Dan Strauss
25+ years building enterprise content and SaaS infrastructure serving millions of daily users. Former CPO at Tribune Publishing, General Manager at Billboard & The Hollywood Reporter, and architect of the LAKANA platform acquired by Nexstar — now purpose-built for automotive retail.
25+
Years in Media & SaaS
Enterprise infrastructure at scale200+
Cross-Functional Teams
Direct P&L responsibility2
Companies Acquired
LAKANA → Nexstar, Shopflick → POPSUGARCPO
Tribune Publishing
Chicago Tribune, NY Daily NewsEnterprise infrastructure, purpose-built for automotive
Dan Strauss has spent more than two decades building and operating mission-critical digital infrastructure — in environments where reliability, speed, and performance directly impact millions of daily users and real revenue. His career spans public-company media, high-growth digital platforms, and SaaS product development — consistently at the intersection of content, technology, and monetization. In each role, the mandate was clear: build systems that are resilient, intuitive for non-technical teams, and accountable to measurable outcomes.
Dan has served as General Manager, Chief Product Officer, Chief Digital Officer, and Chief Operating Officer across organizations including Tribune Publishing, Prometheus Global Media (Billboard and The Hollywood Reporter), The Wrap, Fox Sports Digital, Playboy Enterprises, and LAKANA. He has led cross-functional teams of 200+ across product, engineering, data science, editorial, revenue, and operations — with direct P&L responsibility.
As General Manager of Billboard and The Hollywood Reporter, Dan led digital operations and revenue strategy for two of the most recognized brands in media. As Chief Product Officer at Tribune Publishing, he oversaw product and platform strategy across the Chicago Tribune, New York Daily News, and a national portfolio serving millions of users daily. At LAKANA, he built and expanded a SaaS content management platform powering the vast majority of local television websites nationwide — tools and infrastructure later acquired by Nexstar.
Dan has also built from zero. As co-founder of Shopflick, later acquired by POPSUGAR, he led the company from concept to exit. Most recently, he led Generative AI initiatives at The Arena Group, gaining direct operational experience with both the power and limitations of AI-driven content systems.
Hrizn represents the natural convergence of his experience building enterprise infrastructure, deploying SaaS platforms, and operationalizing AI-driven content systems — all grounded in driving revenue growth and measurable performance. The platform reflects a career spent designing systems that scale, now purpose-built for automotive retail.
25+ years building enterprise content and SaaS infrastructure at Tribune Publishing, LAKANA, Billboard, and beyond. Hrizn's Content OS architecture reflects that enterprise-grade DNA.
Led cross-functional teams of 200+ across product, engineering, data science, editorial, revenue, and operations — with direct P&L responsibility at every level.
Led Generative AI initiatives at The Arena Group. Brings direct operational experience with where AI accelerates content systems and where human oversight remains essential.
Two successful acquisitions (LAKANA → Nexstar, Shopflick → POPSUGAR). Proven ability to build from zero to exit.
Enterprise media to SaaS to automotive infrastructure
General Manager, Billboard & The Hollywood Reporter
As General Manager of Billboard and The Hollywood Reporter, Dan led digital operations and revenue strategy for two of the most recognized brands in media — with a team of 75+ and full P&L responsibility. This is where Dan and David Gruhin first crossed paths, a working relationship that became the foundation for Hrizn.
COO / CDO
Served as Chief Operating Officer and Chief Digital Officer at The Wrap, leading operations, technology, and digital strategy. Held additional product leadership roles at Fox Sports Digital and Playboy Enterprises, further deepening his experience across high-growth digital platforms and content monetization.
Chief Product Officer
As Chief Product Officer at Tribune Publishing, Dan oversaw product and platform strategy across the Chicago Tribune, New York Daily News, and a national portfolio serving millions of users daily. Led cross-functional teams across product, engineering, data science, editorial, revenue, and operations — building the content infrastructure that powered one of America's largest news organizations.
Chief Product Officer
Built and expanded a SaaS content management platform powering the vast majority of local television websites nationwide. The tools and infrastructure Dan developed at LAKANA were later acquired by Nexstar, the largest local television station owner in the United States. This experience — building a CMS that non-technical content teams actually use at scale — directly translates to Hrizn's Content Operating System architecture.
Generative AI Initiatives Lead
Led Generative AI initiatives at The Arena Group, gaining direct operational experience with both the power and limitations of AI-driven content systems. This role provided the final piece of context that informed Hrizn's Human + AI approach — understanding where automation accelerates content operations and where human oversight remains essential.
Co-Founder & COO
Hrizn represents the natural convergence of Dan's career — building enterprise infrastructure, deploying SaaS platforms, and operationalizing AI-driven content systems — all grounded in driving revenue growth and measurable performance. The platform reflects 25+ years spent designing systems that scale, now purpose-built for automotive retail.
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Talk content platforms, product strategy, or the intersection of AI and publishing.
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