Audio describer to podcast producer
An audio describer already meets 22% of what the podcast producer role asks for. The move turns on 17 required skills not yet in the profile.
77.8/ 100
1 How much of what a podcast producer is expected to do is already part of an audio describer’s work. Directional: the figure for the reverse move differs, because moving into a speciality is not the same problem as moving out of one. 2 Every skill the podcast producer role is recorded as needing, required and optional together. What these numbers mean.
Why this move works
A podcast producer role treats 5 of its required skills as things an audio describer already does. You would walk in with these on day one.
- audiovisual products
- coordinate activities in audio recording studio
- plan audiovisual recording
- record audio materials
- use microphone
What stands in the way is 17 required skills the profile does not yet cover. Table 3 groups them; Table 4 says which to take first.
Table 2 · What you already bring
Of the 8 skills that carry over, these are the ones fewest other occupations ask for. A podcast producer role needs them, and most people applying for one will not have them already. This is the part of an audio describer background worth leading with.
- already held record audio materials working with machinery and specialised equipment
- already held use microphone handling and moving
- already held add elocution techniques to recording audio materials working with machinery and specialised equipment
- already held coordinate activities in audio recording studio management skills
- already held work with a voice coach communication, collaboration and creativity
- already held plan audiovisual recording management skills
All 8 carried skills, including the 5 the podcast producer role treats as required.
Table 3 · What you may need to learn
The 29 missing skills fall into 9 areas of the ESCO skill hierarchy, numbered in the order worth working in. Areas carrying the most required skills come first, and inside each one the required skills sit above the optional ones. Nothing here is a verdict on you: it is a list of what this particular job asks for that your current one does not.
- still to learn audio mastering required
- still to learn audio post-production required
- still to learn media formats required
- still to learn audio technology required
- still to learn plan digital marketing required
- still to learn plan marketing strategy required
- still to learn supervise sound production required
- optional, not held plan social media marketing campaigns optional
- optional, not held define measurable marketing objectives optional
- still to learn marketing principles required
- still to learn social media marketing techniques required
- optional, not held advertising techniques optional
- optional, not held channel marketing optional
- optional, not held content marketing strategy optional
- still to learn prepare broadcasts required
- still to learn implement marketing strategies required
- optional, not held apply social media marketing optional
- optional, not held execute marketing plan optional
- still to learn manage sales channels required
- still to learn assess studio production required
- optional, not held draw up artistic production optional
- still to learn e-commerce systems required
- still to learn audio editing software required
3 further areas in the appendix
Table 4 · Where to start
The 3 entries a podcast producer role is least likely to hire without. The ordering is computed from the skill data, not from what pays.
Each entry opens a course search for that skill. Career Overlap earns nothing from these links.
Appendix · The rest of the record
All 8 skills that carry over
- already held audiovisual products knowledge
- already held coordinate activities in audio recording studio skill
- already held plan audiovisual recording skill
- already held record audio materials skill
- already held use microphone skill
- already held add elocution techniques to recording audio materials skill
- already held operate audio equipment skill
- already held work with a voice coach skill
The 3 learning areas not shown above
- still to learn receive appropriate permissions for use of recorded audiovisual examples required
- still to learn edit recorded sound required
- optional, not held monitor quality of broadcasts optional
- optional, not held mix multi-track recordings optional
- optional, not held record multi-track sound optional
- optional, not held set up basic recording optional
12 supplementary skills, helpful but not required
- optional, not held monitor quality of broadcasts optional
- optional, not held draw up artistic production optional
- optional, not held mix multi-track recordings optional
- optional, not held plan social media marketing campaigns optional
- optional, not held record multi-track sound optional
- optional, not held set up basic recording optional
- optional, not held advertising techniques optional
- optional, not held apply social media marketing optional
- optional, not held channel marketing optional
- optional, not held content marketing strategy optional
- optional, not held define measurable marketing objectives optional
- optional, not held execute marketing plan optional
27 held skills the podcast producer role does not ask for
- not needed by the target role adapt voice register to the audio material skill
- not needed by the target role apply grammar and spelling rules skill
- not needed by the target role attend read-through skill
- not needed by the target role audiovisual equipment knowledge
- not needed by the target role breathing techniques knowledge
- not needed by the target role communication related to hearing impairment knowledge
- not needed by the target role cooperate with colleagues skill
- not needed by the target role integrate content into output media skill
- not needed by the target role listen actively skill
- not needed by the target role manage a good diction skill
- not needed by the target role multimedia systems knowledge
- not needed by the target role perform improvisation skill
- not needed by the target role present during live broadcasts skill
- not needed by the target role pronunciation techniques knowledge
- not needed by the target role report live online skill
- not needed by the target role screen reader knowledge
- not needed by the target role study media sources skill
- not needed by the target role study roles from scripts skill
- not needed by the target role support people with hearing impairment skill
- not needed by the target role synchronise with mouth movements skill
- not needed by the target role types of media knowledge
- not needed by the target role use audio reproduction software skill
- not needed by the target role use office systems skill
- not needed by the target role vocal techniques knowledge
- not needed by the target role write in conversational tone skill
- not needed by the target role write voice-overs skill
- not needed by the target role write work-related reports skill
11 gaps that are knowledge rather than practice
Knowledge gaps usually close through study. Practical skill gaps usually need something you can point at.
- still to learn audio mastering required
- still to learn audio post-production required
- still to learn e-commerce systems required
- still to learn media formats required
- still to learn audio editing software required
- still to learn audio technology required
- still to learn marketing principles required
- still to learn social media marketing techniques required
- optional, not held advertising techniques optional
- optional, not held channel marketing optional
- optional, not held content marketing strategy optional
Common questions about this move
Can an audio describer become a podcast producer?
Yes, and it is a career change move. An audio describer already covers 22% of what a podcast producer is expected to do: 8 skills carry over, 5 of which the podcast producer role treats as required.
What skills does an audio describer need to become a podcast producer?
17 required skills are missing, plus 12 optional ones. They fall into 9 areas of the ESCO skill hierarchy, led by arts and humanities. The single most important is audio mastering.
How hard is the move from audio describer to podcast producer?
Its learning distance is 77.8 out of 100, which is the career change band. That accounts for both how much is missing and how specialised those skills are.
How this record was compiled
Both occupations are taken from ESCO, which lists the skills and knowledge each occupation is expected to have and marks every one required or optional. Nothing here is a prediction about hiring, and nothing here knows that a particular employer wants a particular certificate. Treat Table 3 as a starting point for your own research rather than a syllabus. The full method states what these figures can and cannot tell you.