ABC chief information officer talks multimedia

Australian Broadcasting Corporation CIO, Ken Gallacher

Ken Gallacher may be the CIO for the Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC), but that doesn’t mean he is the sole provider of technology to the broadcasting giant.

“The common theme has been about getting out there with the team and the business, especially with the business and directors that are driving and shaping our technology,” he said.

Stepping into the role of CIO at the ABC about 10 months ago after a stint as a partner at accounting firm PricewaterhouseCoopers, Gallacher has held CIO roles at AMP and Westfield, but he said there has been no such thing as an average day since starting work at the iconic broadcaster. “We’ve been working on a couple of major projects around strategy, so often the mornings are a bit of a sit down and a briefing on where each of those is heading,” he said.

“Another ‘typical’ day would be when we’re in the throes of going live with some of our new technologies — there is a whole transition happening there.”

“A big part is recognising that our people understand our audiences,” he said. “Technology is such that some things must evolve more quickly, and an example of this is the use of Twitter on our show Q&A.”

Gallacher said the passionate drive of the ABC’s workforce has made it both a joy and a challenge to join the organisation as CIO.

“At first, it was like drinking from a fire hose — there was so much to take on. I started early on saying that I was going to focus on strategy, major projects, some of our key operational challenges, and on people [who are] absolutely number one,” he said.

“From a people point of view, the passion in this place is amazing. One of my challenges as the new kid on the block was coming up to speed and learning how to support that so the passion across the organisation carries on.”

Being in charge of technology projects across the areas of TV, radio and online has been a constant juggling act for Gallacher, who said projects must be driven by the needs of the business if they are to be successful.

“We have to ensure that when we transition in these projects, we do it in a way that is sustainable; that it is not only driven by what the business needs and wants but that we can sustain and support the business,” he said.

One such project is the much-discussed MediaHub content broadcast system, a joint venture between the ABC and regional network, WIN Television. Development began in 2010. The project drew criticism when an IT core switching fault disrupted broadcasting services, but the system has allowed the ABC to effectively double content delivery in the last 12 months and service two new TV channels.

“The MediaHub is a joint venture and we’re in the process of providing the technology to that,” Gallacher said. “It’s a huge and amazing step towards broadcasting on a national basis.” A refresh of the ABC’s internal technology is also on the agenda, including the recent launch of the organisation’s intranet and an overhaul of the content management system. “These [projects] are very much owned by the divisions and we’re working with them,” Gallacher said.

Gallagher and his team have also developed the IT behind ABC News 24, although the CIO said he took a hands-off approach towards creating the infrastructure for the project, as the individual departments own and shape the technology.

Next: Distributed structure — multiple IT paths meet the ABC’s needs.