Trisha Husson has been promoted to head of strategy of business operations and finance for Disney General Entertainment, the TV creative unit of The Walt Disney Company. Following Husson’s elevation from DGE’s executive vice president of strategy and business, Eric Marcotte has been upped to senior vice president of strategy and business operations.
Disney General Entertainment handles content for The Walt Disney Company’s broadcast and cable networks and streaming platforms through brands ABC Entertainment, ABC News, Disney Branded Television, Freeform, FX, Hulu Originals, Onyx Collective and National Geographic, and television studios 20th Television and ABC Signature.
Husson has effectively already been doing this job on a day-to-day basis following the departure of Ravi Ahuja, the former president of business operations and chief financial officer of Walt Disney Television, who announced his exit in November 2020.
In her newly cemented role, Husson, who will report to DGE chairman Peter Rice, will oversee content research, insights and scheduling, content valuation, music business affairs and labor relations. She will manage the teams that provide holistic strategy, production financial planning, data-driven content analytics and operational guidance for DGE, which annually generates more than 4,500 hours of programming. Husson will have a dotted line reporting to Disney CFO Christine McCarthy to align DGE’s financial management with the company’s strategic priorities.
Husson’s direct reports are Bob Barron (EVP & CFO, Disney Television Studios), Eric Marcotte (SVP, strategy and business operations), Jane Gould (EVP, content insights and scheduling strategy), Peter DiCecco (EVP, music business affairs) and Marc Sandman (SVP, labor relations). Greg Richart and Karen Sack, who oversee finance and business planning across the content brand teams, will report to both Husson and Bryan Castellani, executive vice president of finance, platform distribution, ad sales and networks for Disney Media & Entertainment Distribution.
As new leader of the strategy and business operations team, Marcotte will support DGE creative and functional leadership with data-driven analytics, market assessments and operational strategies to inform content investment planning and to achieve segment-level business objectives. Reporting directly to him are Sonya Joo, Michelle Yeung, Hsuan Taur and Michael Chernauskas.
Husson was previously EVP of strategy and business operations for Fox Networks Group where she was responsible for leading major strategic and growth initiatives for Fox Broadcasting, Fox Sports Media Group, FX Networks, National Geographic Networks, FNG International Channels, Twentieth Century Fox Television Studios and Hulu.
Marcotte was formerly a member of the strategy & business operations team for Fox Networks Group, working with Husson and FNG leadership on strategic initiatives across broadcast, cable, studio and digital, including Hulu.
“Trish is a fantastic, highly skilled and deeply experienced executive who has played a pivotal role in helping us strategically and successfully expand our output of the highest quality content,” Rice said Thursday. “Trish is a tremendous partner to our creative leaders and colleagues across The Walt Disney Company, and we are very fortunate to have her leading the strategy and business operations that support our world-class storytellers.”
Husson added: “I could not be more excited to be working with the phenomenal leadership team at DGE as they develop, produce and market an industry-leading portfolio of content in a time of unprecedented demand and robust competition. I am honored to do so alongside the incredibly talented and experienced teams that I have the privilege of leading. I am also thrilled that Eric is stepping up to lead the Strategy & Business Operations team, continuing our long-standing partnership in which his keen insights and thought leadership have time and again proven invaluable in advancing DGE’s strategic and operational goals.”
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