UKTV names Michaelides as chief marketing and innovation officer

BBC Studios-owned multichannel broadcaster UKTV has named Simon Michaelides as its new chief marketing and innovation Officer (CMIO). In this newly created role at the broadcaster, he will replace chief marketing and communications officer, Zoë Clapp, who is leaving the company.

Simon Michaelides

Reporting to UKTV CEO Marcus Arthur, Michaelides will lead the marketing, consumer communications, social and online, media, creative and innovation teams, as well as an activity known as content and product funding, tasked with seeking new revenue streams and partnerships.

Michaelides was previously chief transformation officer at UKTV and BBC Studios UK,  responsible for leading the post-acquisition integration and development of the combined UKTV and BBC Studios business. Prior to taking on this role, he served as UKTV’s executive board marketing director, and latterly as chief commercial officer, overseeing the company’s third-party platform relationships and all commercial activity.

He joined UKTV in January 2012, having spent 15 years in a combination of management consultancy and commercial marketing roles at Kantar Consulting, Procter & Gamble and PepsiCo.He will take up his new post from mid-December.

“With new brands, products and audiences an increasingly important driver of success at UKTV, I felt it was essential to evolve our marketing and innovation activity to ensure strong and consistent growth. With ambitions to expand the reach of the company, in addition to marketing, this new role will play a key part in on-going innovation for BBC Studios Distribution in the UK. This includes UKTV’s Content and Product Funding team, as well as opening new commercial revenue streams and partnerships, essential to our future success in an increasingly competitive market. The depth and breadth of experience Simon brings to the role will help future-proof the company and I’m confident he will deliver great results,” said Arthur.

“I’m very excited to be able to bring my collective marketing, commercial and transformation experience to bear in this new role. Leveraging the combined capabilities of BBC Studios Distribution in the UK and UKTV by co-ordinating our brands, audiences and commercial innovation in this way, opens up new opportunities that will allow us to drive growth and expand the commercial footprint of the business. It’s a privilege to be asked to lead the talented teams involved and I am looking forward to working with them again,” said Michaelides.