation Survey Participants:
ALLO Communications
Armstrong Group
Cable One Inc.
Charter Communications Inc.
Comcast Cable Communications Inc.
Cox Communications Inc.
DIRECTV LLC
Google Fiber Inc.
Schurz Communications Inc.
TDS Telecom
Ziply Fiber

CINCINNATI—GatesAir today launched "GatesAir Care," an enhanced managed services program addressing the gap being created as RF engineers near retirement with skilled RF resources and services. 

The program, available beginning today, offers defined service level agreements across its Elite, Signature and Standard support plans, the company said.

The number of services included escalates with each support tier, beginning with simple extended warranties, discounted spare parts and preventative maintenance visits to keep transmitters and associated RF systems in excellent operating condition. Additional services are available with each tier, which can include installation and commissioning, 24/7 remote maintenance and monitoring and live, onsite technical support for major broadcast events.

“Most young engineers coming into the business today possess a strong IT skillset but have limited to no RF expertise,” said Raymond Miklius, vice president of technology at GatesAir. “We developed GatesAir Care to alleviate concerns about finding skilled engineers to take care of RF systems and plants as veteran TV and radio engineers reduce hours and ultimately retire.”

All three program tiers can also scale to the size of the broadcaster, including dedicated services in smaller markets that are especially light on engineering resources. GatesAir Care will also offer options for crisis team deployment and disaster recovery services in the event of severe weather or other unanticipated events that require immediate attention, it said.

“The GatesAir Care program will help broadcasters maintain their focus on operational efficiency with the peace of mind that our experienced, dedicated support staff will provide consistent, proactive and responsive service tailored to each customer’s needs,” said Mark Goins, vice president of Global Sales at GatesAir. 

GatesAir will also offer beginning and advanced RF training courses aligned with the GatesAir Care program to help younger broadcast engineers strengthen their RF skillsets, it said.

More information is available on the company’s website.

WASHINGTON—“We are not just dealing with a crisis, but also a catalyst.” 

So says Sam Matheny, CTO and executive vice president at the National Association of Broadcasters, opening the online version of the Broadcasting Engineering and IT Conference Wednesday. It was part of the two-day NAB Show Express event.

“Things are changing rapidly, and in ways people may have never thought possible,” Matheny said, according to the text of his prepared remarks as provided by NAB. “Companies have adopted remote production, cloud technologies, distributed master control and so much more.”

Matheny said such change would typically take a long time—“years to convince people of, and still years more to deploy.” But the pandemic is prompting rapid change. “It unleashed your talents and genius as you were tasked with adapting and thriving in a new operating environment.”

Matheny said he has had numerous CEO conversations about the value of technology and engineering right now, enabling stations to stay on the air.

“They’ve said, ‘You know, if you had asked me eight weeks ago was this possible, I would have told you no. But, it has actually worked quite well.’ And they weren’t describing minor changes. They were describing 75% of the workforce being displaced from the office. They were describing massive change. And you, you are your company heroes of this pandemic. Thank you for all you are doing to keep our communities and nation informed and safe, and also entertained.”

A number of the sessions planned for the BEITC conference migrated to the NAB Show Express website and are accessible there either live or on-demand.

The site also features presentations and acceptance remarks for the NAB’s Engineering Achievement Awards including the TV award to Jim Stenberg of American Tower and the radio award to Jeff Welton of Nautel and the Digital Leadership Award to J.D. Crowley of Entercom.

This story originally appeared on TVT's sister publication Radio World.

WASHINGTON—The FCC is seeking recent or upcoming college graduates with an engineering degree to take part in its Honors Engineer Program, which is accepting applications from now until Feb. 20.

The Honors Engineer Program, which the FCC launched in 2018, is a one-year career development program that offers public sector experience for new/recent graduates and allows them to work on current issues in the communications and technology industries.

Some of the areas that participants may work on include 5G; the Internet of Things; next-gen TV broadcasting; new broadband satellite systems; facilitating the deployment of broadband services; identifying technologies to improve access to communications services, particularly those with disabilities; supporting the introduction of communications technologies designed for public safety, homeland security, health care, energy, education and more; and developing policies that will support the innovation and investment in new communication devices and services.

“Engineers play a critical and essential role in the work of the FCC, and our recent Honors Engineers, in particular, have already made an important contribution to the agency’s mission,” said Ajit Pai, FCC Chairman. “Most of the high-profile issues on the FCC’s plate require the input of engineers, so there is no better time for new engineers to embark on careers here that promise to be tremendously rewarding.”

At the end of the program, participants will be eligible for consideration for continued employment with the FCC.

In reviewing potential candidates, the FCC will look at academic achievement, technical skills, engineering and extracurricular activities and whether they have a demonstrated interest in government service and/or the communications sector.

Interested applicants can apply online.