25 years bridging strategy and delivery.
A senior project & program manager who came up through brand and marketing, then crossed into digital, AI, and post-merger integration. Now independent and contracting across USA, Mexico, Australia, and New Zealand.
What I actually do
I plug into teams that have ambition and momentum but no one in the middle holding the line. Stakeholders on one side, builders on the other, scope drifting somewhere between. That's the seat.
The job is making sure the thing actually gets done — and the team is still standing on the other side. Most projects don't fail at the technical layer. They fail in the gap between what was promised, what was understood, and what was actually built. That gap is the work.
I bring a rare blend of technical depth in app and web development and strategic oversight in digital marketing and brand architecture — so every project delivers measurable business value, not just deliverables.
Timeline
- 2009 — Present
Director / Senior Project Manager · Contractor
17 years independent. National and regional rollouts, large-scale digital applications, post-merger integrations, brand programs. Selected client work includes Wild Turkey Darts Pro Tour, Cargo Bar, and multiple confidential corporate engagements.
- 2007 — 2008
Digital Project Manager · Foster's Group
Led the end-to-end project lifecycle for a national digital sales & marketing platform — on time, on budget, into the hands of the national sales org.
- 2005 — 2007
Director, Brand Strategy · Century Yuasa
Strategic project roadmap across 4 automotive brands generating $120M+ in annual revenue. Multi-channel campaigns, retail rollout, agency orchestration.
- 2003 — 2005
Marketing Communications Manager · LexisNexis
Led the Butterworths → LexisNexis corporate rebrand and consolidation across the AU/NZ business — print catalogues, online portals, sales collateral, customer comms.
- 2000 — 2003
Account Manager · Clear Channel Entertainment
Sports marketing department in Dallas, TX. National-reach promotional campaigns with global brand partners — concept through activation.
Formally trained, currently certified
Bachelor of Business
Major: Industrial Relations · Major: Marketing
University of Newcastle, Australia
Project Management Specialization
Foundations of Project Management + Agile Project Management — refreshed certifications across traditional, agile, and hybrid methods.
AI Essentials, Analytics, Ad Search
Working knowledge across the Google measurement and AI tooling stack — used to brief specialists, not to do the optimisation work.
The practical bit
- Nationality
- Australian
- Work eligibility
- Australia · New Zealand · United States · Mexico
- Time zones
- Run remote-first across AU, US, and Mexican business hours
- Engagement model
- Project-based · Retainer · Fractional PMO
- aarondarke@me.com
- Phone (US)
- +1 530 4490 5448
- Phone (MX)
- +52 624 317 9344
- linkedin.com/in/aarondarke ↗
Let's talk.
Bring the project. I'll bring the structure, the cadence, and the calm.