Christian Heinkele - Senior Advisor and Independent...

Q: Where is Christian based?

Christian is based in Bonn, Germany .

Q: What languages does Christian speak?

Christian speaks the following languages: German (Native), English (Advanced), French (Elementary) .

Q: How many years of experience does Christian have?

Christian has at least 27 years of experience. During this time, Christian has worked in at least 8 different roles and for 8 different companies . The average length of individual experience is 3 years and 5 months . Note that Christian may not have shared all experience and actually has more experience.

Q: What is Christian's latest experience?

Christian's most recent position is Senior Advisor and Independent Business Consultant at Self-employed .

Q: What companies has Christian worked for in recent years?

In recent years, Christian has worked for Self-employed .

Q: Which industries is Christian most experienced in?

Christian is most experienced in industries like Media and Entertainment , Telecommunication , and Professional Services . Christian also has some experience in Information Technology and Aerospace and Defense .

Q: Which business areas is Christian most experienced in?

Christian is most experienced in business areas like Marketing , Product Development , and Strategy . Christian also has some experience in Project Management , Procurement , and Sales .

Q: Which industries has Christian worked in recently?

Christian has recently worked in industries like Media and Entertainment and Telecommunication .

Q: Which business areas has Christian worked in recently?

Christian has recently worked in business areas like Marketing , Procurement , and Product Development .

Recommended expert

Bonn, Germany

Experience

May 2021 - Present

4 years 11 months

Senior Advisor and Independent Business Consultant

Self-employed

Senior Advisor for the consulting firm Arthur D. Little and the media analytics software company Nice People At Work – NPAW with focus areas in platform strategies, content licensing, product management for TV products, ARPU increases, B2B excellence, and marketing strategies
Host of the TV industry podcast TV-Helden since June 2021
Clients: Top 4 TV platform in Germany; largest FTTH network operator; software company; industry association; media start-up; leading news channel
Projects in: strategic conception of a TV platform; negotiating and finalizing licensing agreements with media groups; optimizing procurement; leading cooperation negotiations; realigning the product portfolio and TV offerings; building sales and marketing in the DACH region; developing and implementing a distribution strategy; conceptualizing and marketing a trade fair for media companies

Apr 2016 - Oct 2020

4 years 7 months

Cologne, Germany

Managing Director

Eviso Germany GmbH (Canal+ Luxemburg S. à r.l.)

Responsible for the B2B division of Canal+ Luxembourg in Germany, Austria, Switzerland, and Luxembourg
Shareholder and part of the management team that sold M7 Group SA in 2019 to Canal+ International for EUR 1.1 billion
Responsible for over EUR 20 million in annual revenue and leading a team of 25 employees
Exceeded targets in 2016, 2017, 2018, and 2019; acquired numerous new clients such as Deutsche Telekom (2016) and Salt (2017)
Successfully expanded in Austria and Switzerland and achieved market leadership
Negotiated and renewed the highest-revenue contract with Tele Columbus AG for three years at unchanged terms
Extended contracts with over 40 partners for multiple years, each worth three times the annual revenue
Initiated and established the M7 Partner Awards as a customer loyalty program with annual award ceremonies
Restructured the entire company, increasing efficiency and effectiveness and cutting costs through the introduction of key account management, standardization of all customer contracts, automation, new service provider agreements, process redesign, staff reduction, and new IT systems
Managed successful change by introducing a new organizational structure and culture, new methods, and agile project management; doubled employee satisfaction within 12 months
Launched a new brand and corporate design and completely redesigned B2B marketing support in 2017
Expanded the product portfolio by introducing new content and technical products; built the largest licensing portfolio for IPTV platforms and cable networks in the German-speaking region
Changed business models with products having minimum revenue commitments (2017) and reduced dependency on variable revenues
Redefined the service portfolio and introduced a new base fee, significantly increasing fixed monthly revenues above budget
Sought-after expert with numerous publications in professional press and at international conferences and trade shows

Mar 2015 - Mar 2016

1 year 1 month

Luxembourg, Luxembourg

Head of Portfolio Management

M7 Group SA

Led product management and content licensing for Free TV, Pay TV, and VOD for HD Austria (Austria) and M7 Germany B2B
Spokesperson for the M7 Group in Germany and responsible for association work and public policy topics
Responsible for licensing key content providers and negotiating multi-year licensing agreements with RTL Group, ProSiebenSat.1, Disney, Fox, Universal, Discovery, Sony, Turner, TVN, Mediaset, and Viacom
Introduced the hybrid SAT & OTT platform HD Austria as the product and content manager in 2015
Initiated and designed the product and project to launch the B2C DTH platform Diveo for the German market in the M7 Group management board and with investors

