Delivering e-commerce growth and shaping digital experiences for the world's largest and fastest-growing QSR business.I joined KFC days before the start of the Coronavirus lockdowns and immediately jumped onto a number of priority initiatives to pivot the business and maintain growth through one of the most volatile periods in the company's history. These initiatives included the introduction of self delivery across owned e-commerce channels, the re-platforming of the e-commerce capability and the development of new customer facing applications.Day-to-day I lead digital experience and collaborate with other CX stakeholders cross functionally. My direct team and our retained agency folks also work closely with local and global tech product leaders across martech, data, app, web, kiosk and other customer facing restaurant technology. The team also leads the company's loyalty and delivery initiatives.Additionally, 50% of my time is spent in the capacity of Global Product Management Lead for the company's primary multi-market e-commerce products, which are currently live in tier 1 markets globally and expanding into others.A lot going on at the moment.

Marriott International is the world's largest hotel operator, with 32 brands, 8,700 hotels and over 1.7 million rooms globally. The Marriott Bonvoy loyalty program also boasts over 200 million members worldwide.This was an adaptation of my previous role following a global reorganisation of digital capability, in which I led the newly-formed Digital & E-Commerce Consulting unit across Australia, New Zealand and South Pacific destinations, part of the USD $4.5bn APAC Division. I was also a member of the Area Extended Leadership Team.My team of 7 direct reports acted as an internal consultancy for managed and franchised hotels, and was comprised of Digital Consulting Managers and Senior Digital Consulting Managers, who were responsible for the formulation and execution of digital strategy for their respective hotel and resort portfolios across the ANZ and Pacific region.Key objectives were top line revenue growth, gross room nights, loyalty adoption, channel mix optimisation, digital experience enhancement, digital marketing and media management and content development.Upon witnessing the early Covid impact within the broader APAC and Greater China division in late 2019, I plotted a hasty exit from the travel industry before the storm hit. Turned out my spidey senses were on point.

I managed the 8-strong ANZ and Pacific Region digital marketing and e-commerce team for the world's largest hotel company. Working across an extensive portfolio of high-end hotels and resorts, my team was responsible for forming strategy and driving execution to deliver top line revenue growth across direct and partner e-commerce channels.My region was a sub-market of Marriott's APAC division, the company's largest and fastest growing division outside of North America, and spanned Australia, New Zealand, Fiji, Samoa and New Caledonia.I also collaborated with my other APAC regional director counterparts on APAC-wide digital and e-commerce initiatives.My portfolio included some of the world's most well-known and prestigious hotel brands:- W Hotels- Ritz Carlton- St Regis- Sheraton and Sheraton Grand- Westin- Marriott Hotels- Le Mèridien- Aloft- Autograph Collection- Four Points by Sheraton- Courtyard by Marriott- Element Hotels- Luxury Collection

Reporting into the Global VP of E-Commerce in the UK, and building on all of the responsibilities from my previous role as Digital Marketing Manager ANZ, I was responsible for the e-commerce performance across owned and partner channels of all 14 Merlin Entertainments businesses in the Australia and New Zealand region, generating annual online ticket and memberships sales revenue in excess of AUD 50m. I also acted as a collaborator on global projects for Merlin's attractions, short breaks and theme parks business units.Brands included Madame Tussauds, Legoland Discovery Centre, SEA LIFE Aquariums, WILD LIFE Zoos, The Eye brand, Hotham and Falls Creek ski resorts and more.

As the ANZ region digital leader for the group, during my time in this diverse role I:- Delivered direct channel annual tickets and memberships sales in excess of AUD $32m across ANZ- Partnered with the rest of the Sales & Marketing leadership team to develop a balanced channel strategy, proritising direct channel growth - Collaborated with FP&A team on product and pricing strategies, incorporating dynamic revenue management principles- Project managed 20+ website builds, including ANZ attraction sites, global brand sites, ski resort sites and regional corporate sites (recruitment, brand portfolio, NFP division)- Derived insights from analytics data to inform acquisition and engagement and improve conversion- Established a long-term Continuous Improvement program with retained agency to iteratively evolve the commercial performance of all sites- Project managed the digital transformation of acquired businesses into Merlin's brand families and tech stacks, and sourced white label solutions for non-incorporated businesses- Managed highly effective performance marketing activities with full accountability for ROI- Conceived and executed social media strategies for all attractions (picking up a few awards along the way!)- Developed long-term SEO strategies to continually increase organic search footprint and steal market share from competitors and resellers- Devised highly effective anti-competitor strategies, incorporating new ticket and passes product development- Oversaw CRM and database/email marketing - Owned the central/divisional digital marketing P&L as well as the digital budgets of the individual attractions- Collaborated on global digital and e-commerce projects across all of Merlin's international brands- Managed 2 direct reports, who acted as consultants across the portfolio.- Won the global CEO Award for Outstanding ContributionI also played a role in the in-house creative team as photographer and copywriter.

Contract role primarily to develop content for the agency’s own website re-launch, with the objectives of improving organic ranking and increasing leads for the sales team. I also wrote B2B e-comms materials for the sales teams as well as consulted on SEO, content and SEM strategies for several of the agency's clients.

Undertook various freelance long-term commissions over a 8 year period, including a recurring annual editorial and copywriting commitment with the UK’s leading city guide and entertainment publisher. Also had ongoing commitments with specialist youth and student publishers.

Co-investor and PM for a premium housing development, comprising 8 high spec 3-5 bedroom houses. Managed the sales and marketing function, together with day-to-day management of the site from breaking ground through to client handover.

Contract role within the product function to devise and develop content for the SMB division as the company launched the B2B e-commerce channel. Role worked hand-in-hand with UX and involved collaboration with brand and B2B marketing teams, together with IT and product owners/managers.

Ongoing freelance assignments at various full service marketing agencies in the Leeds area on clients in the real estate, retail, entertainment and leisure spaces.

Co-founder and drummer/percussionist in a 5 piece professional band playing original material. Slogged it in the studio and on the live circuit while working up an international following across emerging digital channels, such as MySpace etc. Secured 2 independent record label deals, followed by 2 major label album deals (Universal Island Records and Virgin V2) and a global publishing deal (Universal Music). Toured the UK and overseas extensively supporting big name acts and co-wrote a critically acclaimed EP and debut album, before parting ways and travelling the world. Fun, but exhausting. Wouldn't change a thing. Wouldn't do it again.

Worked exclusively on ASDA Wal-Mart, the second largest retail account in the UK. Part of a tactical local marketing team tasked with carrying out aggressive anti-competitor activity comprising the full spectrum of local marketing activities, community initiatives, in-store marketing/POS, internal communications, events management and customer loyalty.