NEW YORK—Operative, a provider of software that helps media companies manage and sell ads across TV, streaming and digital platforms, has named Dang Ly as chief product officer.
Ly, the former senior vice president and chief technology officer at Universal Destinations & Experiences, is tasked with leading Operative’s product strategy and road map across a portfolio that includes AOS, Operative.One, Adeline AI and STAQ; deepening its data-unification capabilities; expanding its omnichannel intelligence layer; and accelerating AI integration across its product suite, the company said.
“Media and advertising is evolving rapidly, and the companies that can unify trusted data and turn it into personalized audience experiences will define the next era,” Ly said. “Omnichannel engagement and AI only deliver value when the data underneath is connected, reliable and activated intelligently. Operative sits at exactly that intersection and I’m energized to help our customers turn connected data into measurable, outcome-based growth.”
Ly has spent more than 20 years scaling customer-facing products in media, entertainment, hospitality and retail, and building the data platforms that support them, Operative said. At Universal Destinations & Experiences, the theme-park unit of Comcast NBCUniversal, he oversaw a global enterprise strategy that leveraged data and AI to unify customer, operational and transactional data into workflows, automation and personalized guest experiences, the company said.
Previously, Ly spent nearly a decade leading NBCUniversal’s core ad sales technology and engineering teams.
“Dang brings something rare,” Operative CEO Mike Napodano said. “He has built audience data platforms at scale, and he has used them to deliver products that transform the way customers manage their business. He understands that 360-degree audience understanding isn’t a dashboard or a report, it’s an end-to-end discipline that starts with how you capture data and ends with how you act on it. That perspective is exactly what will shape Operative’s product roadmap as we help our customers grow in an AI-driven world.”
Ly’s appointment sets up Operative’s strategic focus on omnichannel data strategies and advanced analytics, the company said.
