Bérangère Michel appointed BBC’s Chief Financial Officer

Michel previously spent 16 years at the John Lewis Partnership, where she held roles including Chief Financial Officer (CFO), Customer Service Executive Director, Operations Director, and Finance and Strategy Director.

Before joining the John Lewis Partnership, Michel spent 11 years at the Royal Mail Group in a number of finance, change and strategy roles, including as Finance Director of the property division.

Michel will be responsible for the overall BBC Group financial strategy, with a remit across BBC Public Service, BBC Studios, and the BBC’s commercial subsidiaries. She will play a leadership role and will sit on both the Executive Committee and – for the first time – the board.

The BBC said her position will strengthen its financial leadership, support its transformation, and make the best use of the licence fee and commercial opportunities.

When she takes up the role in early January 2025, Michel will report to the BBC’s Director-General. Currently, this is Tim Davie. However, as he tendered his resignation in November 2025, the BBC is now in the process of appointing his successor before the next Royal Charter. In the interim, Davie will continue to work in his previous capacity.

Davie commented: “Bérangère brings a wealth of experience from her time at the John Lewis Partnership and will play a critical role in shaping our new financial strategy. I’m pleased to welcome her to the BBC and to both the executive committee and board.

“Bérangère’s appointment to this expanded role comes at an important time for the BBC, as we look ahead to charter renewal and continue to accelerate our transformation to deliver outstanding value for our audiences.”

Samir Shah, Chair of the BBC, added: “The role of Group CFO will be hugely important as we build a BBC for the future, and I look forward to welcoming Bérangère to the board.”

Shumeet Banerji recently resigned from the BBC board and criticised governance issues at the corporation. Discover more here.