Chief Bureau Broadcast Engineer in Yerevan, Armenia

Summary:

Reporting to Manager, Field/Bureau Engineering in Prague, with a dotted line to Bureau Chief, and coordinating broadcast engineering activities with the Bureau Chief/Service Director, he/she supervises a variety of tasks associated with maintenance of the bureau broadcasting technology and multimedia equipment, including its day-to-day maintenance, troubleshooting, upgrades, user support, and multimedia data backups, as well as for the bureau basic facility infrastructure.

Responsibilities:

• Provides full broadcast technological support to the Language Service, and other RFE/RL news department present in the given country, and is familiar with their content. The support may include overtime, late shift work, IT work, and discussing/agreeing on dialy priorities between News and Technology, as well as coordinating on potential security risks.
• Treats the Bureau Chief and staff as their primary customer, discusses priorities with them, and ensures they receive the highest level of support possible within the constrains of available budget and technical standards.
• Within a dotted line to Bureau Chief, informs him/her about his vacations, sick leaves. etc. to ensure an adequate support is provided.
• Supervises the daily activities of the Bureau broadcast engineering and ensures their accomplishing in a timely, professional and efficient manner, and if there is additional broadcast engineering staff, supervises their daily activities and ensures their accomplishing tasks in a timely, professional and efficient manner, and provides them advice, guidance and training.
• Oversees installing, testing, operating and maintaining hardware, electric power supply and Heating, ventilation, and air conditioning (HVAC) in the Bureau.
• Ensures high availability of all ENG (Electronic News Gathering) equipment by maintaining digital and analog multi-media equipment such as studio consoles, recorders, NLE’s (Non-Linear Editors) such as digital audio & video workstations, still and video cameras, and other equipment, to ensure that programs are of a high audio and visual quality.
• Superintends local User Support/Help Desk functions and the training to the Bureau staff on broadcast technology.
• Makes sure the Prague TOC (Technical Operations Center) is informed of the operational status of the bureau on a regular basis, reports technical deficiencies and problems in a timely manner, and suggests the speediest and most cost-effective solutions.
• Assists in developing and ensuring successful implementation and compliance with Standard Operating Procedures and all safety regulations, and uses Industry Best Practices when performing duties and tasks assigned.
• Writes professional guidelines for the installation and maintenance of various technology equipment and studios, if needed.
• Coordinates broadcast engineering work with the Language Service and with other company departments.
• Provides documentation on all projects and assists with quality control documentation. Creates and maintains detailed electronic drawings for planning and documentation. Maintains records and prepares reports as required by management.
• Monitors the performance of and ensures proper maintenance of the Bureau facilities under lease including issues related to life safety.
• Monitors the usage of all bureau utilities and leased line contracts and suggests means and methods of maximizing efficiencies.
• Observes and reports on the status of electrical systems (properly wired, well-grounded, no exposed cables, burn marks, etc), backup power systems such as a UPS (Uninterruptible Power Supply) and generator, structural integrity (identify and report water leaks, cracks in the foundation or walls/ceilings, roof, etc), and any other bureau infrastructure issue that may arise.
• Cooperates closely with the Bureau Administrator and Prague-based supervisor in terms of issuing requisitions for technology and multimedia equipment and ongoing technical operations maintenance.
• Keeps abreast of relevant technical developments.
• Contributes to creating and maintaining a positive work environment.
• Functions as a translator to ensure unencumbered communication between management and the Engineers. Ensures that the shops are kept clean and presentable at all times. Shift and night work required. As directed, performs other duties consistent with his/her qualifications and professional experience.
• Adheres to and complies with all technology standards, policies, and regulations as outlined by Technical Management in Prague. In addition, complies with local regulations and codes concerning workplace safety and technical/electrical installations.
• Performs other related duties, incl. supporting and operating any other technology used in the bureau, as assigned.

Minimum Qualifications

Education:

• Preferably university degree in a relevant technology area;
• Specialized training in maintaining modern radio/TV equipment (or equivalent professional experience);
• Certification of formal education and/or proof of equivalent professional experience.

Experience:

• Five years minimum required in a similar (technical/managerial) position;
• Experience with maintaining digital and analog ENG (Electronic News Gathering) equipment.

Competencies:

• Skill set and experience to be able to maintain IT systems (hardware & software);
• Experience with networking techniques;
• Knowledge of telecommunications systems, familiarity with VSAT (Very Small Aperture Terminal) and MPLS (Multiprotocol Label Switching) technology is a plus;
• Knowledge of power systems, including UPS (Uninterruptable Power Supplies) and backup power generation equipment;
• Broadcasting/multimedia engineering & production;
• Working speaking, reading, and writing ability in English in addition to a broadcast language, Russian language ability when relevant;
• Ability to work under pressure.

Languages:

• Local language
• English language
• Russian language