As of 1 October 2020, Ladina Heimgartner (40) will become Head of Global Media at Ringier AG at Group Executive Board level, as well as CEO of Blick Group. The Global Media department currently covers around 120 media brands in 12 countries. Heimgartner will take over the department from Thomas Spiegel (37), who has decided to leave the company owing to differences of opinion regarding strategic direction.
The Corporate Center, which comprises Corporate Communications, Legal, HR and Data Protection, and has hitherto been managed by Heimgartner, will now be headed directly by CEO Marc Walder (55), effective immediately.
‘I very much regret the departure of Thomas Spiegel as Head of Global Media and CEO of Blick Group. I would like to thank him for his dedication and wish him all the best in the next stage of his career,’ says Walder. ‘Things don’t always work out exactly as everyone involved initially imagined,’ says Spiegel. ‘I am very grateful to Ringier and Marc Walder for respecting my decision to leave, and I remain very attached to the company.’
Well positioned in times of change
‘In Ladina Heimgartner, we have found a manager for this key journalistic department within the Ringier Group who has proven in recent years that she fully grasps the transformation of the media industry. Heimgartner will establish an international media unit at group level that will coordinate and drive the development of our media brands in Switzerland, Eastern Europe, Asia and Africa,’ says Marc Walder, reflecting on the new management of the Global Media department and the Blick Group.
‘It is with the deepest regret that I am leaving the Corporate Center, but I am also looking forward to establishing the Global Media unit and working with colleagues at the Blick Group. The media industry faces a more challenging situation today than ever before. This gives me all the more motivation to continue dedicating myself to the media with everything I have,’ says Heimgartner of her upcoming change of role.
Thomas Spiegel will continue working for Ringier until the start of 2021 to ensure a smooth handover and conclude key projects.
Going forward, Ringier AG’s Group Executive Board will be made up of: Marc Walder (CEO), Annabella Bassler (CFO), Ladina Heimgartner (Head of Global Media, CEO Blick Group), Robin Lingg (Head of Global Marketplaces) and Alexander Theobald (COO Switzerland and CEO RASCH).
Ringier AG, Corporate Communications