• Strategy, growth, and business operations with a focus on media and content

    Sonie Guseh Osagie

  • Sonie (Guseh) Osagie is Senior Director of Strategy & Operations at NBCUniversal News Group. There, she works under the CNBC brand, focused on the live events an subscription memberships experienes for senior executive audiences. Her focus as a strategy and operations professional comes with more than 12 years of experience in the media industry, cutting across television, digital video and audio, journalism, marketing and communications, viewer data analytics, digital sales and distribution, and content strategy.

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    In her current role, Sonie leads strategy, growth, and operations for CNBC Events and CNBC Councils, serving in a general management function to drive end-to-end audience and revenue growth for these content businesses. Her team focuses on three main areas:

    - Revenue growth – Ticket and membership sales, driving end-to new customer satisfaction, from lead generation to audience acquisition to retention

    - Content & Marketing – Developing content and brand messaging on the right platforms and channels to attract the best fit audiences for the right events and experiences
    - Strategic planning - Pricing, tracking, forecasting and analytics that support growth goals, P&L management, and business planning

     

    Over the course of her career, she has built an expertise in building, developing, launching, and operationalizing new and emerging businesses and platforms. Prior to her work on Events & Councils, she oversaw a portfolio focused on audio -- including launching CNBC's flagship daily news podcast, Squawk Pod, which won a Gracie Award and an honorable mention by the Webby Awards. Her work often involves managing cross-functional projects and relationships that span across editorial, production, marketing, business development, product, and more.

     

    Sonie first came to CNBC as part of the Comcast NBC Universal Rotational Leadership Program after business school. As part of the program, she worked on a number of new and emerging businesses: Audience Insights and Set-top-box viewer data solutions, go-to-market strategy for Xfinity Mobile, and business planning for the launch of an NBC News Digital streaming service.

     

    Sonie's career began at the local news level, where she worked in news production writing stories and building newscasts. She also wrote for print publications, and covered the Philadelphia college reaction to the historic 2008 presidential election of Barack Obama. Before business school, Sonie worked in digital advertising sales at Google and communications and media relations for startups at a media agency; two of her clients later were acquired, one by Match.com and another NBCUniversal.

     

    Sonie graduated from the University of Pennsylvania with a degree in English, and earned her MBA from Columbia Business School. She currently serves on the board of The Garden School, a community-based school in Liberia based on developmentally appropriate practices in early childhood education. Located in Gbarnga, Bong County, the School focuses on young children (ages 3-5) through an innovative model unique in the West African nation. She also serves as a career coach for Columbia Business School students and alumni.

     

    In her spare time, you can find her listening to podcasts or doing outdoor yoga. She currently lives on the West Coast with her husband and their son, and often splits her time between the two Coasts.

  • Featured

    Selected recognitions, speaking engagements, and published work

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    Liberian Studies Association

    The Future is Bright: Laying a Foundation for the Future of Liberia

    Panelist as part of the 2021 Liberian Studies Association conference.

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    Columbia Business School Admissions

    Admitted Students Q&A

    A conversation for admitted students planning to attend or considering attending Columbia Business School. February 2021

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    Columbia Business School Media Management Association

    Media Program Lunch

    Fireside chat for students of Columbia Business School's Media Program. Interviewed by Professor Jonathan Knee. March 2021

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    Penn Innovators in Business

    Student organization at the University of Pennsylvania

    Profiled in publication

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    What Elite Companies Seek in an MBA Hire

    Poets & Quants

    Featured panelist

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    Poets & Quants: Best and Brightest MBAs

    Class of 2016 recognition

    Recognized as a top MBA graduate from the class of 2016

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    8 Reasons Why You Should Consider Business School Right Now

    Levo League

    Quoted in September 2015 article

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    The Top 3 Things You Should Be Doing Right Now if You Want to Work in PR

    New York Women in Communications Blog

    Authored January 2015 article

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    Gov. John Hickenlooper Recognizes "Colorado Craftsy Day"

    Craftsy press release

    Authored and led May 2014 media campaign

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    Promote Yourself

    by Dan Schawbel

    Quoted in 2013 professional development book

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    Medical Internet Marketing Symposium

    Featured speaker

    2011 featured Google speaker to conference of medical marketing professionals

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    Google: Top Places to Work

    Boston Globe

    Featured in 2011 profile

  • Experience

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    Strategy, Growth, & Operations

    2018-Present

    Currently Senior Director, CNBC Events & Councils

     

    Audience & membership strategy and business operations for CNBC Events & Councils. Lead team focused on member acquisition, audience development, marketing, engagement and experience, strategy, and business operations.

