Kristin Thoy

Experience

• 

  Sky New Zealand

  Aug 2000 - Jun 2023

  The Challenge: Sky wanted to integrate more end-to-end capability, which required a massive culture overhaul and strong leadership after an extensive restructure. A tight handle on operational costs, innovative content utility and an increase in performance and efficiency was critical, particularly when we had to quickly adapt to working from home during Covid lockdowns. Key Responsibilities:· Own and communicate the entertainment content plan, collaborating closely with Partnerships and Marketing teams on what content to acquire and promote. · Lead the editorial programming team to plan innovative, cost effective and entertaining content schedules as well as recommend desirable content to acquire based on data driven insights. 14 Sky operated fully-built pay channels.· Lead the operational scheduling team to ensure timely and accurate delivery of 70+ linear pay channels, free-to-air channel Prime and digital platforms Neon & Sky Go. · Key stakeholder in entertainment content strategy across Sky and Neon.Key Achievements:· Successfully managed a restructure that merged the presentation and programming departments to form a high-trust, high-performing and non-hierarchical team. Reducing the headcount led to process and cost efficiency, with continued seamless delivery of Sky’s core Entertainment business through significant business disruption.· Kept customers entertained and increased NPS while there was no live sport airing due to Covid. This curbed subscriber loss during a high-risk churn period. Workshopped and drove execution of multiple Entertainment Pop-up channels and curated digital rails to provide engaging stunts to surprise and delight customers and keep them subscribed through multiple lockdowns.· Reinvigorated Sky’s movie offering based on extensive customer insights. Optimised schedules with minimal repeats and expanded genre channels reduced complaints from customers while saving significant content investment. Show less The Challenge: Rising costs of high-profile premium output deals (HBO, Showtime, FX) required this content to work harder to deliver ROI. Key Responsibilities:• Lead content planning and rights utilisation for Sky’s premium content channels: SoHo, SoHo2 and Sky Box Sets.• Optimised content planning, performance, budget and inventory management of Sky’s highest and expensive entertainment content.• Mentor and coach senior programming staff.Key Achievements:• Maximised existing content inventory to launch two premium entertainment channels, SoHo2 and Sky Box Sets, with no additional CapEx or OpEx investment. Project lead for cross-functional team in the planning and execution of both channels, from meticulous schedule construction to marketing and on-air branding.• Provided critical guidance around programming rights requirements for renewal of multi-year, multi-million $ HBO output deal which ensured greater flexibility in surfacing Sky’s most buzzworthy content across all of our platforms and services.• Represented Sky at a fast-paced four-day FX Marketing and Programming workshop for international partners at Fox Studios in Los Angeles ahead of introducing “Home of FX” branding. Drove execution of an innovative programming stunt that increased Sky’s premium content awareness as competitor Netflix entered the NZ market, as well as strengthened relationship with key international partner ahead of renewal discussions.• Workshopped customer journeys in a cross-functional an agile team over a 12 month period. This collaboration led to a best-in-class product launch showcasing Sky’s compelling content on a new IP connected streaming/satellite decoder and cementing Sky’s digital future. Show less The Challenge: Siloed teams across the business were unaligned on content promotion, so we urgently needed to establish a process to identify and communicate the priority content on an annual, quarterly and monthly basis so Sky could coordinate efforts to maximise investment in marketing channels and content awareness.Key Responsibilities:• Establish, maintain and communicate Sky’s content priorities to the wider business for a joined-up approach to promotion.Key Achievements:• Led cross-functional Lean initiative engaging key business stakeholders and teams on how to best communicate around key titles to improve internal processes around what to promote and to focus marketing spend on the priorities that mattered to customers and had the best brand and acquisitional potential.• Designed and implemented content prioritisation process enabling promotional areas of the business to better align on marketing investment of priority titles across sport and entertainment. Continuous improvement led to the integration of the audience view, which provided further guidance on targeted promotion. Show less The Challenge: Increased complexity in content rights and the growing entertainment channel portfolio required more time investment in staff training and additional coordination, documentation and justification for content offers.Key Responsibilities:• “Programming 101” training for the junior channel assistants, introducing the complex planning concepts for linear pay and free-to-air channels.• Coordination of content offers across all general entertainment channels with data driven justifications for purchase.• Content representative for project work to improve internal processes, ensure compliance and drive customer improvements.Key Achievements:• Recruited and mentored junior programming staff to manage day to day operations of four high-rating Sky-owned channels as well as the launch of a new sci-fi channel. All personnel eventually moved on to flourishing careers both internally at Sky, or externally at companies such as Weta Digital, Spark, TVNZ, BBC and Discovery, with my continued support and coaching. • Improved internal processes and digital capability around programming rights management and programme scheduling as content representative in cross-functional projects, as well as developing a new process around content certification to ensure Sky’s continued compliance of Broadcast Standards. Show less The Challenge: Establish and grow audience for a new female-skewing general entertainment channel without impacting viewership and ad revenue on Sky’s flagship male-skewing channel (The Box).Key Responsibilities:• Planning and day-to-day running of the Vibe channel; sourcing, selecting and scheduling scripted and unscripted entertainment content as well as communicating and driving promotional needs.Key Achievements:• Grew Vibe to #2 top performing Sky owned and operated entertainment channel (after The Box) in All5+ demographic within 12 months of launch. This was attained through in-depth analysis of viewership data to establish best audience opportunities (female-led US crime procedurals, cosy British whodunnits and heart-warming documentary content).• Established channel Facebook page using content-connected campaigns and competitions to increase engagement, cultivating and managing an engaged community of channel fans to drive brand and content awareness. One sponsored initiative generated 30,000 organic fans over a six week “watch & win” on-air promotion, in the prized Female 25-54 advertising demographic. Show less

  • Head Of Entertainment Programming

    Dec 2019 - Jun 2023

  • Manager, Entertainment Content

    Mar 2017 - Dec 2019

  • Content Planning Manager

    Nov 2016 - Mar 2017

  • Associate Manager, GE Channels

    Feb 2014 - Nov 2016

  • Channel Manager - Vibe

    Dec 2008 - Feb 2014

  • Publicity Writer

    May 2005 - Dec 2008

  • Customer Service Representative

    Aug 2000 - May 2005
• 

  Sorted for Good

  Jul 2023 - now

  Professional Organiser

  Providing expert organisation of home spaces to create calm for busy professionals. From organising a packed pantry or playroom to sorting out a garage storage system or managing a house move, I establish beautiful and functional spaces that work for each individual client's needs. Any good quality secondhand items that are decluttered in the process are donated to Woven Earth, an incredible organisation who furnish homes for survivors of domestic violence.