In an email to all staff on Wednesday 17 March 2010, Peter Horrocks, Director of Global News, outlined the future direction of BBC Global News.

Today I am sharing with you the future direction of BBC Global News.

The changes I have announced today are designed to improve our culture, structure and processes to enable them to become even more global. That's why I'm calling today's changes: "Becoming more global". We need to become more global both in our content and more global in how we work within the organisation; in other words, more pan-BBC.

Research shows that the audience talks about BBC rather than BBC World Service, BBC World News or BBC News. Our audiences seek distinctive multimedia content from us that gives them a unique insight into their changing. No other news organisation has such a commanding global presence as us. We can exploit that 'globalness' even better on behalf of our audiences.

Our aim is to offer audiences more original and distinctive journalism, driven by increased collaboration and across multimedia platforms. And we need to offer them high quality, trusted news, information and analysis across the broadest range of genre, how and when they want it. These changes will deliver the most exceptional multimedia and multilingual news content in the world.

With this in mind, the changes involve a reorganisation of Global News, streamlining and simplifying the division to respond to external pressures. The changes primarily focus on the senior team, with the integration of senior roles across World Service and World News wherever possible, whilst keeping those great audience brands and retaining separate accountability mechanisms as necessary.

However, this is not WS Choices, World News' 10/12 project, Future Focus or the restructure in World Service Trust. I'm not today announcing changes to our mix of language services. But the restructure I am announcing supports all of these. Because working better together is essential if we are to maximise our impact.

I'm also not proposing to change the leadership structures within BBC Monitoring and BBC World Service Trust, but we'll be looking to organise across Global News wherever possible.

Senior management changes

The principles of this senior management reorganisation are:

• Integration of senior roles across Global News wherever possible, reducing the size and cost of senior management in line with the proposals by the BBC Trust.
• All Board-level roles in Global News will have responsibility across World Service and World News to promote the widest and efficient sharing of our content.
• The main business of the division will be carried out at the divisional-level Global News Direction Group (our equivalent of a Global News Board), with operational-level Boards keeping responsibility for financial approvals and accountability to stakeholders as required by the separate funding streams.
• Clearer distinction between editorial and business responsibilities to aid accountability and to centralise business and financial functions.
• The changes made at Board level will be a demonstration of a new pan-Global News way of working which the new post holders will be expected to lead and deliver.
• All roles will be required to put collaboration at the heart of everything they do.

As the Director Global News, I also take on all the Director World Service's editorial and management responsibilities and am the Accounting Officer for BBC World Service. I am also CEO of BBC World News Limited. The separate boards still exist, but we will be able to co-ordinate our activities with unparalleled effectiveness.

Reporting to me are four key new roles.

Controller, Languages, Global News

The new role of Controller Languages Global News is responsible for all Global News language output, comprising World Service languages, (including African English, English for the Caribbean and English language teaching) and translated products for World News. I expect the new structure will help languages share the content and knowledge better than before, not only across Global News, but across the whole BBC.

Controller, English, Global News

The new role of Controller English Global News is responsible for multiplatform commissioning of all Global News English output. I expect stronger collaboration with languages and the development of greater multiplatform capability in suppliers – News, Sport, A&M and independents.

Business Director, Global News

The new role of Business Director Global News is responsible for the coherence of all business relationships, for growing commercial and business skills across the whole of Global News and an integrated approach to distribution of all our content. The Business Director will also be Managing Director of BBC World News Ltd.

Controller, Digital & Technology, Global News

The new role of Controller Digital & Technology Global News is responsible for strategy for the web and mobile-based services, including leading on product development for those platforms. This will include managing the relationship with World Service's Future Media team. They will also be the lead for Global News' relationship with the BBC's FM&T division, commissioning the services which moved there in 2009 as part of Project Next.

There are some other changes I have outlined today.

World Service Future Media

Today I have announced that World Service Future Media will eventually transfer to the wider FMT division. Timing and details are still to be finalised. I am certain that as the BBC develops more pan-BBC capabilities, for instance in mobile, ID sign-on, interactive features, photo galleries, and so on, we can benefit from sharing across BBC.

Professional Services & Operations

Most professional service senior managers continue to report in to both their own professional area in the corporate centre and to me as Director Global News.

As part of this restructure, a new Operations Group meeting will be chaired by one of the senior managers who already has responsibilities within this area. The Chair of the Operations Group is not an extra role, but will take overall responsibility for Operations.

The following roles within Operations will change their reporting lines, reporting into the Chair of the Operations Group: GNW1, Studio Operations, Health & Safety and Board management.

Goodbye

Two senior managers have decided that now is the right time for them to be announcing their departure.

Mike Cronk retires at the end of this month from his role as Controller FMT&D. Mike has been a mainstay of the World Service and Global News technology operation for as long as most people can recall. He has lead with exceptional skill to deliver cost-effective high quality technology services to the division. He will leave a real hole.

Hugh Saxby will be leaving his role as Head of Governance and Public Affairs. The history and heritage of the World Service runs like blood in Hugh's veins. He is the epitome of BBC high standards and deep care.

I will miss them both enormously.

I have asked Hugh to stay on for a period to ensure a smooth transition to the new structure.

As a result of this, individuals reporting to Mike and Hugh in the departments of Future Media, Technology & Distribution and in Governance & Public Affairs will report to other senior managers in Global News.

Editorial coordination

I have decided to create a new function to drive daily editorial co-ordination, especially of video and online, across Global News. Precisely how this function is structured, and how it reports in, will be something I decide with the new top level management team.

New appointments

The four new senior roles will be opened up for selection across the BBC, but not externally. They will be advertised within the next few days. There will be a selection process and the changes will take effect once the new person is in place in each case.

There is clearly going to be a level of disruption around these changes, but we'll get through them as soon as possible.

I appreciate that there will be sensitivities around the identities of each operation within our division. Our audiences will continue to hear and see BBC World Service and BBC World News, as well as all our languages. BBC Monitoring and BBC World Service Trust too have strong external identities. Our audience-facing brands will be retained and strengthened by these changes.

Maximum care will continue to be taken to ensure that the division works within the Fair Trading guidelines, but fair trading is not a barrier to working in a more cohesive, integrated way.

Getting ready for the future

Our move to W1 will transform the way we work and we need to get ready for that now. The integration I've announced today is designed to support our coming together with the rest of the BBC's Journalism group in W1.

It's a changing world and a complex media market. We've already responded to changes in some markets. But in a global media landscape that is constantly evolving, we have to work much harder to survive. We need to become more global. And we need to make these sorts of tough decisions about the way we organise ourselves as one team, working together, in a way that really benefits our global audience.

More information here.

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Peter