Ariana Television and Radio Network
Recruited to lead, with P&L responsibility, Afghan Wireless’ (a GSM cellular operator owned by Telephone Systems International) entry into new digital media markets (i.e. television & radio) in Afghanistan.
- Led the development of ARIANA Television & Radio, a start-up national broadcaster in Afghanistan, from business planning stage to “on air” launch in 9 months. Managed market quantification, gap analysis of existing government & private media offerings already in place, branding, and positioning, as well as, operational implementation.
- Built a high-performance, regionally-dispersed international organization based primarily in Kabul, Afghanistan, with specialized expatriate resources in Dubai, UAE (sourcing) and Fort Lee, NJ (content acquisition, marketing, global partner management, and financial control) from conceptual plan to inception.
- Developed overall project budget (both capital expenditures and recurring operational costs), managed against this budget, and provided Company owners with analysis & justification for purchasing & operational choices based on financial & strategic ROI. Initial capex spend was >$2M. Identified, negotiated with, and managed relationships with strategic equipment and systems integration vendors (for both studio and network transmission technology). Also, developed and installed financial control, cash preservation, and P&L management systems, including software selection and training, in the Kabul office.
- Hired initial staff and assumed responsibility for overall team that, at its high point in launch phase, comprised approximately 180 people. The Kabul-based team included both Afghan nationals and international expatriate consultants. Activities included writing job descriptions; developing & communicating HR polices on issues such as pay, bonuses, travel, etc.; addressing challenging staff issues (e.g. accusations of theft of money & property, sexual harassment); and initiated training / mentoring programs to expose/develop junior staff from the war-torn country to modern television and radio broadcast practices.
- Performed primary market research and customer segmentation to enable development & acquisition of a successful programming mix. Personally traveled to Cannes, France to attend global media content trade shows and negotiated the licensing of educational content from companies such as PBS, National Geographic, MTV, etc.