Sky’s Andrew Griffith – Challenge the status quo to thrive

“There are far more points of similarity between us than points of difference.” So said Sky COO and CFO Andrew Griffith in his opening remarks at the NCUB’s Annual Lecture this month, seeking to emphasise the parallels between the worlds of academia and the media.

“We are both large employers, and we depend on engaging people, both students and viewers, and we need them to pay attention at a time of ever shortening attention spans.”

Griffith noted that universities and media companies like Sky are all navigating a world that is fast changing thanks to technology.

“We are now called TMT – technology, media and telecoms – and the level of change is rapid and transformational. It is literally ripping up the industry and re-assembling the bits,” said Griffith.

“Some things fade away, but we see so much more created. Take news - the best performing traditional newspaper saw a fall in circulation of 4% year on year, and most titles saw double digit falls. But news is not disappearing, it is shifting,” he added. “It is on your phone, and it is reaching many more people than before.”

Griffith then turned to the decline of traditional broadcasting. He said: “In 2011 there were 678 programmes that averaged over eight million viewers, but last year that number was…