Corus Entertainment Announces Executive Leadership Team to Position Company for the Future

TORONTO, Aug. 28, 2015 /CNW/ -Corus Entertainment Inc.'s President and Chief Executive Officer, Doug Murphy, announced today the company's new Executive Leadership Team (ELT) that ensures continuity of senior management and alignment around Corus' strategic priorities. 

"We are excited about the year ahead. With the deep bench strength of our Executive Leadership Team, a clear vision and strong plan in place, we are focused on the successful execution of our strategic priorities as we evolve the company to meet consumers' needs in a highly-dynamic and competitive marketplace," said Doug Murphy. "In July, our Board of Directors approved Corus' Strategic Plan and the ELT will execute upon this clear strategic framework to return the company to growth in the coming years."

The ELT will be comprised of the President and CEO's direct reports, as well as Judy Adam, Corus' Vice President, Finance, who reports to the Chief Financial Officer. The President and CEO's direct reports include:

Colin Bohm – Executive Vice President, Head of Corus Kids
Colin Bohm will oversee all aspects of Corus' kids business which encompasses the leading kids television brands YTV, Nickelodeon (Canada), Disney Channel (Canada), Cartoon Network (Canada), TELETOON and Treehouse. Colin will continue to be responsible for all areas of the Nelvana business which houses the company's international kids development, production and distribution activities and is a key element in Corus' strategic priorities to own and control more content and expand internationally. Colin will also be responsible for all digital activities and strategies related to the kids brands and Nelvana.

Mario Cecchini – Executive Vice President, President, Corus Radio and Corus Média
Mario Cecchini will continue his oversight of Corus' Radio division, comprised of 39 stations, and Corus Média, which includes the French-language specialty television assets Séries+, Historia, TÉLÉTOON and La chaîne Disney in support of Corus' strategy to expand into adjacent markets with our networks in Quebec. Mario is also responsible for Corus' three conventional television stations. Mario will represent Corus as the Chair of Canadian Broadcast Sales, and on the Board of the Canadian Association of Broadcasters.   

Scott Dyer – Executive Vice President, Chief Technology Officer and President, Nelvana 
Scott Dyer will continue to lead Corus' technology strategy and direct infrastructure investments as well as manage the technology teams and resources for both Corporate IT and TV Broadcast. Scott will also continue his oversight of the company's publishing operation, Kids Can Press, and Toon Boom. Scott will return to Nelvana, a role he left in 2006 to oversee the construction of Corus Quay, to assume responsibility of the Nelvana portfolio which falls under Colin's leadership. Oversight of the strategic planning process will move to Maria Hale, and the corporate development portfolio will return to Tom Peddie.

Maria Hale – Executive Vice President, Head of Content Distribution and Pay Television
Maria Hale will lead all aspects of the monetization of Corus' linear and non-linear content domestically with distributors, including oversight of the implementation of the company's TV Everywhere strategies for all Corus brands and content. Maximizing digital rights and reaching subscriber segments in innovative ways aligns with Corus' strategic priorities to build scale through partnerships. Maria will chair Corus' Digital Council and assume responsibility of the company's strategic planning process.  Maria will continue her oversight of Corus' Pay TV business, which consists of Movie Central, Encore Avenue and HBO Canada, in Western Canada. 

Gary Maavara – Executive Vice President and General Counsel
Gary Maavara will continue to oversee all aspects of Corus' legal matters, regulatory affairs and government relations.  As we move into an evolving regulatory environment, Gary will oversee the requisite regulatory filings to position the company for growth. Gary will also continue in his role as Corporate Secretary of the company, represent Corus on numerous industry committees and lead the company's strategies regarding the implementation of the Let's Talk TV decisions.

John MacDonald – Executive Vice President, Head of Corus Women and Family
John MacDonald will oversee all aspects of the company's Women and Family portfolio which includes W Network, OWN: Oprah Winfrey Network (Canada), CosmoTV, Sundance Channel (Canada), W Movies, ABC Spark and CMT (Canada). John will also be responsible for all development, production and distribution activities related to the portfolio and will continue to oversee the portfolio's digital strategies, including the company's investment in Kin Community. John's oversight of the development of hit original content for Corus' Women and Family networks and the distribution of series with international appeal supports Corus' content and expansion strategies.

Gerry Mackrell – Executive Vice President, Head of Airtime Sales
Gerry Mackrell will continue to head Corus' airtime sales activities and be responsible for maximizing airtime and sponsorship revenue strategies across all of the company's Television and Radio brands.  Gerry will continue to lead Corus' client insights research team, as well as Corus' sales support and revenue management initiatives in keeping with Corus' strategic priority to deliver best in class execution to our customers. Gerry will represent Corus on the Boards of Numeris and Canadian Broadcast Sales.

Kathleen McNair – Executive Vice President, Special Advisor to the CEO and Chief Integration Officer
Kathleen McNair is transitioning from oversight of the human resources and corporate communications portfolios and moving into an advisory role to the CEO where she will partner with the functional heads to champion key strategic initiatives with an emphasis on organizational effectiveness. Kathleen will also lead the integration process related to any new business acquisitions in support of the company's strategic priority to expand into new and adjacent markets. A search is currently being conducted for a new head of human resources, a position that will report into the President and CEO and participate as a member of the ELT. The corporate communications portfolio will move to Susan Schaefer.

Tom Peddie – Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer
Tom Peddie will continue to oversee the company's corporate finance and accounting functions including investor relations activities. Tom will also oversee Corus' facilities, real estate and corporate development portfolios. Tom will continue to lead the company's financing strategies as Corus executes on its strategic priorities to return the company to growth in the future.

Susan Schaefer – Executive Vice President, Head of Marketing and Corporate Communications
Susan Schaefer will lead the company's branding, marketing and consumer research strategies for both Television and Radio. She will also oversee Corus' efforts to build a direct relationship with our viewers and listeners in alignment with Corus' strategic priority to engage with our audiences. New to Susan's portfolio will be the oversight of Corus' corporate communications and public relations initiatives.

About Corus Entertainment Inc.

Corus Entertainment Inc. is a Canadian-based media and entertainment company that creates, broadcasts and licenses content across a variety of platforms for audiences around the world. The Company's portfolio of multimedia offerings encompasses specialty television and radio with additional assets in pay television, television broadcasting, children's book publishing, children's animation and animation software. Corus' brands include YTV, TELETOON, ABC Spark, W Network, OWN: Oprah Winfrey Network (Canada), HBO Canada, Historia and Séries+, as well as Nelvana, Kids Can Press, Toon Boom and 39 radio stations including CKNW AM 980, Rock 101, Country 105, 630 CHED, Fresh Radio, JUMP! 106.9, Q107 and 102.1 the Edge. A publicly traded company, Corus is listed on the Toronto Stock Exchange (CJR.B). Experience Corus on the web at www.corusent.com. 

SOURCE Corus Entertainment Inc.

Magda Krpan, Director, Communications, 416.479.6054, [email protected]