Introduction

The WAN-IFRA Media Professionals Programme (MPP) provides mid-level media professionals with personalised, high-impact leadership development opportunities, supported by local and regional experts. It equips them with sustainable strategies, skills and support networks to advance their careers and contribute to the growth of strong local media enterprises. MPP will launch in select countries throughout South East Asia and Middle East & North Africa in 2012. MPP/MENA will run in Egypt, Libya and Tunisia and is open to newspapers and online media.

About the Programme

MPP takes a multi-disciplinary approach to leadership development, incorporating elements of coaching, networking and informal mentoring alongside practical skills development. The programme builds upon the highly successful leadership development programme Women in News, which has been operational since 2010 in the countries of Botswana, Namibia and Zambia. MPP’s mission is to support the professional development of the new generation of media leaders that contribute to the evolution of strong, independent media in emerging and developing markets. 

The programme is rooted in a unique combination of skills transfer, local and international knowledge‐share, as well as the creation of long-term, self-sustaining networks between media professionals.

 Throughout 2012, participants will meet on three occasions for events that combine individual career coaching, leadership skills development workshops and networking activities. Informal peer mentoring will also be encouraged throughout the programme. 

 Eight mid-level managers from Egypt, Libya and Tunisia will be accepted to the programme in 2012. MPP/MENA seeks to incorporate an equal breakdown between editorial and commercial professionals, and achieve a 50/50 gender balance.

The programme will run from June to December 2012. Travel is required.

Programme Benefits

Successful applicants will benefit from the following personalised, high-impact professional development opportunities as part of the programme:

Individual Coaching to Create the ‘Career Roadmap’:  Participants work with a trained career coach to develop 3 to 5 year career action plan. Throughout this process, participants identify their strengths and weaknesses, and how to leverage their networks and attain the necessary skills to advance professionally.

Leadership and Media Management Skills Development: Participants benefit from a leadership development curriculum that has been specifically designed for the programme by recognised international and regional media experts. The curriculum combines practical leadership skills development with the fundamentals of media management.

Additional skills development sessions take the form of keynotes, case study presentations and roundtable discussions on both editorial and business topics.

Potential skills development topics include:

• Editorial development: newsroom structuring; job descriptions/staff roles and responsibilities, editorial direction, media convergence, etc.
• Business development: business plans; financing and revenue generation; forecasting; advertising and sales structures; new product development, etc.

WAN-IFRA will work with participants to select the skills development topics that are most relevant to their professional development goals and skills gaps, resulting in a highly personalised skills development curriculum.

Networking: Participants will develop their business networks and support systems both nationally, regionally and internationally through regular gatherings in formal and informal settings (e.g. during regional or international conferences). Participants will also undergo practical training in how to build a business network as well as practical networking tools.

Additional Benefits: Enrolment in the programme grants a one-year exclusive membership to WAN-IFRA for all participating media companies. 

About WAN-IFRA

WAN-IFRA, based in Paris, France, and Darmstadt, Germany, with subsidiaries in Singapore, India, Spain, France and Sweden, is the global organisation of the world’s newspapers and news publishers. It represents more than 18,000 publications, 15,000 online sites and over 3,000 companies in more than 120 countries. Its core mission is to defend and promote press freedom, quality journalism and editorial integrity and the development of prosperous businesses. 

For more information, contact Mira Milosevic at md.mpdp@wan-ifra.org