TORONTO – CTVglobemedia announced five key appointments on Monday as it reorganized its television division into strategic channel groups following its acquisition of CHUM Ltd.
Susanne Boyce and Rick Brace will lead the television division’s content and business strategies, while Dawn Fell, Andre Serero and Paul Sparkes will be responsible for the corporate units. Robin Fillingham remains chief financial officer and will continue to handle all financial matters pertaining to CTVglobemedia.
As president of creative, content and channels at CTV Inc., Boyce will be responsible for all creative aspects of the conventional, specialty and digital platforms, excluding sports. She will oversee program development, production, programming, scheduling, branding and promotion, along with creatively collaborating with the sports group on Olympic programming.
Brace, in the position of president of revenue, business planning and sports at CTV, will look after the company’s revenue streams, (conventional, specialty and interactive advertising; cable, satellite and new media subscription) and all business unit planning. He will continue to oversee the sports group and the Olympic joint venture.
As vice-president of human resources and operations, Fell will oversee the company’s technical, buildings, operations and all television stations. She remains the company’s head of human resources.
Serero, CTVglobemedia executive vice-president of business and legal affairs, will be responsible for all business affairs and legal matters.
Sparkes, CTVglobemedia executive vice-president of corporate affairs, adds communications and the company’s corporate social responsibility initiatives to her job that includes regulatory and government affairs and sponsorship. Former CHUM Ltd. communications chief Mary Powers had initially moved over to CTVglobemedia, but left after the merger was approved in June by the CRTC.
Among the other former CHUM executives who have left the CTVglobemedia fold are Paul Gratton, CHUM Television vice-president of entertainment specialty channels; David Kirkwood, CHUM Television executive vice-president of sales and marketing; Ellen Bain, CHUM Television vice-president of programming; and Roma Khanna, CHUM Television senior vice-president of content.
Remaining with CTVglobemedia are Isme Bennie, CHUM specialty TV channel director of programming; David Goldstein, CHUM vice-president of government and regulatory affairs; Sarah Crawford, CHUM vice-president of public affairs; Marcia Martin, CHUM Television vice-president of production; and David Kines, CHUM Television vice-president of music and youth services.
“This is the third time that we have reinvented our organization in the 12 years I have had the privilege of leading our team,” said Ivan Fecan, CTVglobemedia president and chief executive officer and CTV CEO in a statement. “The first was when we, then Baton Broadcasting, acquired the CTV network and many of the privately owned CTV affiliates, while launching a number of specialty channels. The second was when we acquired the leading independent specialty broadcaster of the day, Netstar, which owned TSN, RDS and Discovery."
“In today’s rapidly changing media environment, it is essential that Canadian broadcasters have the size and scale to compete so that Canadians will continue to have a strong voice. The team we now have in place ensures that CTVglobemedia can lead the way in achieving this goal and position us for continued success,” he added.
