(Nashville, Tenn.) Today Thomas Nelson’s Chief Executive Officer Michael Hyatt announced changes to his executive leadership team. The changes were made to more tightly align sales, marketing, and publishing, while placing product development directly under his oversight.

Mark Schoenwald immediately assumes the duties of President and Chief Operating Officer. All of the company’s publishing, marketing, and sales will be consolidated under him. Schoenwald, who has served as Nelson’s Chief Sales Officer since 2004, will continue to report to Hyatt.

“Mark is a proven leader who is willing to tackle the tough issues and get everyone working together toward a common goal,” said Hyatt. “Under his leadership, we will be well positioned to meet the challenges we face in today’s difficult marketplace and to be successful as the economy begins to recover.”

With this change, Tami Heim steps down as Executive Vice President and Chief Publishing Officer. In her four years at Thomas Nelson, Heim was responsible for consolidating all of Nelson’s publishing imprints under the Thomas Nelson brand.  

“Tami will be greatly missed. She has contributed in innumerable ways, not the least of which was helping us view our business from a retailer’s point-of-view,” Hyatt continued. “We appreciate her hard work and devotion during her tenure at Thomas Nelson.”

With Schoenwald’s expanded focus on day-to-day operations, Hyatt will be freed up to concentrate on the publishing products. He will be more intimately involved with author acquisitions, author relations, and product development.

“The publishing landscape has changed dramatically over the last few years and I believe it will continue to evolve,” said Hyatt. “In this environment, it is critical that we have a sharp eye on developing WOW products and ensuring that they are available in the formats that our readers desire. As CEO, this will be my primary focus.”

Stuart Bitting, Chief Financial Officer, and Mary Graham, Chief Live Events Officer, will continue to report to Hyatt.

Thomas Nelson is a leading provider of Bibles, products, and live events emphasizing Christian, inspirational and family value themes.  For more information, visit our website www.thomasnelson.com.

 

Contact:

Lindsey Nobles
Director of Corporate Communications
tel:    (615) 902-1109
fax:    (615) 902-1110
web:    www.thomasnelson.com
e-mail: lnobles@thomasnelson.com

 

This entry was posted on Friday, March 27th, 2009 at 1:00 pm and is filed under Corporate Releases, Hiring Announcements, Human Resources, Press Release. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.