Overview of the role
The Head of Production (HoP) provides senior leadership and operational oversight across a production company and its slate of unscripted productions. As well as overseeing the production slate, they operate at a strategic level within the business, contributing to decisions about where the company focuses its attention to win new work and how production resources are aligned to support growth and sustainability.
Heads of Production are senior members of a company’s management team and play a key role in shaping how the business operates year on year. They oversee production strategy, resourcing, financial controls, compliance and risk management across all productions, while setting standards around culture, wellbeing, inclusion and sustainable working practices. They are responsible for ensuring productions are delivered safely, legally, on budget and in line with editorial ambition, broadcaster requirements and wider business objectives.
Heads of Production work closely with managing directors, creative directors, development teams, executive producers and senior production teams. They support the development process by advising on production feasibility, resource planning and delivery strategy, and ensure the production function is structured to support both creative output and commercial performance. Heads of Production typically oversee multiple productions at different stages, alongside responsibility for company-wide production policies, processes and people.
Core responsibilities
These core responsibilities are provided as a guide and are not exhaustive. The exact responsibilities in a particular job will vary depending on the scale, structure and output of the production company.
- Provide senior leadership for the production management department across the company
- Set clear structures, expectations and ways of working for production teams
- Oversee and support production executives, line producers and senior production managers
- Ensure consistent standards and best practice across all productions
- Act as a visible and trusted leader across the business
- Develop and oversee production strategy in line with the company’s creative and commercial goals
- Plan year-on-year production capacity, resourcing and delivery across the slate
- Ensure productions are set up with appropriate structures, staffing and timelines
- Identify operational risks or pressure points across the business and plan accordingly
- Support long-term sustainability of the production function
- Provide regular updates to board members or company owners on how current and future productions are tracking
- Flag strategic, financial and operational risks across the slate, proposing mitigation plans where required
- Use production insight to inform company-wide planning and decision-making
- Oversee production budgets across the company and slate of productions
- Monitor financial performance, forecasting and cost control at a senior level
- Work closely with finance teams to ensure accurate reporting and visibility of risk
- Support negotiations around programme pricing and commercial terms with broadcasters
- Ensure productions are commercially viable and aligned with company financial objectives
- Own company-level financial strategy for production, including slate budgeting and long-term forecasting
- Ensure production budgets align with overall P&L, cash flow and business objectives
- Work with senior leadership and finance teams to balance creative ambition with financial sustainability
- Work with executive producers and creative teams during development and pitching
- Ensure proposed budgets and schedules are realistic, deliverable and aligned with editorial ambition
- Support negotiation of editorial specifications and delivery frameworks with broadcasters
- Assess production feasibility and risk prior to greenlight
- Ensure productions enter production with clarity and confidence
- Hold senior responsibility for legal, compliance, health and safety and duty of care across all productions
- Work closely with legal and business affairs teams to ensure contractual obligations are met
- Oversee company policies relating to compliance, safeguarding, GDPR and risk
- Act as a senior escalation point for serious or sensitive production issues
- Manage reputational, financial and operational risk on behalf of the business
- Lead on people management across the production function
- Champion positive working environments, wellbeing and sustainable working practices
- Support inclusive recruitment and progression across production teams
- Oversee performance management, development and succession planning
- Ensure duty of care is embedded into production culture and decision-making
- Build and maintain a strong pipeline of production talent across all levels
- Implement strategies to support retention, progression and succession planning within the production function
- Set recruitment policy for production teams, including senior hires
- Design and review department structures, roles and salary bands to support sustainable growth
- Represent the company in relationships with broadcasters, streamers and distributors
- Maintain strong relationships with key suppliers, facilities and external partners
- Engage with industry bodies, training organisations and funders where appropriate
- Ensure the company’s production practices align with industry standards and expectations
- Review production processes and workflows to improve efficiency and effectiveness
- Ensure productions close down effectively and in line with company processes
- Drive continuous improvement across production practices
- Embed learning from productions into future planning
- Ensure production operations evolve in line with industry change
Skills
Check out role specific skills, transferable skills and attributes for the role of Head of Production.
- Senior leadership of production management teams and departments
- Strategic oversight of multiple productions and company slates
- Financial governance, forecasting and commercial awareness
- Strong understanding of legal, compliance, health and safety and duty of care requirements
- Ability to assess risk at a company-wide level and make informed decisions
- Leadership and management: leading senior teams, setting direction and holding accountability
- Communication: working effectively with creative, production, legal, finance and senior stakeholders
- Negotiation: supporting programme pricing, supplier relationships and commercial agreements
- Problem-solving: addressing complex operational challenges at a senior level
- Financial skills: overseeing budgets, forecasting risk and supporting commercial decision-making
- Strategic and business skills: aligning production operations with company goals and long-term sustainability
- Resilience and composure: able to remain calm, clear-headed and effective under pressure, particularly when managing competing priorities across multiple productions or navigating complex business challenges. Responds constructively to change and provides stability and reassurance to teams during periods of uncertainty.
- Proactive and solutions-focused: anticipates risks and challenges at a company or slate level, explores strategic and practical solutions, and takes decisive action to protect delivery, people and the business. Encourages continuous improvement and forward planning across production operations.
- Productivity and organisation: oversees complex workflows, multiple timelines and competing demands with clarity and structure. Ensures production operations are well-organised, efficient and aligned with business priorities, while maintaining oversight without unnecessary intervention.
- Sound judgement and decision-making: makes balanced, well-informed decisions that take account of creative ambition, financial implications, legal obligations and duty of care. Able to assess risk, prioritise effectively and take accountability for outcomes at a senior level.
- Ethics and integrity: acts with honesty, transparency and professionalism at all times. Upholds high ethical standards, ensures fair and responsible working practices, and maintains trust with colleagues, contributors, broadcasters and partners.
- Respectful and inclusive leadership: champions inclusive, respectful and supportive working environments across the company. Values diverse perspectives, promotes equitable opportunities and embeds inclusion and wellbeing into production culture and leadership practices.
- Flexibility and adaptability: responds effectively to changing industry conditions, production demands and organisational priorities. Maintains consistent standards while adapting approaches to meet evolving business and production needs.
- Leadership and influence: provides confident, credible and empathetic leadership. Able to motivate, challenge and support senior teams, influence decision-making across the business, and set the tone for how production teams operate and collaborate.