Pearson’s new ceo John Fallon has created a new organizational and leadership team under him, “designed to accelerate Pearson’s push into digital learning, education services and emerging markets” — and reflecting the coming disposition of Penguin into the joint venture with Berteslmann. Fallon says, “This is a significant change in the way we run the company that will take time and sustained commitment, but it is one we must make to be able to accelerate the execution of our global education strategy.” (That doesn’t sound like a company that owns FT for the long-term, does it?)
The new structure begins January 1, 2014, and as a result, current chief executive of Pearson North America Will Ethridge will leave that role (and step down from the Pearson board). Ethridge will serve as an advisor thereafter.
Pearson is actually creating three geographic sections and three business lines. Don Kilburn will take over as head of North America, with Tamara Minick-Scokalo running growth markets and Rod Bristow in charge of core markets.
Doug Kubach will lead the School business, while Tim Bozik heads Higher Education and John Ridding runs the Professional line. Pearson will report to investors under these new geographic and business-line divisions in fiscal 2014 (which explains why the official start date is January 1 of next year).
Ryan Doherty has been promoted to senior editor and is moving from Random House Trade Paperbacks to Ballantine Bantam Dell. He will continue to oversee movie tie-in projects for RH publishing group as well.
Kathleen Schmidt will join Weinstein Books as publicity director as of July 1, transitioning into the new role over the next month. She was most recently founder and ceo of KMS Public Relations, and before then vp, director of publicity at Atria.
At Simon & Schuster’s trade imprint, Julia Prosser has been promoted to deputy director of publicity.
At Simon Pulse, Michael Strother has been promoted to assistant editor.
Lydia Davis won the fifth Man Booker International Prize in a ceremony Wednesday night. Chair of the judges Christopher Ricks said her “writings fling their lithe arms wide to embrace many a kind. Just how to categorise them? They have been called stories but could equally be miniatures, anecdotes, essays, jokes, parables, fables, texts, aphorisms or even apophthegms, prayers or simply observations.”