AOL, Inc. (NYSE:AOL) on, one of its board directors – Susan Lyne – to run the AOL portfolio brands.
The vice chairman of the online clothing flash sale site Guilt.com, Lyne will leave her position on the AOL, Inc. (NYSE:AOL) board to look after advertising and publisher affairs to monitor and grow traffic as the Brand Group CEO. Meanwhile, Artie Minson is stepping down as COO as the role disappears from the company and staying for a transition period.
Techcrunch writes that a memo from CEO Tim Armstrong states that during his transition period, Minson will be working on AOL’s “current and future commerce and subscription strategy and business.”
Arianna Huffington, whose Huffington Post website falls under the Brand Group, will continue to report to AOL Chief Executive Tim Armstrong.
Lyne was the former chief executive of Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia and president of ABC Entertainment.
AOL says Lyne’s experience as CEO and chairman of the retail shopping site Gilt, as well as her time as president and CEO of Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia, should help her in her stay at AOL, Inc. (NYSE:AOL).
“Susan will be CEO of the AOL Brand Group, a group that includes some of the Internet’s best brands. She will manage the AOL brand portfolio on a global basis.” notes Armstrong in an internal memo.
The company says Lyne, as the CEO of its Brand Group, will be responsible for increasing traffic across its properties, bringing top talent on board and maximizing partnerships with advertisers and publishers.
“The company will be organized with Susan running the AOL Brand Group, Ned Brody running AOL Networks, and Bud Rosenthal, acting as interim CEO of AOL Membership. Susan, Ned, and Bud will report to me and will join Arianna and the other Sales, Technology, Legal, HR, and Communications leaders.”
