The BBC has appointed a new director of platform. Matt Grest will join from Sky with a wealth of experience and an impressive track record in transformational leadership. Matt’s most recently been Sky’s director of digital platforms, with responsibility for web and mobile across Sports, News, Sky.com and Intranet. Matt has also led on the creation and expansion of Sky’s new Digital Hub in Leeds.
Previously Grest (pictured left) was part of the IT leadership team at Yorkshire Building Society, head of development at NHS Choices (Capita) and head of software development at Plusnet. He was part of the core management team that took Plusnet from a small start-up through rapid growth to acquisition by BT, and played a lead role in the design and delivery of the ISP infrastructure and CRM platform.
As the director of platform, Grest will lead the transformation of the BBC’s digital and broadcast products into a fully integrated platform, merging together today’s platform products and teams with myBBC, preparing D&E (Design and Engineering) and the BBC for an internet-fit future.
Matthew Postgate, chief technology and product officer for the BBC, says: “I believe Matt’s experience can help us make a step-change toward our goals around platform convergence – broadcast and online, content and users – whilst bringing experience and insight about what it’s like being a user and customer of a platform. Matt is aligned with our philosophy and approach to creating a platform group with a strong sense of identity and service to the BBC; he has achieved just that at Sky, having built up a highly regarded team and established a strong and inspiring culture at a similar scale as we’re working to in D&E.”
Grest will be joining the BBC in late spring, and will be based in the north.
