Heavyweight business and technology journalist with 20+ years of impact across investigative reporting, digital media leadership, and high-growth content ventures. As an early Daily Maverick team member, I helped shape one of Africa’s most influential newsrooms while producing agenda-setting journalism. This included landmark coverage of the Marikana Massacre and labour justice issues.

I am the senior editor at MarkLives.com, where I consistently deliver high-performing content and viral thought leadership, with standout pieces reaching over 15,000 impressions. I was also the former CEO and editor-in-chief of Inc.com in Africa, where I scaled the platform to 650,000 monthly users, 2 million page views, and a social following of 275,000 in under a year. 

As a business journalist, I wrote one of the most-read stories of all time for Finweek [which has since closed]. My work has been published in The Guardian and Rolling Stone Magazine. I co-authored a book on organisational culture and change called HopePunk—The Guide To Creating A Better World Of Work.

As an entrepreneur, I’ve opened and exited two businesses. One of these is Idea Engineers, a highly respected strategic communications company. I’ve been fortunate to work with a few successful startups that have made it big, including: News24 and Paymentology.

Conscious uncoupling: Why brands are splitting from media agencies. 

“There is a case to split media strategy, media buying and media reporting. In my experience, I would in-house media strategy and reporting, and outsource media buying as a function,” says Ryan Sauer, CEO of Redwood Analytics, who counsels brands on performance analytics.

This is exactly the approach that’s taken by fintech Capitec and professional rugby union, The Sharks.

“At Capitec, we have adopted a hybrid marketing model that supports the needs of a fast-paced, digitally led fintech. We believe it is critical for brands to own their strategic thinking, while partnering with best-in-class specialists where depth, scale or highly specialised execution is required,” says Asha Patel, Head of Brand and Communications at Capitec.

Durban-based, internationally supported brand, The Sharks are doing the same. “Having spent over a decade in agency environments, I believe the strongest model is a hybrid approach. Keeping key decision-making in-house ensures alignment with business strategy, while agencies provide specialist expertise and scale. The balance allows for control, clarity, and high-quality execution,” says David Micklewood, Head of Media House at The Sharks.

“The strongest South African brands are not choosing between in-house or agency. They are building hybrid models. Strategy, data ownership, and accountability sit internally, while agencies, freelancers, or boutique specialists are used for audits, training, innovation sprints, or complex execution when internal teams reach capacity,” says Dean Lurie MSc Lurie, Freelance Google Ads Specialist and Coach at The Digital Marketing Dean.

Read the full story at MarkLives MEDIA:
https://lnkd.in/d4hdzVyW

taplio

Charles Mathews's Linkedin Analytics

Charles Mathews

Performance ScoreCharles Mathews's LinkedIn Performance

Charles Mathews's Best Posts (last 30 days)

Ready to grow your LinkedIn presence?

taplio

.css-6ytdur{background-image:linear-gradient(284deg, rgba(39, 43, 72, 1) 0%, rgba(33, 47, 183, 1) 100%);color:transparent;-webkit-background-clip:text;background-clip:text;}Charles Mathews's Linkedin Analytics

Charles Mathews

Performance Score.css-goub6s{font-size:var(--chakra-fontSizes-md);font-weight:500;color:var(--chakra-colors-gray-600);display:block;margin-top:var(--chakra-space-1);}Charles Mathews's LinkedIn Performance

Charles Mathews's Best Posts .css-1emoo84{font-size:var(--chakra-fontSizes-md);font-weight:400;color:var(--chakra-colors-gray-600);}(last 30 days)

Ready to grow your LinkedIn presence?

Charles Mathews's Linkedin Analytics

Performance ScoreCharles Mathews's LinkedIn Performance

Charles Mathews's Best Posts (last 30 days)