Dec 2009 - Feb 2015

5 years 3 months

Cologne, Germany

Director TV & Regulatory Affairs

Eutelsat visAvision GmbH

Led and managed TV product management for Free TV, Pay TV, International TV, VOD & value-added services for all German-speaking countries (186 TV channels, over EUR 12 million in annual revenue)
Managed licensing and content procurement for around 150 Free TV, Pay TV, and international channels, as well as VOD and collecting societies for the German-speaking region
Headed the Regulatory & Media Policy division in Germany; association work at ANGA, Deutsche TV-Plattform, VAUNET, and Buglas; coordinated activities and interests with media authorities, collecting societies, and antitrust proceedings
Responsible for revenue and cost management of the entire satellite capacity of the cable platform on Eutelsat 9A; negotiated long-term satellite capacity agreements with Mediaset Italia, TVN SA, BBC, Discovery, Viacom, Bloomberg, Russia Today, TV5, and Bibel TV
Responsible for negotiations and contracts with VG Media, GEMA, FFA, VFF, and Münchner Runde
Key account manager for the three highest-revenue clients Tele Columbus, Primacom, and NetCologne
Initiated and led innovations and projects:
Launched the first private HDTV channels in the German cable network (2010)
Launched the first Pay TV channels in HDTV (2011)
Expanded the foreign-language portfolio to the largest offering in cable and IPTV in Germany and Austria (2011)
Grew the IPTV portfolio to the largest in Germany (2012)
Expanded the satellite platform to the largest HD platform in Germany (2013)
Launched the first encrypted HD Free TV product in Austrian cable (2013)
Designed and developed the TV of the future based on an in-house IPTV and OTT platform; awarded the Best TV Everywhere Award at IBC 2014
Responsible for linear and non-linear content acquisition for 120 TV channels, including public broadcasters ARD and ZDF, for the launch of the meinFernsehen IPTV & OTT platform (2014)

Dec 2006 - Nov 2009

3 years

Cologne, Germany

Product Manager International TV

Unitymedia GmbH

Responsible for product marketing of International TV with 12 Pay TV products (customer base, revenue, marketing budget, marketing campaigns, inbound and online sales channels)
Led cross-company digital TV projects such as churn prevention and migration of 150,000 Arena football Bundesliga customers to alternative products; results significantly above budget
Responsible for budget planning, controlling, and management reporting of the Digital TV division; established controlling for Digital TV

Dec 2003 - Nov 2006

3 years

Munich, Germany

Senior Consultant

Deloitte Consulting GmbH

Senior Consultant in the Corporate Strategy practice with an industry focus on Technology, Media & Telecommunications
Designing marketing strategies for mobile network operators
Developing a micro-campaign strategy and implementing it by introducing new processes and software at telecommunications providers
Conducting a process redesign for a German internet service provider
Establishing management control and reporting structures for a leading German telecommunications company
Leading the project office for long-term projects with over 40 consultants
Authoring numerous internal and external publications on market trends and analyses
Serving as a subject matter expert for Machine-to-Machine communication

May 1999 - Feb 2003

3 years 10 months

Co-founder

Linus Consulting

Founded a consulting firm and carried out numerous projects in market analysis, market entry strategies, and M&A
Fully funded my studies through consulting revenues

Jul 1996 - Jul 1998

2 years 1 month

Officer

Bundeswehr

Trained as a reserve officer with the mountain infantry in Mittenwald and Bad Reichenhall
Awarded the Bundeswehr Cross of Honor in Bronze for loyal service and outstanding performance, and the Oder Flood Medal of the State of Brandenburg

Industry Experience

See where this freelancer has spent most of their professional time.

Experienced in Media and Entertainment, Telecommunication, Professional Services, Information Technology, and Aerospace and Defense.

Media and Entertainment

Telecommunication

Professional Services

Information Technology

Aerospace and Defense

Business Area Experience

See which departments and functions this freelancer has contributed to most.

Experienced in Marketing, Product Development, Strategy, Project Management, Procurement, and Sales.

