Three of the most senior executives in regional publisher Local World have left the company in a management restructure.
Rich Mead, who was executive director in charge of the company’s South West titles, has left along with Karen Wall, who oversaw communications, and interim executive Steve Brown.
Their roles have been divided between two other senior executives, Rachel Addison who becomes chief operating officer in addition to her role as chief finance officer, and Lisa Gordon, who moves from a non-executive director role to become corporate development director.
The changes are understood to have been announced in an email to staff by Local World chairman David Montgomery today.
The company said in a statement: “The changes announced are aimed to help our ambitions to fully integrate transformation with the operating businesses. This should bring content, commerce and technology together to deliver a carefully planned, coordinated and well-executed strategy.
“Rachel Addison becomes COO in addition to her role as CFO. This incorporates all support functions to the business.
“Lisa Gordon, currently Non-Executive Director joins as Corporate Development Director. Lisa brings with her a wealth of media experience.
“The new structure means we say goodbye to Rich Mead, Karen Wall and Steve Brown, who are all highly professional, experienced and talented media operators, with Mead and Wall being former assistant MDs at Metro.”
Both Rich and Karen were previously part of the Northcliffe Media senior management team under Steve Auckland prior to the merger that created Local World at the start of the year.
Lisa had been chief operating officer of Iliffe News and Media prior to the merger and is said to have been instrumental in the deal that led to the creation of Local World.
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Just when you thought that it was safe to go back into the office!
Same old same old junk being spouted.
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I’ve got a bad feeling about Local World…
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They’re just inventing things now. Funny until you realise people lower down the food chain will be next (don’t give two hoots about execs – they reap what they sow)
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Doesn’t bode well for the state of the company …
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Squeeze the lemon dry and all your left with is rubbish you chuck in the bin #%&%$ ?
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Local world. I ask you.
I wonder which high powered overpaid think tank came up with that. You can picture it now… hhhmmm, we need something which stresses the localness of our products, but something which encompasses the bigger brand. hhhmm. I know! LOCAL WORLD!
Can I have a bonus now please?
Northcliffe is perhaps the best example of a company focussing on digital (where incomes are still tiny) at the expense of the printed product (which accounts for the majority of its revenue).
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Local world.
Adverts created in India, planned in Nottingham, sold in Derby. Newspaper sales in Swansea. IT based in Bristol. Private advertising in Hull, recruitment in Swansea (We think!!), printed in Cambridge, Accounts in Leicester.
Anyone else confused with the word local?
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This part of the email to staff is particularly worrying.
“Within three years the objective is to create a fully digitised transactional business where the vast majority of content contributions and commercial activity would be self-served by suppliers and clients.”
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‘the vast majority of content contributions and commercial activity would be self-served by suppliers and clients’
Rubbish. On the content side, once the local busy-bodies quickly get fed up and the content dries up that will fail. And on the commercial side, you will never, ever, ever get customers to book their own adverts, it simply won’t happen – they havent got the time and the packages make it expensive. They have been trying it for years. It won’t happen.
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So that’s no reporters then,and no sales reps?
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This is just such a load of you know what!
In less than 5 years it’s gone for blue chip to bloody stone chip!
It even messed up on the silicone chip.
Give me strength – but people are correct – the senior “management” really screwed up big time. Not just once but over and over again.
So glad I got out just before the free fall effect!
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