Peter Whitehead, ARN’s chief commercial officer, has officially stepped down.
The former oOh!media and Southern Cross Austereo salesman had been with ARN for nearly eight-and-a-half years, rising from commercial director to chief commercial officer.
His departure was announced in January as part of ARN’s restructure following former Nine chief sales officer Michael Stephenson’s appointment as chief operating officer. Stephenson now heads ARN’s existing commercial team and commercial operations.
“When I stepped into the rustic (and slightly dusty) Pelaco Building on Richmond Hill in 2016, ARN was a network of ten metro radio stations, with audience delivery measured by paper diaries, and ‘Digital’ primarily being display advertising on station websites,” he wrote on LinkedIn.
“Today, as I step away, ARN proudly stands as Australia’s leader in audio, connecting our customers’ brands to pretty much every person and community in the country across our broadcast and DAB+ radio stations, streaming, podcasts, websites and social platforms…
“As Chief Commercial Officer for the past six years, I’ve had the honour of leading a team of incredibly talented people who have worked tirelessly with our clients and agency partners to deliver best-in-market campaigns across the many platforms of the ARN Audiosphere.
“While achieving business goals is the ultimate reward, it’s been equally satisfying to see the ARN commercial teams consistently recognised as best in market – for client service, creative thinking, campaign implementation, research & insights, and generally going the extra mile to deliver outcomes for our clients,” he added.
Late last month, ARN announced revenue growth of nine per cent to $365.6 million. However, its net profit after tax slipped from $32.3 million to $14.3 million.
