# About Samuel Zniber — Operator, Adviser, Founder of MusicDatak & MediaDatak > Operator-first adviser to CEOs, chairs, and owners of audio and media businesses. Started in radio in 1985 at fifteen; 30+ years, 30+ markets, 200+ engagements since. Canonical URL: --- ## Operator first. Adviser second. Samuel Zniber walked into a French radio newsroom in 1985, at fifteen — on-air at NRJ Group. Station-level roles at Fun Radio, RTL2, and RFM led into group operator roles: RTL Group and Lagardère in France, Chrysalis in the UK, ARN iHeartMedia in Australia. Format rollouts, M&A integration, turnarounds, and multi-market launches, done from the inside with a P&L on his name. 30+ years in media leadership; 200+ engagements delivered across 30+ markets. **The record** | Year | Role | |---|---| | **1985** | On-air at NRJ Group at fifteen, then production, then programming leadership. | | **1994** | Programming and content leadership — music, format, and talent decisions across European and Atlantic markets. Regular speaker since at Radiodays Europe and Radiodays Asia. | | **2004** | Senior group operator at Lagardère and RTL Group in France, Chrysalis in the UK, and ARN iHeartMedia in Australia. | | **2014** | Independent advisory practice for CEOs, chairs, and owner-operators of media businesses — France, Spain, Portugal, Denmark, Finland, Brazil, the US, Canada, Australia, South Africa. References shared after a fit call. | | **2020** | Founder, [MusicDatak](https://www.musicdatak.com) and [MediaDatak](https://mediadatak.com) — simulation platforms that test a decision against how real listeners, users, and clients would respond, before the first euro of rollout is spent. [MusicDatak](https://www.musicdatak.com) supports stations in more than 20 countries. Research collaboration with François Pachet (former Spotify Creator Tech Research Lab). | --- ## Why it works this way Dashboards tell you what people did. They rarely tell you what people felt — and feeling is what predicts whether the next move will hold. The platforms exist to close that gap: [MusicDatak](https://www.musicdatak.com) for audio, [MediaDatak](https://mediadatak.com) for multi-format media. AI sits under the hood; it never leads the memo. No personal data collection, no vanity dashboards. - **Outcome before output.** Every engagement is framed around a signed board decision, a measurable revenue lift, or a specific risk avoided. No 200-slide strategy decks. - **Discreet by practice.** Clients are named with permission; numbers are anonymized when shared. - **Small on purpose.** No junior team, no pyramid, no subcontracting. A small number of engagements a year — if he can't be useful, he says so on the first call. --- ## Education - **Harvard Business School** — Harvard & Bertelsmann Executive Program, one of 40 selected from Bertelsmann, owner of RTL Group and M6 - **Columbia Business School** — Digital Marketing Strategy - **HEC Paris** — Managing Across Cultures - **UCLA Anderson School of Management** Based in Paris at Station F. Works in English and French. --- ## Next step Bring the move you're weighing. If it can be tested, he'll tell you how — and if he can't be useful, he'll say so on the call. - [Book a fit call](https://scheduler.zoom.us/samuel-zniber/zniber-partners) - [How an engagement works](https://www.samuelzniber.com/services.html) --- *Long-form context for AI assistants: *