Sarah Rose new Director of Consumer Insight, Gill Whitehead leaves C4

Channel 4 has announced today that Sarah Rose, currently its Director of Commercial and Business Development, has been promoted to the role of Director Consumer Insight and will become a member of Channel 4’s executive team. 

She will replace current Director of Audience Technologies and Insight, Gill Whitehead, who is leaving Channel 4 to take up the role of Senior Director of Market Insight, EMEA for Google.  Gill has led Channel 4’s award-winning data strategy from its inception, which has built and strengthened new direct relationships with audiences – and has resulted in Channel 4 now having over 13 million registered viewers, including over half of all 16-34 year olds in the UK. 

Gill joined Channel 4 in 2008, as Director of Strategy and Corporate Development before taking on the leadership of the newly formed AT&I department in 2011 which also oversees audience insight, performance, customer relationships, data science and audience technologies.

Sarah Rose has been Channel 4’s Director of Commercial and Business Development since 2010, and has been responsible for the generation of all non-ad sales revenues across Channel 4’s brands and services – including channel and VoD carriage deals, and the launch of new ventures such as the Commercial Growth Fund and All4 Games.  Prior to this she was Channel 4’s Head of VoD and Channel Development, where she helped launch 4oD as the first broadcaster long-form VoD service. 

Sarah has held Board positions on Freeview, Digital UK and Box TV and prior to joining Channel 4 was General Manager for ITV Digital Channels and held a number of general management and business development positions for Carlton Television.

Channel 4 Chief Executive, David Abraham said: “Gill has played a critical role in driving Channel 4’s data strategy and creating an industry leading model for viewer engagement.  She has made a huge contribution to the success of Channel 4 over the last eight years and we wish her all the very best in her new role. 

“Sarah is an outstanding executive with a huge breadth of experience across the industry.  She has already been a major force in some of our biggest commercial and business innovations over the last decade and I know Sarah will be a fantastic addition to Channel 4’s executive team.”

Sarah Rose joins the Channel 4 executive team that comprises of Chief Executive David Abraham, Chief Creative Officer Jay Hunt, Chief Marketing & Communications Officer Dan Brooke, Director of Sales Jonathan Allan, Group Finance Director Glyn Isherwood, Director of Strategy & Technology Keith Underwood, Director of Film4 David Kosse and Director of Commercial Affairs Martin Baker.