    Key focus areas include:

    - AUDIENCE STRATEGY: Developing partnerships and marketing programs to support audience development

    - LEAD DEVELOPMENT: Managing lead development programs to prioritize and retain existing customers, and build relationships with new ones

    - P&L MANAGEMENT & REVENUE STRATEGY: Develop data-driven approaches to membership fees and event tickets to drive incremental revenue, manage budget and operational costs, and oversee annual budget planning process for team

    - TEAM MANAGEMENT: Oversight of team of 8 across the function, supporting people development, growth, coaching, team prioritization, and more

     

    Previously Director, Strategic Content & News Partnerships

    Strategy and operations professional with more than a decade of experience in the media industry, including television, digital video and audio, journalism, marketing and communications, viewer data analytics, digital sales and distribution, and content strategy.

     

    Current focus on emerging businesses and platforms with a portfolio consistent of two main areas: 1) content strategy, production, and monetization for audio (including the launch and production of new series); and 2) Business operations and strategy for CNBC Councils, executive membership programs for C-level executives.


    Also manage strategy and business operations for the Strategic Content team, which focuses on building, developing, launching, and operationalizing new and emerging businesses and platforms, including live events, executive membership programs, podcasts, and more. Oversee dedicated team and manage cross-functional projects and relationships that cut across editorial, production, marketing, business development, product, and more.

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    Go-to-Market Strategy, Data Analysis, & Business Development

    2016-2018

    NBC News Digital: Business planning and strategy, audience development, and distribution across NBCNews.com, TODAY.com, and MSNBC.com.

     

    XFINITY Mobile: Go-to-market strategy and promotions planning for the launch of XFINITY Mobile

     

    Programming Insights: Data analysis and business development; partnered with data scientists to develop viewing insights dashboards and research reports

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    Digital Strategy

    2016

    - Analyzed data -- follower and fan growth, engagement numbers -- across brands and social media channels to support strategic decision-making and to assess performance.
    - Created and maintained analytical dashboard and frameworks for tracking and evaluating social media performance metrics.
    - Assessed competitive landscape and developed recommendations on social media best practices

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    Digital Distribution & Partner Marketing

    2015

    - Strategic marketing plan using industry and competitive analyses for capturing new audiences of cordcutters; focused primarily on the video streaming and over-the-top landscape.
    - Managed a team of undergraduate interns in project on multicultural marketing ways to target and capture a cord-cutting audience
     

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    Senior Communications Associate

    2010-12

    Worked as a strategic communications consultant advising clients across industries.

     

    Focus areas: media relations, press releases, event promotion, investor communications, brand strategy

     

    Clients included: solar panel manufacturer, healthcare startup, hedge funds, law firms, and two startup clients were later aquired by Fortune 500 companies

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    Advertising Sales

    2010-12

    Advertising sales across search, display, YouTube, and TV ads; developed integrated marketing campaigns on behalf of health and beauty clients. Google AdWords Certified. Two-time Imact Award winner for quarterly revenue growth

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    News Writer / Production

    2006-2009

    Summer and part-time news producer

  • Additional Projects

    What else I'm working on...

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    Board Member, The Garden School

    The Garden School is a community-based school in Liberia based on developmentally appropriate practices in early childhood education. Located in Gbarnga, Bong County, the School focuses on young children (ages 3-5) through an innovative model unique in the West African nation.

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    Thoughts and musings on personal development, the media industry, careers, and more.

  • Education

    Columbia Business School

    MBA, Media Management, Marketing, & Strategy

    University of Pennsylvania

    BA, cum laude, English (Concentration: Journalism) | Minor: Hispanic Studies (Spanish Language, History, & Literature)

  • Contact

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    Email

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    Twitter

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    LinkedIn