BBC Studios appoints Amanda Jones as Chief Financial Officer

BBC Studios has today announced the appointment of Amanda Jones as Chief Financial Officer (CFO). She was previously interim CFO. Jones will join the BBC Studios Executive Committee and will become a member of the BBC’s Commercial Board. She will take up the role in August, reporting to Tom Fussell, Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of BBC Studios/Commercial.

As CFO Jones will be responsible for the overall financial strategy and teams for the BBC’s commercial group, as well as overseeing budgeting, reporting, business support and financial controls.  She will work closely with the CEO and the rest of the executive committee, as well as key BBC Group and external stakeholders, to shape strategy that will help the company deliver its ambitious commercial plans.  

Jones has a wide-ranging background in finance, working across media organisations such as Sky, ITV and Emap, as well as data, insight and consulting company Kantar. She has held several finance executive roles, most recently as CFO of Kantar Worldpanel, where she is credited with transforming the finance function and supporting the business in delivering a comprehensive change agenda across commercial, operational, product and technology functions to enable revenue growth, and support more efficient and technology-enabled ways of working. 

Tom Fussell, CEO, BBC Studios, said: “As BBC Studios seeks to grow its business in a highly challenging market, Amanda will be instrumental in helping us drive the business forward to deliver against our ambitious plans. She is a highly commercial finance executive with extensive experience at board level in large and global organisations and holds an impressive track record in bringing together different businesses and supporting digital product growth strategies in traditional media organisations.  Having worked with Amanda in her interim role over the last few months, I’m delighted she will be joining the executive team on a permanent basis.

“I also wanted to share my thanks to Lorraine Burgess, who is stepping down from the role, for the enormous contribution she has made to the growth of BBC Studios since she joined in 2021. She has been a much loved and respected colleague across the whole company, and I wish her well, and continued success, with her future plans.”

Amanda Jones added: “I’m delighted to be joining BBC Studios at such a pivotal point on its journey. As a world-renowned content company with a distinctive global brand, BBC Studios has enormous potential for continued growth and innovation. I look forward to working closely with the leadership team to drive sustainable growth, strengthen our financial strategy, and support its creative and commercial ambitions around the world.”

Today’s news follows a year of commercial and creative success for the BBC’s commercial group, announced earlier this month as part of the BBC’s Annual Report and Accounts (ARA).  

A global media company, borne of the BBC, BBC Studios makes and distributes the world’s most sought-after content, as well as creating and nurturing iconic brands. In addition to being the BBC’s biggest supplier of programming, with hits such as Strictly Come Dancing, Return to Paradise and The Americas, it also creates global hits for partners including Apple, Disney+, Netflix and more, such as Prehistoric Planet, Bluey and Baby Reindeer, and operates thriving media and streaming businesses, including BritBox and UKTV.

-Ends-

For more information, please contact:

Susannah Clark – susannah.clark@bbc.com

Gwen Eluned – gwen.eluned@bbc.com