Linklove

On my move to Avusa Media

// July 1st, 2009 // Breaking News

It would seem that I am a corporate serial monogamist.

I am taking up the position of General Manager Online at Avusa Media.

I started my career with 5 years at the Sunday Times (Avusa), managing the operation for 3 of those -  and then went on to spent 4.5 years at Naspers and now I have come full circle to return to Avusa on Aug 1 2009. In this post I have a few quick thoughts on the move which happens to be a significant change in my life. It is not easy to walk away from a dominant company like Naspers but like in many beautiful relationships sometimes they end – and it’s time to explore new things.

That said I will start by saying that Naspers is an incredible company to work for. They are globally forward thinking and Koos Bekker is a true visionary. What the group has achieved on a global internet scale is simply remarkable and forward thinking and deserves praise . In fact I would say that if you want to work in a corporate Internet environment in SA Naspers is generally the place to be. I have been privileged to report into inspirational and extremely strong people in my time there – Russell Hanly,  JP Farinha and Kim Reid my three bosses during my time have left lasting impressions on me in different ways.  Many lessons have been learnt which I hope to apply in my own career further – But it’s time to cut the apron strings and build a successful business in my own right.

I am not going to rehash my CV but you can go here to see what I have been up to at Media24/24.com/Naspers MIH Internet Africa. The highlight of which was definately running News24 for 3 years which was a successful stint – reaching 1 million domestic users and becoming profitable.

So – why did I take the Avusa position when Naspers is a environment rich with resources and opportunity? Well I think for the most part it is because I love a great challenge. Especially one where I can see the glint of potential waiting to be untapped. I also like the fact that there is an English daily newspaper in the group which is a strength in a web news media market dominated by Sapa content. This could be their ultimate edge – a floor full of qualified journalists rather than sub-editors. Its going to take rolling up the sleeves and building from the ground up which is what thrills me in life. The Times has grown strongly in the past year. I won’t dwell on the stats now but you can read my post on the matter.

My portfolio is also more than the Times. It is all the print publications in the group which are displayed alongside. My objective is to make an impact on all of these businesses and I see multiple opportunities with the Sowetan in the digital space.- So there is lots of work to be done : )

I am starting of heading up Avusa Media as GM of Online but I am also enticed by the other properties in the group. Some of which include Exclusive Books, Gallo, Numetro, I-Net Bridge, Map-IT, CareerJunction, Business Day and Financial. I hope during my tenure to also establish mutually beneficial partnerships with these other group entities.

My objectives I am setting myself on a broad scale are quite simple. I am not setting out to achieve fame – just the following:

• Grow audience reach across the titles
• Increase the bottom line and introduce new revenue streams
• Build an awesome environment with Awesome talented people
• Create a vision we can all believe in every day
• FTW!

Yes – I am very sad to leave my family for the last couple of years. I have to also say that I have worked with most of the TOP people in corporate internet in SA during my time at Naspers. I would say that 95% of the talent in SA sits within its walls. In the past year or so much new talent has been brought into the organisation which has been exciting to witness. I am not mentioning names here but you all know who you are.

So ok – THAT’S ENOUGH TALK – It’s easy to write these posts upfront promising results. Political speech writers are better at it than me.

My mission is to be able to write a post in a year’s time talking about the real successes of the year.

I look forward to that – till then.

• Biz-community interview on the move