Media Manager 

(Female, Age 24) from San Rafael, CA

This is a REAL-LIFE job profile written by a Female aged 24 who works as a Media Manager in San Rafael, CA. We have removed all names and personal information in order to protect privacy. This professional kindly spent a bit of their time to complete one of our job profile surveys so that prospective job seekers like you could read their insights. Please excuse any punctuation or grammatical errors in this profile.

At a Glance

Current Job

Basic data on your current job

Job Title Media Manager
Salary $30,000
Other Compensation None Set
Hours/Week 28
Company Size (not answered)
Location San Rafael, CA
Years Experience 1 month

Career Ratings

Opinions on your CAREER overall (i.e. not just your current job)

Years in Career 0
Education (not answered)
Income Rating 0 / 10
Interest Rating 0 / 10
Work-Life Rating 0 / 10
Fulfilment Rating 0 / 10

Current job Q&A

Describe the type of organization you work for.
I work for ABC in San Francisco. It’s a large company owned by Disney, with satellite stations across the globe. ABC7, the affiliate I work for in SF, is in the #6 market in the US, meaning our regional viewership is ranked #6 in the US. I primarily work for a live, daily broadcast talk show, but as I’m the media manager (and occasional segment producer) I work for 2 other spin-off shows as well.

Describe your job role and responsibilities.
I manage all media related to our primary show, The View From The Bay, and it’s off-shoots, Everyday Living, and Home With Lisa Quinn. I burn archive files to blu-ray, I flip shows to be archived, I digitize materials for upcoming shows, and help in the overall maintenance of the digital and analog media. In short, I’m the uber-organizer.

Please list an additional benefits (beyond compensation) that you receive.
N/A

Do you feel you are under/over or well/fairly compensated at your current position?
Under compensated, BUT I enjoy my work and sometimes I think that’s what’s most important.

Does your job entail you working with others on a daily basis? Is this something you like/dislike about your job? Please explain.
Yes. I LOVE the people I work with and it makes the job that much more enjoyable. My hours have changed to a later start in the day, so I have less overlapping hours with everyone else in the office, but I truly enjoy the time spent with them, as well as with those I may produce a segment for.

Do you work collaboratively with supervisors/managers?
Yes

Do you work collaboratively with your co-workers?
Yes

Describe your work location (e.g., office, home, theatre, in the field) and what you like/dislike about working in it.
I work in an office location, attached to a studio. It can feel a bit industrial at times, but the nature of the work counters that pretty well.

Please rate each of the following aspects of your current job on a scale of 1-10 (10 being the highest/best):
Income: 7
Benefits: 8
Hours: 6
Co-Workers: 3
Supervisors: 4
Job Title: 5
Level of Responsibility: 2
The Actual Work: 1

Table of Contents

How you got your job

How did you get your current job?
Networking- family friend

What was the application process?
submitted resume- but it was more of a formality

Did you have to interview for your current job? If yes, what did the interview process entail?
Not exactly. I was brought in to meet my supervisor who had already decided to hire me. The interview was just a last minute check to make sure I wasn’t crazy.

If you can remember, what questions were you asked during the interview?
N/A

Do you feel your employer properly prepared you for your job? Explain.
Yes. I was promoted when they saw my ability to handle more responsibility.

Was there training for your current position? If yes, what did it entail?
Yes and no. The training was catered to what I already knew. What I knew was an accumulation of years of interning, school, and set experience. It’s a ladder industry. You can’t start at the top, you have to work your way up.

Do you feel your educational background prepared you for your job? Explain.
Yes. I have a much broader understanding of theories and concepts, as well as hands-on technical skills needed to put me ahead of the rest.

If applicable, do you feel your internship experience helped you prepare for your job?
I never interned at my current job, by my past intern experiences definitely helped prepare me

If someone wanted to go about getting a job similar to yours, what would you recommend for him or her to do?
As it’s an industry where most people learn from observation, if someone has not gone to school to study film/tv production, I suggest that they find someone to shadow, or an internship in the field. Our interns are given a LARGE amount of responsibilities and many leave their internship having produced broadcast TV segments. There’re few industries like this, and for the most part people seem to want to help when they can.

What skills do you think a person should have if they want to pursue a position like yours?
Punctuality- showing up and on time is half the battle

Attention to Detail- What goes on air is broadcast to thousands or even millions. You want them to trust you, and to do that you should try to triple check what you do.

Hard-Worker- Effort… it’s more important than skill in most cases.

Drive/Motivation- The pay isn’t great, the days tend to be long, it takes someone that really wants to do the job, to do the job.

Otherwise, the same skills that would apply to any mixed-responsibility position.

Do you feel that you need a certain level of education or training to be successful in your job?
I do not feel as though an education is a necessity if someone’s willing to put in the hours of free labor, however it REALLY helps.

What advice would you give to someone who was about to start work in your position/ line of work?
Do your research. Get your hands wet. There’s nothing better when looking at an incoming employee than to see that no matter what level their skills are at, they can identify basic concepts.

Long-term career plans

Is your current employment part of your overall career plan? Why or why not?
Yes, but indirectly. I’d eventually like to be a documentary filmmaker part of the year, and teach at the university level the other part.

What are your current career goals?
See above.

Is there anything else you would like to share about your career?
I can’t stress enough how important it is to love what you’re doing if you enter this career. It’s not as glamorous as people make it out to be. TV/Film production is extremely grueling and those entering the field should be prepared to work long hours for little to no pay for at least a year before moving forward. Be the person you would want to hire.

Educational background

Please list your educational background:

High School GPA:

GPA School Degree
College (Undergraduate)
or Technical/Vocational
NYU Film & TV Production
Graduate or Professional
(Masters or Doctorate)

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