ABC candidates’ big hits … and big misses

Louise Higgins and David Anderson are considered the two favourite internal candidates for the ABC’s top job.

David Anderson. Picture: John Feder.

Louise Higgins, the ABC finance and strategy chief, has been in an unusual position at the ABC, an executive favoured by former ABC managing director Michelle Guth­rie and by the man who sacked her, chairman Justin Milne.

Yet even that is not enough to make her the favourite internal candidate to take over after Ms Guthrie’s spectacular departure on Monday. That is interim managing director David Anderson, who came a “distant second” to Ms Guthrie when she won the top job in 2016, according to one source from the board who appointed her.

Both Ms Higgins and Mr ­Anderson have big hits and big misses on their resumes.

Ms Higgins worked extremely closely with Ms Guthrie on the ABC’s pay equality project, and was said to have Ms Guthrie’s ear over and above Mr Anderson, and operated as a second in charge. As well, she was the brains behind Mr Milne’s Project Jetstream, the giant content platform he sees as essential to the ABC’s long-term future and a replacement to ­traditional television.

Mr Milne would call Ms Higgins “two or three times a day” about Project Jetstream, bypassing his managing director as their relationship soured, a source said.

Yet two budget issues upset Mr Milne and caused problems for Ms Higgins, who has overall responsibility for the ABC budget.

A $50 million “black hole” was found in the accounts, causing a deterioration in the cash position from a shortfall of about $20m to $70m. The ABC’s high redundancy bill was one key factor.

 

The cash shortfall prompted a “heated discussion” as to how it came about. It was not regarded as serious, but as a genuine internal error that would have no long-term impact on the bottom line.

Then there was an accounting line issue in the annual report that caused the board embarrassment.

Three line items were at issue, non-cash items that would not impact the bottom line: two are ­regarded as clear-cut unexpected items for which the ABC is blameless. The third item is line-ball.

When a government portfolio entity incurs a financial loss and the Department of Finance ­decides it should have foreseen the loss, it can write to the organisation requesting remedial action. One line item could fall into this category. The issues were not seen as serious, but rather “a headache the ABC can do without”.

The ABC said in a statement: “The usual and proper audit process was followed and the ­accounts have been signed off by independent auditors. The financial statements will be fully disclosed in the annual report. There has not been an accounting error.”

Last night, in a possibly related move, it was revealed the ABC had put the former Countdown studios in Elsternwick in Melbourne on the block via real estate agency Savills, with industry analysts tipping the now-­­redundant site could draw offers of more than $40m.

While Mr Anderson is well liked by staff, his tenure as head of television and latterly as director of entertainment and specialist is marked by a mixed report card ­involving the converting of digital channel ABC2 into ABC Comedy, with its flagship comedy program Tonightly with Tom Ballard axed after causing controversy.

When launching the ABC Comedy project, he said: “I’m quite fortunate I have (an) ABC board who believe in Australian content. ‘Cause we’re investing more in Australian content from this year on.” Should his tenure become permanent, he will no doubt hope that will continue.

Additional reporting: Ben Wilmot