Dave Leonard Email & Phone Number

London, Gb

London, England, United Kingdom

At Co-Lab Solutions, we are more than just a project management company - we are catalysts for creative success. Founded by operational experts Dave Leonard and Polly Rayne, our mission is to empower creative teams to scale, thrive, and achieve their goals without the burden of additional labour costs.Why Co-Lab Solutions?✨ Seamless Scaling: We understand the challenges creative teams face when it comes to growth. With over 15 years of hands-on experience, we specialise in providing tailored solutions that enable teams to scale without compromising efficiency.✨ End-to-End Project Management: From the initial Connect phase, where we define project scopes and provide managed proposals, to the Create phase, where we take on the management lift of projects, our team ensures a smooth and successful project journey.✨ Collaborative Excellence: Need to overcome a specific challenge? Our Collaborate phase is designed to help teams set up for success, offering expert guidance and problem-solving to ensure your projects reach their full potential.

London Area, United Kingdom

As a Production and Operations Consultant at BuzzFeed UK, I led the production team in creating engaging, high-quality content. With expertise in media production, operations, project management, and branded content, I managed the entire production lifecycle - from initial budgeting to final execution - ensuring seamless delivery and exceptional results.Key Achievements:* Process Management: Streamlined and optimised production workflows to ensure efficient and timely content delivery.* Budget Creation for Pre-Sale Pitches: Developed comprehensive budgets for pre-sale pitches, aligning with client expectations and project goals.* Budget Creation for Shoots: Crafted detailed budgets for various shoots, ensuring they were delivered within forecasted budgets.* Shoot Management: Coordinated all aspects of shoots, from pre-production planning to on-set execution, ensuring schedules and quality standards were met.* Talent and Creator Sourcing: Identified, recruited, and managed talent and creators for projects.* Vendor Payment Oversight: Managed vendor payments, ensuring timely and accurate payment for services.* Production Workflow Management: Supervised the entire production workflow, from concept to completion, to ensure smooth operations and successful outcomes.* Operations Management: Implemented operational strategies that enhanced productivity, reduced costs, and streamlined day-to-day activities.* Branded Content Production: Developed and executed branded content strategies that aligned with client objectives, driving audience engagement and brand visibility.

London, England, United Kingdom

Managed commercial content and product teams at Yahoo's RYOT/Y! Creative Studios across EMEA. Responsible for Editorial, video, audio, and XR projects from ideation to distribution. Oversaw revenue, expenses, and profit margins. Maintained a network of external collaborators. Also led colleague engagement initiatives as a member of the UK Culture group.Key Achievements• Conceived and launched a new commercial editorial platform, which accrued over £1.5M in revenue and received two award nominations in its first year.• Orchestrated a range of complex global campaigns, achieving seamless alignment across multiple markets and generating a quarterly revenue of $6M.• Introduced a comprehensive go-to-market strategy for branded content across EMEA, generating an incremental annual revenue of over £20M.• Pioneered innovative storytelling formats such as interactive videos, branded podcasts, custom-web and AR embeds, bolstering market relevance and consumer engagement.• Established streamlined processes for the timely and budget-compliant delivery of international content programmes, ensuring stakeholder alignment.• Received the DRUM Chair award for a commercial documentary series in partnership with a global hotel brand.

London, England, United Kingdom

Managed commercial content and product teams at RYOT Studios across EMEA. Responsible for Editorial, video, and audio projects from ideation to distribution. Oversaw revenue, expenses, and profit margins. Maintained a network of external collaborators.*This role was then expanded to Content Operations Director when Verizon Media purchased Yahoo! and rebranded the company*

London, United Kingdom

Served as a liaison between the Sales and Editorial Operations departments, facilitating the alignment of commercial initiatives with editorial standards to meet stringent client specifications.Key Achievements• Set up a commercial editorial model for the UK market. Created collateral including training guides for sales, product positioning decks, a market-competitive pricing model and positioning videos.• Awarded the Most Innovative Online Campaign at the IPA Awards for work on the 'Inspired by Iceland' campaign.• Recipient of the internal Blue Monster Award for exemplifying HuffPost's core values.• Key contributor to HuffPost UK's launch and transformation into a leading UK news outlet, focusing on storytelling and commercial strategy.• Orchestrated a multi-platform content strategy that contributed to a 25% year-on-year growth in audience engagement.• Reduced operational costs by 20% through strategic vendor negotiations and process optimisations, without compromising quality.• Improved editorial workflows, negotiating, and implementing a new partner for contract management, content commissioning, creation, and freelancer payments.

London, United Kingdom

Managed revenue, traffic targets, budgets, and audience development. Oversaw the end-to-end relaunch of AOL’s Celebrity and Travel channels, including establishing requirements, concept generation, wire-framing, and stakeholder management. Created collateral and go-to-market strategies and shared these with sales and commercial partners. Accountable for site P&L, including revenue, cost planning, and forecasting. Conducted in-depth analysis of revenue contribution and traffic metrics.Key Achievements• Relaunched AOL's Celebrity and Travel channels, leading to a 30% increase in site traffic within the first quarter.• Exceeded revenue targets through the development and implementation of new commercial products.

London, England, United Kingdom

Coordinated artist sourcing with music labels, managed film crew operations, negotiated contracts, and oversaw event management. Acts managed included Amy Winehouse, Faithless, and Taylor Swift. Oversaw the conceptualisation and execution of large-scale productions, including budgeting, scheduling, and on-site logistics. Demonstrated leadership in cross-functional teams, liaised with stakeholders and ensured alignment with strategic objectives. Key Achievements• Facilitated collaborations with top-tier artists, PRs and music labels.• Spearheaded event management for significant productions, streamlining processes to reduce production expenses without compromising the quality or content output.• Enhanced brand visibility and market prominence through partnerships with renowned artists, ultimately boosting audience engagement and sponsorship impressions.

London, England, United Kingdom

London, England, United Kingdom

Leicester, United Kingdom