Managing Director (Podcast) in London

This is a rare opportunity to step into a senior leadership role at one of the UK's most ambitious media organisations, one that has built genuine scale across digital, print, and broadcast, and is now treating its podcast division as a standalone high-growth business. With an audience reach that puts this publisher among the top-tier global news brands, the podcast slate sits at a pivotal moment: the infrastructure is in place, the content pipeline is strong, and the commercial opportunity is significant. What's needed now is an operator who can run it like a business.

We're looking for an entrepreneurial commercial leader to own the podcast division as a dedicated P&L, someone who sits at the intersection of content and commercial, and holds both to account. You will be the internal champion for podcasting at the most senior level: part strategist, part revenue builder, part team leader. The role carries genuine autonomy, real accountability, and the backing of a major media organisation behind you.

What You'll Do

• Distribution & Audience Growth
  • Design and execute a multi-channel distribution strategy across global audio platforms, YouTube, and short-form social video.
  • Build a formal collaboration model with the video team, owning the process of clipping, reformatting, and amplifying long-form content for social-first audiences.
  • Own audience growth KPIs by show and by channel, with a data-driven approach to hitting rigorous targets.
  • Drive the owned-and-operated channel evolution, including how podcast content feeds into premium subscription products, through pilot testing, performance measurement, and funnel optimisation.
• Commercial Leadership
  • Partner with the commercial team to build a scalable advertising and branded content proposition that converts listener engagement into sustainable revenue.
  • Act as the internal CEO for the podcast division, reporting at C-suite level with commercially grounded, transparent performance data.
  • Build the investment case for resources only when the ROI is proven; champion a business-first culture across the team.
  • Work closely with the Head of Podcasts to develop and scale a lean, high-performing unit.

What We're Looking For

• Non-negotiables
  • Commercial track record: you've built or scaled a podcast network, creator business, or content startup from the ground up, and made it commercially viable with limited resources.
  • Full P&L ownership: you've owned a specific revenue or commercial metric and can demonstrate how you drive growth, pivot under pressure, and manage a budget.
  • Deep distribution expertise: you understand how audience behaviour differs between Spotify, Apple, and YouTube; you have a proven strategy for leveraging social clips and algorithm logic to drive reach.
  • Agile, start-up mentality: you're comfortable operating without a safety net, delivering results within small teams and constrained budgets.
• Strongly Preferred
  • Experience with subscription models, understanding how content drives conversion from free to paid.
  • Cross-functional influence, aligning teams with competing incentives (editorial vs. commercial) without relying on formal authority.
  • Commercial development experience, whether pitching to brand partners or designing new advertising models from scratch.

SUMO are an equal opportunities employer. We encourage applications regardless of race, religion, ethnicity, sexual orientation, age, disability or gender. As an employment agency, SUMO are fully committed to providing an inclusive and accessible recruitment process for all (both internally and on behalf of our clients).

Thank you for your interest in the above vacancy. Please note - due to the high volume of CVs & applications we receive, we can't always get back to everyone, although we will try our best!