BBC Worldwide shakes up ad sales team in restructure

BBC Advertising executive vice-president and general manager Chris Dobson is stepping down from BBC Worldwide later this year, following a major reorganisation of the business.

Dobson’s departure comes amid a BBC Worldwide reorganisation ‘along geographic lines’. Under the new structure, BBC Worldwide’s ad funding media assets will be partially decentralised as its wholly-owned local channels are migrated into regional P&Ls.

The global ad sales for BBC World News, BBC.com and BBC World Service will remain centralised in London, as well as ad sales for external clients including Lonely Planet and Viki.com in international markets.

The central function will be led by Carolyn Gibson, who takes on the newly-created position of executive vice-president international advertising sales. In her new role, Gibson’s remit will be to set strategy and oversee BBC Worldwide’s key international and global clients. She will report to BBC Worldwide America president Herb Scannell.

Most recently, Gibson was BBC Advertising senior vice-president, international sales, EMEA and Americas. Before that she was a founding member of the BBC World News airtime sales team when it formed in 1998 following a number of years in international sales roles at IP Network and Star TV.

Under the new structure, BBC Advertising senior vice-president ad sales Asia, Sunita Rajan, will become an executive vice-president and take on responsibility for BBC.com and Lonely Planet ad sales in Australia. BBC Advertising executive vice-president ad sales US & Canada Mark Gall will add responsibility for Latin America to his remit for the same assets.