In my Radio 4 Midweek glory months, my colleague Ian Gardhouse showed me a secret list of almost 200 possible presenters for the programme, accompanied by a terse reason of why they couldn't or shouldn't do the job. I wish Korn Ferry well as they begin their hunt for a new Director General for the BBC. Maybe this little note might help....
Mark Thompson, currently trying to re-boot CNN, and possibly threatened if Warner Bros Discovery sell it to new owners. At the peak, his pay package as BBC DG was £834k first time round, somewhat in excess of Tim Davie's current £547k.
Alex Mahon, ex C4 boss - too much jewellery
Jay Hunt, of Apple TV. Quieter now, but quite noisy when editing the Six O'Clock News
James Harding, Tortoise/Observer. Not entirely on top of finances when previously Director of News
Doug Gurr, thought to have been a secret candidate last time round; maths and computing brain, made his name with Amazon, international triathlete, now Director of the Natural History Museum and interim chair of the Competition watchdog. Too brainy ?
Will Lewis, currently CEO and Publisher of the Washington Post. An interesting 2011 as Group General Manager of News International, the year the News of the World was closed
Grant Duncan is Korn Ferry's lead man on this. He's also a "thought leader". His latest think piece: "Crying at Work: Another New Normal?"
Too brainy? Meaning what, exactly? That the job of running Auntie actually calls for a bear of little brain? Or just that, being brainy, Doug would feel out of place at the top of the BBC management tree? Lonely, even.
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