CUSTOMER CENTRICITY THROUGH TECH
David Kline
NORTH AMERICA this experience lit up a fascination with the “ art of the possible ” for Kline , which he has brought to his team at Viacom . “ We aim to identify what ’ s possible for the divisions we guide and influence – whether it ’ s advertising , production , research , distribution … it is important to understand what they ’ re doing and deliver the technology that works for them .”
At the time of its fruition in the 1970s , Viacom was something of a “ walled garden ”. “ It was very segregated from the rest of the world ,” says Kline . “ As the world grew , digital connectivity became more of an opportunity , like we see today with apps and connected devices – now , everywhere you go , there is some kind of digital footprint .”
CUSTOMER CENTRICITY THROUGH TECH
As technology has developed , so too have customer expectations across the various demographics Viacom caters for . “ The millennial audience really took a whole new swing at what connectivity meant – they want what they want when they want it . We have to be able to deliver that ,” he explains , adding that nowadays on-demand programming is an expectation rather
17 EXECUTIVE PROFILE
David Kline
Having been at Viacom for eight years , David Kline provides strategic leadership for the company ’ s technology infrastructure and oversees Viacom ’ s Online Central Platform Technology and Interactive Services , Content Creation and Distribution Technology , Application Development and Information Security and Compliance . During his time at the company , Kline has led several successful initiatives as well as developing and promoting a strong , diverse team of talented people . Prior to working at Viacom , Kline served as Executive Vice President of Technology and CTO at Discovery Communications , having also held senior technology roles at Rainbow Media
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