Thomas Dodd Email & Phone Number

Copenhagen, Capital Region, Denmark

Optio Venture Partners is a international firm that scales scales innovative tech ventures and does business for profit and peace. OVP is located near Copenhagen in Denmark. Strong experience in leading top and bottom line growth, strategic Sales & Marketing, delivery of Turn-Key projects and programmes internationally including in semi-permissive environments, recruitment, personnel management, working closely with political stakeholders. Projects and programmes undertaken are usually large and multi-year. 2022/3: Took Unmanned Aerial System manufacturer from low civilian sales in civilian market to double-digit € millions in international defence market, in 6 months.

Copenhagen Area, Denmark

EUMBC was launched in the UK 20 years ago and relocated to Denmark in 2018. The company worked with clients seeking effective solution partners, establishing and overseeing projects in harsh delivery environments, leading and achieving communication outcomes. The company focused narrowly on executing international expansion, market entry or international partnerships. Our team provided leadership and expertise; oversaw design of complex solutions that were delivered using certified project management methodologies such as PRINCE2.A decade and a half managing government and political stakeholders alongside commercial ones allowed EUMBC to effectively manage multilevel influence in any project; use digital collaboration tools to achieve common understanding for all involved; and provide effective project/operational management as well as regular owner and management reporting. EUMBC's teams provided leadership and expertise to companies and organisations without effective and stood up effective teams of their own to "take charge" and deliver international expansion or new market entry. A client example was Turner International, the parent company of CNN, with whom work was initiated in 2013 by Best Flow Factory, a broadcast technology integrator spawned by EUMBC; our team provided support and leadership for their international partnerships and digital ventures globally, this in countries as diverse as Bulgaria and Myanmar. EUMBC designed and led the early phases of international partnership opportunities for Turner International and other clients - and was contracted to deliver entire projects, from organisation design, technology architecture to implementation including work role descriptions and even recruitment. Individual project budgets managed by myself have exceeded USD 24 million.

International

My main duties were to oversee company administration, lead the company and maintain strategic relationships with client leadership; mainly political stakeholders in international institutions and government departments. Included extended stays in Brussels and trips to dozens of countries and war zones such as Afghanistan. Maintaining stakeholder commitment to several communications projects, including leading pledging rounds and bid management. I have participated in multiple media aid and development initiatives and conferences - also as a speaker on media and digital transformation - including in EU (AidExpo) and in the Middle East (Dubai International Humanitarian Aid & Development Conference & Exhibition). EUMBC has produced content and managed projects in more than 20 countries all over the world since 2002. The company is specialised within developing and sometimes producing specialised communications products and services as well as integrating people and technology to deliver full communications capabilities. EUMBC designs, builds and commissions integrated media organisations – and can manage them on behalf of clients. EUMBC produces and distributes sophisticated media products rapidly – anywhere in the world including in austere environments. EUMBC solutions are most often in response to requirements from senior client management and often multi-year and complex. Projects are most often multi-year and +5 mUSD. Clients include corporations and global institutions.

Dubai, United Arab Emirates

Best Flow Factory (Gulf) LLC designs and builds broadcasting and media production organisations. Currently overseeing major news channel projects in Europe and General Entertainment Channel infrastructures builds in Europe and Middle East. Best Flow Factory has designed and built media and other digital organisations in Denmark, India, Bulgaria, Serbia, Georgia, Myanmar and the United Arab Emirates. I founded the company and after years with national media corporations and global ones including CNN and News Corporation, I decided in 2018 to reduce my workload and work from a base in Denmark. My main duties were to oversee company administration and management, take responsibility for all initial client requirement scoping and contract negotiation and liaise with the client executive. The role entailed leading design, build and commissing of full media organisations - from entire TV/Web news organisations including regional newsrooms, to sports TV channels and international summits for the United Nations. Projects have included Kanal PIK in Georgia, Channel 7 in Bulgaria (CNN Partner project), News1 in Serbia (CNN Partner project), Bulgarian National Television (bid won), and Star Sports in Mumbai, India. We also arranged all media aspects of the COP11 UN Climate Summit. Solution design projects have included Al Arab in Bahrain and N1 news channel in Myanmar.

Brussels Area, Belgium

Transformation/turnaround project. Responsible for designing, planning, and executing a turnaround and establishing a modern civilian Communications Capability for the world's largest international security institution NATO, reporting directly to the Assistant Secretary General. A programme of projects supported by stakeholders in dozens of countries. Post included establishing marketing and distribution platforms and relationships to national, sub-national, local and global media outlets, as well as multiple social media projects. Role involved multilevel stakeholder relationship management and 30% travel to Alliance nations and mission areas including Afghanistan. Stakeholder relations included speeches and presentations to European foreign and defence ministries, US Department of State and US Department of Defense, NATO Allied Transformation Command (ACT), NATO North Atlantic Council and NATO College. The NATO communications initiative delivered 4 billion viewers in two years and was on October 14th 2010 awarded the Communication Prize by the Danish Ministry of Defence for being the world's largest source of media content about the Afghanistan conflict. Participation in preparation and adoption of the New NATO Strategic Concept in 2010, the sixth SC since 1949, addressing the changed security environment.

Copenhagen Area, Denmark

Establishing the first regionalised version of the world's most successful business and financial television channel CNBC Europe, then owned by publishers Dow Jones and television network NBC.

Insead Certificate, Finance For Executives, Pass

A comprehensive introduction to accounting and financial analysis. It aims to give executives who are not financial specialists.

M.A., European Politics, 2:1 (Dissertation Awarded Distinction/Magna Cum Laude, Top 5%)

Activities and Societies: - Awarded the Konrad Adenauer Stiftung (Germany) scholarship for students of West European Political Science.

Certificate, Journalism, Pass

Activities and Societies: Awarded scholarship by the European Federation of Journalists.One year all-round journalism course.

A Levels

Activities and Societies: Member of Sudbury School Rowing Club & Sudbury Rowing Club; winning regional awards. Occasional Remedial.

Education record