Roger Lynch, the former chief executive officer of Pandora Radio, the largest streaming music service in the U.S., will become the first global ceo of Condé Nast, the company said Thursday.
“After conducting a thorough search for an executive to run the combined Condé Nast U.S. and International, we believe Roger is the right person to lead Condé Nast during our new phase of global integration, growth and transformation,” said board chairman Jonathan Newhouse.
“Roger is a transformative leader with significant international experience and a proven track record building companies at the evolving intersection of media and technology. His strong business acumen, relevant experience and ability to unite a team around a common purpose to drive results make him a clear choice for our next ceo.”
Steve Newhouse, board member, said the company was impressed with Lynch’s “passion for great journalism, magazines that make a difference and brands that have exceptional potential for growth,” and said Lynch will extend Condé’s print brands into “digital video, data and experiences.”
Lynch has experience leading consumer media and technology businesses through transformation and high-growth periods, Condé said. Most recently, as president and ceo of Pandora Radio, Lynch led the turnaround of the country’s largest streaming music service. He refocused the business on growth, transformation and investment initiatives to accelerate revenue and generate positive returns, according to the publisher.
“As a newly combined global company, we have the opportunity to accelerate the evolution of the consumer experiences and value we deliver to our audiences and partners around the world,” Lynch said.
Prior to working at Pandora, Lynch was the founding ceo of Sling TV, where he led its creation, launch and growth to become the top Live OTT service in the U.S. Lynch also served as chairman and ceo of Video Networks International Ltd., a U.K. based IPTV provider, and before that, as president and ceo of Chello Broadband in Amsterdam, where he pioneered the widespread rollout of consumer broadband services across ten countries in Europe.
Earlier in his career, Lynch was an investment banker with Morgan Stanley specializing in technology, and a member of the physics technical staff at Hughes Aircraft Company. He holds an MBA from the Tuck School of Business at Dartmouth, and a B.S. degree in physics from the University of Southern California.
With Lynch’s appointment, Bob Sauerberg, who served as ceo of Condé Nast’s U.S. business for the past three years, will step down and exit the organization after 18 years. Sauerberg will continue to represent Advance on the board of Reddit, the company said.
Condé Nast reconfirmed that, as it combines its U.S. and international companies into a single global business, Newhouse will become chairman of the board of directors of Condé Nast.
Newhouse will also serve as the Advance representative on the board of directors of Turnitin, the world’s leading company, producing anti-plagiarism software, which Advance has agreed to acquire. He also serves on the board of directors of Vestiaire Collective, a Paris-based e-commerce business in which Advance is an investor.