HR strategy and workforce planning for OTT production companies: staffing a season from script to delivery
A season moves through writing, pre-production, shoot and a long post. Each phase needs different people, so planning when to hire and release keeps cost and idle time under control.
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Share your requirementsWhy HR strategy and workforce planning matters in OTT production companies
Most OTT houses hire as problems arrive. Directors are locked in, then the production manager discovers there is no costume lead. Editors are booked before scripts are final. VFX artists wait for footage that arrives late. The delivery date is fixed, so the company pays for idle people early and overtime late.
A workforce plan sets out the phases of the season and the roles needed in each. It shows the months in which each role starts and ends, which roles are core and which are per season, and which people are shared across projects. It does not need to be complex: one sheet, updated whenever the platform changes a date.
How to set it up
1. Draw the season on a single page
List phases with dates: development, writing, pre-production, shoot, picture lock, sound and colour, delivery.
2. List roles by phase
For each phase, name roles needed, the number of people and whether they are core, per season or on call.
3. Mark pinch points
Find months in which many departments peak together and months in which people sit idle. Consider overlapping seasons or sharing people.
4. Decide the hiring order
Hire creative heads first, then production, then departments. Set dates to start search, to offer and to join.
5. Revisit at every platform change
When dates or scope move, update the sheet and tell department heads. Link to role design so each role is clear.
Check these first
Before changing anything, find out what is true today. These take an afternoon and use your own records.
- Draw your last season's phases and mark when each department started and finished.
- Count idle weeks for editors and VFX artists last season.
- Ask the production manager which role was hired too late.
- See whether any overlap between two seasons was planned or accidental.
GullyHR can do this with you. Read how we approach HR strategy and workforce planning in general, or share your requirements and we will tell you where to start.
Questions owners ask
At least a season, and a sketch of the next. The platform may change dates, so keep the plan short and easy to update.
Yes. A shared sheet kept by the production manager is enough to begin. The value is in looking at the whole season, not in the tool.
Tell department heads quickly, decide who holds and who is released, and agree what is paid during a hold. Ask a qualified professional about terms for held freelancers.