Former House of Travel chief executive Kevin Kenrick is expected to be named as the new chief executive of Television New Zealand.
It is the latest in a series of shake-ups at the state broadcaster and will likely be welcomed by TV stars and back room staff alike.
With no CEO in place and a number of other executive defections this year TVNZ has been in limbo as the board sought a replacement for Rick Ellis.
The Weekend Herald understands the CEO position was offered to a well-qualified Australian executive with a salary package of $1 million.
But when the board subsequently reappraised the package as being worth about $650,000, the executive withdrew. TVNZ declined to discuss the executive search process and is not discussing the pay package.