Editor-in-chief (Hoofdredacteur)

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An editor-in-chief is the manager of a particular editorial board, such as a newspaper board, radio board or television board. All the different editors work under the supervision of the editor-in-chief. As editor-in-chief, you coordinate the editorial staff, manage all editors and set out the editorial policy. The profession of editor-in-chief can therefore be seen as a higher management position, but within the media one generally does not speak of a manager, but of an editor-in-chief. As editor-in-chief, you try to pursue the objectives of the organization and therefore manage all the different employees. Coming up with and developing new ideas is also a task that belongs to the editor-in-chief. Other activities of an editor-in-chief can be to make new programs possible by arranging possible financing. As editor-in-chief, you are therefore an important supervisory parent with regard to the entire editorial staff. It is also the editor-in-chief who manages all the different editorial staff. In practice, this will in many cases mean that an editor-in-chief has a lot to do with other editors, who will manage the various editorial staff. The work of an editor-in-chief should generally be seen more as organizational work, in which quality assurance, ethics, finances, vision and course monitoring are important words. As editor-in-chief, you not only have to deal with the various editors,because an editor-in-chief will also have many meetings with the board members. The position of editor-in-chief generally only occurs within the larger media companies.

‎The position of editor-in-chief should therefore be seen as an important management function within the media sector. An editor-in-chief generally only appears at the larger mega-companies such as national newspapers, national television broadcasters and national ‎‎radio broadcasters‎‎. Smaller regional media companies generally make more use of editors. The editor-in-chief is the manager of the editors-in-chief, editors and other employees of the editorial board. It is the editor-in-chief who determines which topics are covered and exactly what course the media company will follow. Consultations and meetings with the management are also part of the branches of an editor-in-chief. In addition, an editor-in-chief is usually also the point of contact for the media when they have certain questions. As editor-in-chief, you're usually also responsible for budget monitoring. In that respect, an editor-in-chief can also be regarded as ‎‎a financial manager‎‎, but this can differ per organization.‎

‎The editor-in-chief should therefore be seen more as a ‎‎manager‎‎ than as an ‎‎editor‎‎ or ‎‎editor-in-chief‎‎. It is the editor-in-chief who supervises the daily work of other editors in the editorial board. The editor-in-chief is more concerned with the future vision of a certain organization and the development of new ‎‎ideas‎‎ that fit the media company. Attracting and ‎‎negotiating‎‎ with well-known people who ‎‎fit‎‎ in with the media company can also be part of the editor's business package.‎

‎TASKS OF AN EDITOR-IN-CHIEF:‎

  • ‎Management tasks (day-to-day management)‎
  • ‎Speaking to the media and other interested parties‎
  • ‎Developing new ideas (addressing the target group)‎
  • ‎Meetings and consultations with the editor-in-chief‎
  • ‎Meetings and consultations with the management‎
  • ‎Taking care of the finances‎
  • ‎Monitoring legal aspects‎

‎WHAT DOES AN EDITOR-IN-CHIEF DO:‎

‎TRAINING TO BECOME EDITOR-IN-CHIEF‎

‎The most obvious programme as ‎‎editor-in-chief is the Bachelor's degree in Journalism‎‎. However, another hbo or university education is certainly also possible, because the position of editor-in-chief involves more than just being able to write correctly. As editor-in-chief, you will have to be a real manager with managerial abilities. Accounting is ‎‎also‎‎ important as an entrepreneur.‎

‎COMPANIES WHERE AN EDITOR-IN-CHIEF CAN WORK‎

‎In general, an editor-in-chief will only work for the larger national media companies, such as newspaper publishers, ‎‎television broadcasters‎‎ and radio ‎‎broadcasters‎‎. These are generally editorial boards in which many different ‎‎editorial staff‎‎ work. If it concerns really large media companies for which an editor-in-chief works, an editor-in-chief may also have to deal with an ‎‎image editor‎‎. In addition, an editor-in-chief can work for the larger ‎‎news websites‎‎. In fact, an editor-in-chief can work anywhere if there is media. This can relate to various forms of ‎‎online publishers‎‎ today.‎

‎COMPETENCES EDITOR-IN-CHIEF‎

‎The most important competence of an editor-in-chief is the managerial abilities as ‎‎a manager‎‎, because the profession of editor-in-chief should be seen as a management position. In addition, an editor-in-chief must have excellent ‎‎communication‎‎ skills, because as editor-in-chief you will have to deal with different types of employees, the ‎‎management‎‎ and any guests. A commercial institution is also generally important as editor-in-chief, because budget control also belongs to the responsibilities of the editor-in-chief. In general, vision and creativity can be regarded as important competencies. Other important words are ‎‎inspiring‎‎, ‎‎motivating‎‎, controlling and vigilance. Finally, it is also important that an editor-in-chief has a flexible working attitude and is ‎‎stress-resistant‎‎.‎

‎LABOUR MARKET PERSPECTIVE AND CAREER OPPORTUNITIES AS EDITOR-IN-CHIEF‎

‎The labour market perspective as editor-in-chief is generally not very large, because relatively speaking not many media companies use an editor-in-chief. In addition, the profession of editor-in-chief is a profession that is not just accessible to everyone. An editor-in-chief must have a lot of knowledge, skills and competences to be able to work as an editor-in-chief. Most editors-in-chief are asked for the position of editor-in-chief because they have the right competencies. The career opportunities as editor-in-chief can perhaps be seen in eventually becoming the ‎‎Chief Executive Officer‎‎ of the organization for which you work. But the profession of editor-in-chief is already a high-level profession.‎

‎TERMS OF EMPLOYMENT AND SALARY EDITOR-IN-CHIEF‎

‎There are no specific employment conditions for the profession of editor-in-chief, because you can work for different types of companies. Also, it is not possible to give a salary indication for this profession, because the salary per person and media company can vary enormously.‎

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