Blue Array Appoints New Managing Director
Posted by Luci Wood on September 27, 2020
The UK’s most popular and largest specialist SEO agency, Blue Array, has appointed Stephanie Emmanouel as its Managing Director. Stephanie will be responsible for Blue Array’s operations as of 1 October 2020.
Stephanie’s appointment marks the start of an exciting new chapter for the SEO agency, founded by industry expert, Simon Schnieders, who’s spent his career achieving great SEO results for big names like Zoopla and Mail Online. Simon will continue to be involved in business development for the company, but has appointed Stephanie to handle the growing businesses’ operational needs.
“Growing the business from a team of 20 last year to over 40 this year has been a fulfilling and rewarding journey for me. The reality is we’re a very different agency today as a result of that growth. Operational practices, systems and processes had to change radically as well. Maneuvering from 40-80+ as we plan to over the next two years is another leap altogether. As someone who tries to practice rigorous honesty with myself I’ve taken the decision that, with us doubling in size again, I may not be the best person to continue leading operations at Blue Array. Being able to attract someone of the calibre of Stephanie to lead operations has affirmed that belief and I’m hugely excited to see how the business transforms yet again under her leadership.” Simon said.
The company has experienced rapid growth since its foundation in early 2015 and is projected to continue to increase its headcount in the coming years. The team of over 40 employees will be led by Stephanie as Managing Director, a challenge the experienced leader is ready to take on.
Stephanie explains, “Blue Array has a stellar reputation in our industry and I could not pass up the opportunity to work with such a talented team that is laser focused on the single highest-performing digital marketing channel out there. I started my digital career in ‘search’ back in 2004. Having been part of the founding team of one of Google’s European offices has made me experience and value the ‘power of search’ first hand, and I am looking forward to being part of this exciting and ever changing journey for years to come.”
Stephanie is a seasoned multi-lingual commercial leader with 20 years’ business experience. She joins Blue Array from Rokt, where she held the position of Vice President, EMEA. Prior to joining Rokt, she was General Manager CCM at digital transformation agency Somo.
In 2008, she was recruited by Google to set up their sales operations from Athens/Greece. She has lived and worked in multiple countries across the globe including the U.S., Japan, the U.K., Germany and Greece. Stephanie has won numerous industry awards throughout her career; she was named a TOP 30 Agency Innovator by The Internationalist in 2016 and has won a commendation as the Most Effective Mobile Agency at the MoMa awards (The Drum).
She holds a Master’s Degree in Computing Science and a Master’s Degree in Communication Studies. In July 2014 she completed the Executive Program at the Stanford Graduate School of Business. Stephanie is a Certified Information Privacy Professional/Europe (CIPP/E).