Cathy Baron Tamraz Named Business Wire's Chief Executive Officer by Lorry I. Lokey, the Company's Founder and Chairman of The Board
SAN FRANCISCO--Dec. 1, 20056, 2005--| Management Transition Recognizes Tamraz's Leadership and Accomplishments During Her 26-Year Career |
Cathy Baron Tamraz, who has presided over Business Wire's international expansion, technical innovation in advancing NewsML and XBRL news delivery, and emergence as the industry's marketshare leader during her 26-year tenure, has been named chief executive officer by Lorry I. Lokey, Business Wire's founder and Chairman of the Board.
The announcement was made at the company's International sales meeting in Santa Monica, California, which drew more than 115 attendees from North America, Europe, Latin America, Asia and Australia.
With Business Wire enjoying solid double-digit growth in 2005, Tamraz bolstered her management team by announcing several senior-level appointments at the sales conference, positioning the company for future expansion.
Senior vice presidents Gregg Castano (Global Sales), Phyllis Dantuono (National Bureaus), and Michael Lissauer (Marketing and Business Strategy) have been promoted to executive vice presidents. All three serve on Business Wire's Board of Directors. Other Board members include Lokey, Tamraz, Steve Messick, Chief Information Officer, and Connie Cummings, Chief Financial Officer.
Neil Hershberg (Global Media) and Frank Yetter (Northeast Region) were elevated from vice president to senior vice president.
Lee Marshall, Mid-Atlantic regional manager, and director, industry alliances, was named a vice president.
"Cathy has been a primary mover behind Business Wire's enormous success, first in the United States, and now internationally," said Lokey. "Her commitment to a team approach is appreciated by the entire staff, which was underscored by the standing ovation she received when her promotion was announced. It's extremely gratifying to be able to pass the CEO baton to Cathy, who successfully balances management skills with people sensitivities."
"Business Wire is coming off a strong performance in 2005, and we anticipate even stronger gains next year," said Tamraz. "We have a very talented management team in place, with the most extensive experience in the industry. Business Wire is well-positioned to take advantage of significant commercial opportunities, given its strong international presence, coupled with its leadership position in Internet-based news delivery and XBRL. We are anxiously looking forward to the European Union's adoption of the Transparency Obligations Directive in 2007, and other very promising business ventures currently in the pipeline."
Tamraz joined Business Wire's San Francisco office in 1979 as a news clerk and worked her way up the ranks, eventually being named chief operating officer (2000) and president (2003). Today, Tamraz is one of the most prominent women in the public relations and investor relations industries.
Under her leadership, Business Wire has opened offices in London, Brussels, Paris, and Frankfurt, as well as Asia Pacific offices in Tokyo and Sydney.
Working in tandem with Steve Messick, Chief Information Officer, Tamraz oversaw the development and 2003 launch of "NX," Business Wire's patent-pending NewsML-delivery platform, which has since become the de facto transmission standard in the global news industry. She also has championed Business Wire's pioneering XBRL initiatives, a financial reporting format that is being embraced by the global investment industry.
Tamraz also has spearheaded the expansion of Business Wire's core disclosure business, preparing the company for the January 2007 adoption of the European Union's Transparency Obligations Directive.
Business Wire recently solidified its status as the global disclosure leader, launching regulatory networks in France, Switzerland, Sweden, and Luxembourg. Business Wire also operates regulatory networks in the United Kingdom and Germany, and is the market leader in North America.
Lissauer is responsible for identifying appropriate joint venture and strategic alliance opportunities, new product development, and branding Business Wire on a global basis. He is a leading proponent of the integration of PR tools into the overall corporate marketing mix.
Castano is responsible for Business Wire's worldwide sales, both strategically and fundamentally. A twenty-year veteran, Castano joined Business Wire upon graduation from New York's Fordham University.
Dantuono's wide-ranging responsibilities straddle editorial, legal, sales, and operations. Her mandate includes adherence by the company's worldwide newsrooms to Business Wire's stringent editorial policies and procedures, ensuring that Business Wire's credibility and integrity conform to the highest standards.
Hershberg has spent the past 35 years in the news and information industry, beginning his career as a newsman with United Press International in 1970. He later spent a decade at Newsweek, where he held executive and editorial positions.
Yetter supervises the activities of five Business Wire offices (Boston, Chicago, Cleveland, Detroit and Minneapolis), and manages the relationship with major agencies in the United States and abroad. A graduate of Syracuse, Yetter spent a dozen years at the Community Newspaper Company in Massachusetts.
In addition to managing the busy Philadelphia office, Marshall serves as Business Wire's director of industry alliances. He works closely with such major national organizations as the National Investor Relations Institute (NIRI) and The Public Relations Society of America (PRSA). He has served as the president of the local chapters of both groups.
About Business Wire:
Business Wire was founded in 1961 by chairman Lorry I. Lokey, veteran journalist and public relations executive.
The company's multi-channel delivery network, with access to some 60 international and national news agencies, financial information providers and Web-based news services throughout North America, Europe, Asia, Latin America, the Middle East and Africa, provides real-time, simultaneous access to key audiences--the news media, trade publications, institutional and individual investors, business-to-business decision-makers and consumers.
Business Wire electronically disseminates some 1,000 full-text news releases daily to the media, the Internet, online services and databases, and the global investment community in 150 countries in 45 languages. Business Wire has 24 U.S. offices, Paris, Frankfurt, London, Brussels, Tokyo and Sydney offices, and reciprocal offices throughout the world.