Schibsted Media Group continues the transformation needed to take the Group to the next level and has now started a project aimed at redesigning our organizational structure. Tina Stiegler (38) has been handed the responsibility of leading the big and important project. Tina started in Schibsted as a management trainee in 2002, and has since held positions as organizational director in Verdens Gang (VG), as well as different positions in Bergens Tidende, VG Multimedia and Schibsted ASA.
Tina holds an MSc in business administration from the Norwegian School of Economics (NHH)/Pontíficia Universidad Católica de Chile, as well as studies in literature and French from the University of Bergen/Université de Nice-Sofia Antipolis.
“I really look forward to start the new project. The changing nature of competition, the need for global scale in technology, among other trends, is changing the rules of the game. Organization is key to our success in this changing environment and must enable us to reach our business aims in the best possible way,” says Tina Stiegler.
Initiated by CEO Ryssdal
The project is going to look at all aspects of Schibsted Media Group’s organization, and is initiated by CEO Rolv Erik Ryssdal and the Group Management Team.
“We have spent the past two years building a central product and technology organization that has managed to attract excellent digital product specialists and developers. We are now starting to deliver digital tools of a quality that gives Schibsted the ability to compete with world-class digital media companies. Now we need to make sure that we are organized in the right way to benefit from these developments. I have therefore initiated a new project with a mandate of recommending a new organizational structure for the Group. I am happy that Tina Stiegler has accepted the task of leading this important project. She has done a great job for Schibsted Norge and I am confident she will lead this work in an excellent way,” says CEO Rolv Erik Ryssdal.
Schibsted – global scale and local strength
Large, global technology players as well as local startups seek to exploit the opportunities the digital world offers. In order to effectively compete, Schibsted needs to leverage its local strength and global reach and increase speed of execution through economies of scale in order to effectively compete in the digital environment.
This is evident also in the battle for advertising revenues. In recent years, global internet giants with world-class technology have shaped digital media to a new degree. Key to their success is the ability to serve advertisers with targeted advertising products through deep, data driven understanding of user behavior.
Schibsted is now building a user focused identity ecosystem and new advertising platform to effectively compete in the battle for digital advertising. This is a major effort that cannot be done locally, but is done centrally on behalf of the whole Schibsted group. This development needs to be reflected in the way we are organized so that lines of responsibility are clear and transparent.
“The Group Management team (K1) has given the project a wide and open mandate to find good alternatives going forward. Central themes includes considering alternative set-ups and organizational designs for instance regarding geographical versus functional or business area dimensions. We will certainly speak to a lot of Schibsted-people in the coming weeks to get as much thought and input as we can. I am convinced that we will find a way to organize the Group which is better for us now that we are bringing Schibsted to the next level,” says Tina Stiegler.
The Group Management Team will act as steering group for the project, enforced externally by Trond Riiber Knudsen, the former head of McKinsey Norway. K1 will also appoint a project group to work with Tina Stiegler on the new organizational design. The recommendation from the project is expected to be delivered in Q4, and will thereafter be discussed in the Group Management Team.
Project group
Another two members of the project group have been appointed so far:
Pierre-Francois Marteau (49) is SVP Strategy, Governance and Growth in Schibsted Classified Media (SCM). He joined Schibsted in 2001 to lead the launch of 20 Minutes in France. Since the inception of SCM in 2006, he has been a member of SCM’s management team holding different roles. He has also been instrumental in setting up Schibsted Growth in France.
Brandon Cohen (39) is currently VP People and Organizational Development in Schibsted Products & Technology (SPT). Brandon has over 15 years’ experience with high-growth global technology companies. Before joining Schibsted in April 2015 he was at Google for more than 11 years holding various staffing leadership roles focused on building global engineering teams, especially in Europe.