Cumulus Names Suzanne Grimes Westwood One Division Pres. & EVP/Corporate Marketing; Mike McVay & Tom Schurr Add Responsibilities

Suzanne Grimes

CUMULUS MEDIA taps media and advertising executive SUZANNE GRIMES as President of the WESTWOOD ONE Division and EVP/Corporate Marketing for all of CUMULUS. She  will report to CEO MARY BERNER.

In a memo to staffers, CUMULUS CEO MARY BERNER also made a change in the programming department, writing, "in recognition of the importance of investing in our programming strategy, we are announcing the development of a newly created Office of Programming. MIKE MCVAY, SVP of Content & Programming, has now formally been appointed to lead our content strategy across the platform, including talent recruitment and development and label relations. TOM SCHURR, SVP of Operations, will now partner with MIKE in a new role, overseeing the business aspects of programming, including organization and prioritization, resource allocation, and budget responsibilities."

The new role of WESTWOOD ONE Division Pres., "creates a unified structure that maximizes opportunities across the division’s national content and sales platform," said the company in a press release. WESTWOOD ONE Pres. STEVE SHAW will continue to lead ad sales, and WESTWOOD ONE Coo CHARLES STEINHAUER, will continue to lead operations, both reporting directly to GRIMES.

The new role of EVP/Corporate Marketing, "will enable GRIMES to provide her expertise in developing corporate marketing and branding opportunities as well as in creating new research and insights to stimulate ad growth and sales efforts across CUMULUS," added the company.

“When it comes to anything in media, SUZANNE’s the full package,” said BERNER. “With 30 years of experience building content businesses into high-performing brands, she brings valuable perspectives from leadership roles in outdoor, mobile, social, digital, print and experiential sectors for both public and private companies, so she’s a natural choice for these important roles. I look forward to her contribution as we build a stronger, more operationally focused organization.”

“I am delighted to join CUMULUS MEDIA,” said GRIMES. “I have a huge appreciation for the power of radio as well as an understanding of how to grow revenue and execute flawlessly in a changing media landscape and across ad-supported environments with national/local complexities. I look forward to helping MARY and the rest of the executive team capitalize on the enormous opportunities ahead.”

BERNER also explained, "Research marketing led by PIERRE BOUVARD, our Chief Marketing Officer, and social media strategy led by LORI LEWIS, VP of Social Media, will now both report to SUZANNE as part of this team. TOMMY PAGE, in his role as leader of our platform events initiatives and brand partnerships, will continue to play a key role in the Corporate Marketing function as well."

Page will pick up extra duties as part of the development and execution of the NASH brand strategy under the new title of SVP/Brand Partnerships & NASH. 

BERNER will also host a company-wide webinar TOMORROW (12/17)at 2p (EST) where details and additional announcements will be made.

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