Howard Shimmel is leaving Time Warner’s Turner unit, where he has been chief research officer, according to the company.
Shimmel departs after Turner elevated Stephano Kim, who had been executive vice president of digital strategy and operations and chief data strategist, to the role of interim chief analytics officer. He will supervise a newly aligned unit that specializes in corporate data strategy and analytics, the structure of which is currently being formalized, the company said in a statement.
Shimmel felt the new structuredid not ensure a “sufficiently challenging enough role for him,” and is expected to leave the company after working on some special projects, Turner said. Employees were told of the move in January and Shimmel has been telling industry partners.
Shimmel joined Turner in 2012 as senior vice president of ad sales and sports research. He supervised television and digital research analysis and strategy support for the company’s news, entertainment, animation, young adults and kids and sports advertising sales units. He had been executive vice president of Nielsen Media & Advertising Analytics and was responsible for building out an advanced analytic business focused on issues like cross-platform analytics and advanced media targeting.
His other experience includes research roles at The Nielsen Company, America Online, WBIS and MTV Networks. He also served as president of Symmetric Resources, Inc. He has been a frequent speaker at industry conferences and events.
