What makes a great morning show producer?

[CompleteGame]

Particularly on a rimshot station or in an unrated market.... Does rolodex matter? Pre-produced comedy bits with good production value? Subscribing to show prep sites and customizing it to your area? Or using a lot of excerpted audio as a set-up to a topic segment?

I'm starting to believe that for a talk-intensive format the producer might be even more critical than the talent.

[josh]

That the producer might be even more critical than the talent is very, very unlikely. The on-air talent is the guy/gal that can do improvisation, can make people laugh, knows just what to say, etc.

 A producer needs to do his/her job but generally speaking, producers don't seem to last long, generally speaking.

[ProducerGuy]

Work ethic and dedication have been the things I've gotten by on. The technical stuff, booking guests, etc. can be done by anyone. A guy who's willing to sit behind the board for 24 hours during a snowstorm because none of the air talent can make it in? That's the guy you want.

The people who think producers are disposable or interchangeable have never had a good producer. Unfortunately, that's the majority of owners/PDs now. It's damn hard to find work as a producer anymore.

[Slurpee]

As a talk show host, I love my producer. He is the one that can read my mind and know exactly where I am going, sometimes even before I do.  He is always looking and even checking material during the show.  Good ones are hard to find and I've met alot of talent that think the producer is their "bitch".  A good producer is part of the show. Is the producer more critical than the talent?  You cannot lift one above the other, the producer is a part of the total package.   As far as a rolodex?  Someone decent can figure out a way to get someone on the air.  Having contacts is important, but not a deal breaker for me.  Knowing that I can trust the person running mission control is.
In the overall sceme of things though, a producer these days also has to wear more than one hat, just like talent.  Thankfully, mine can engineer, set up a remote, host a remote, cut commercials and even fill in for me in an emergency. I'd take a pay cut if it meant saving my producers job, it may be my show but my producer is a part of my show.