Marketing

Product Development

Strategy

Project Management

Procurement

Sales

Summary

I am a leader with broad knowledge and solid management experience. Proven in agile mid-sized companies and in multinational corporations. I can point to sustainable successes in realizing growth and expansion potentials, building new business areas, expanding into new markets, and realigning corporate structures and organizational cultures. Furthermore, my career is defined by establishing growth-oriented business models in challenging markets, continuously optimizing processes, implementing comprehensive cost-reduction programs, and building successful sales and marketing structures.

With over 20 years of experience in the telecommunications and media industry, I am an expert on all aspects of TV platforms, marketing and product management of television products. My global network in the TMT sector spans network and infrastructure operators, software and technology providers, as well as specialized service providers. Thanks to my many years of expertise in licensing TV channels and content, I have access to all national and international media companies and can negotiate licensing rights quickly and cost-efficiently. As a B2B expert, I coach in B2B leadership and support companies especially in setting up efficient acquisition processes and maintaining business relationships as well as in B2B and B2B2C marketing.

I am the host of one of the most successful podcasts in the German-speaking TV industry, an analytical mind with a structured and engaging approach, and a team player with certified expertise in agile methods. I am a sought-after speaker at international conferences on topics such as the future of television, digital leadership, organizational change, and regulatory issues.

Skills

Professional Scrum Master
Past President Of The Round Table 11 Cologne Service Club
Mentor At The Student Consulting Firm Jms Augsburg E.v.
Travel Abroad
Politics And Contemporary History
Modern Literature
High-altitude Ski Tours
Mountain Biking
Marathon

Languages

German

Native

English

Advanced

French

Elementary

Education

Oct 1998 - Mar 2004

University of Augsburg

Diploma in Business Administration · Business Administration · Augsburg, Germany · 1.8

Sep 1983 - Jul 1996

Gebhard Müller School (business high school)

General university entrance qualification · Biberach, Germany

University of California Berkeley

Marketing & European History · Berkeley, United States

Certifications & licenses

Professional Scrum Master

Statistics

Experience

Total positions 8

Experience in Media and Entertainment 18.5 y

Avg length 3 y 5 m

Longest experience 5 y 2 m

Global Experience

Countries worked in 2 (Germany, Luxembourg)

Primary country Germany

Expertise

Recent roles Senior Advisor and Independent Business Consultant, Managing Director, Head of Portfolio Management

Main industries Media and Entertainment, Telecommunication, Professional Services

Main business areas Marketing, Product Development, Strategy

Qualifications

Highest degree Bachelor

Certifications earned 1

Profile

Created

January 2022

Last Update

March 2026

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Frequently asked questions

Do you have questions? Here you can find further information.

Where is Christian based?

Christian is based in Bonn, Germany.

What languages does Christian speak?

Christian speaks the following languages: German (Native), English (Advanced), French (Elementary).

How many years of experience does Christian have?

Christian has at least 27 years of experience. During this time, Christian has worked in at least 8 different roles and for 8 different companies. The average length of individual experience is 3 years and 5 months. Note that Christian may not have shared all experience and actually has more experience.

What roles would Christian be best suited for?

Based on recent experience, Christian would be well-suited for roles such as: Senior Advisor and Independent Business Consultant, Managing Director, Head of Portfolio Management.

What is Christian's latest experience?

Christian's most recent position is Senior Advisor and Independent Business Consultant at Self-employed.

What companies has Christian worked for in recent years?

In recent years, Christian has worked for Self-employed.

Which industries is Christian most experienced in?

Christian is most experienced in industries like Media and Entertainment, Telecommunication, and Professional Services. Christian also has some experience in Information Technology and Aerospace and Defense.

Which business areas is Christian most experienced in?

Christian is most experienced in business areas like Marketing, Product Development, and Strategy. Christian also has some experience in Project Management, Procurement, and Sales.

Which industries has Christian worked in recently?

Christian has recently worked in industries like Media and Entertainment and Telecommunication.

Which business areas has Christian worked in recently?

Christian has recently worked in business areas like Marketing, Procurement, and Product Development.

What is Christian's education?

Christian holds a Bachelor in Marketing & European History from University of California Berkeley.

Does Christian have any certificates?

Christian has 1 certificate: Professional Scrum Master.

What is the availability of Christian?

Christian is immediately available for suitable projects.

What is the rate of Christian?

Christian's rate depends on the specific project requirements. Please use the Meet button on the profile to schedule a meeting and discuss the details.