Jennie Baird

Chief Product Officer
BBC Studios

Picture of Jennie Baird

Jennie Baird, Chief Product Officer for BBC Studios, is a digital media trailblazer. Throughout her career she has driven growth and innovation for some of the media industry’s most successful digital brands and legacy-to-digital crossovers. She is responsible for BBC Studios’ global product strategy, ensuring the company maximizes the value of its digital portfolio - including its wide array of digital direct to consumer touchpoints as well as the digital capabilities that enable them. She is also a key connector between BBC Studios and teams across BBC Group.

Previously, Jennie served as Executive Vice President and Managing Director in BBC Studios’ Global Media and Streaming division, shepherding the Company’s vision and investment in driving audience growth across BBC’s digital news and factual products around the globe, including rebuilding and scaling BBC.com and the BBC News international mobile app, as well as managing BBC Studios’ direct-to-consumer documentary service, BBC Select, and BBC Podcasts.

Before joining BBC Studios in February 2022, Jennie was Global Head of Product at News Corp where she was responsible for enterprise product development and product strategy, working between News Corp HQ and its portfolio of diverse brands and business units including Dow Jones, WSJ.com, HarperCollins, Realtor.com, The Times of London, Foxtel, and more. Prior to that she held various roles at a number of large-scale digital businesses, including AOL, iVillage, and Entertainment Weekly. Earlier in her career, she was instrumental in bringing the pioneering and award-winning website SmartMoney.com to market in the mid-1990s. She also co-founded the cult baby name website, BabyNameWizard.com, exiting with a sale to CafeMedia. 

While a proponent of technology, Jennie is also outspoken about the rapid pace of change and unintended consequences new technology has wrought on individuals and society. She serves as board Chair of The Ethical Tech Project, a nonprofit “think-and-do” tank, dedicated to building and promoting standards and solutions that support human wellbeing.

Outside of work, Jennie is certified in Mental Health First Aid and volunteers as a suicide bereavement support facilitator. She is also an avid gardener and forager.

 

 

Streaming Media NYC 2024