CINCINNATI – Through an internal promotion and an external hire, The E. W. Scripps Company has filled two key roles in its corporate HR function.
Mary Minser, 52, will become vice president of human resources for the company’s newspaper and licensing/syndication divisions. She will serve as the senior HR business partner to both divisions, working with management teams to drive HR strategy within these divisions as well as at local business units.
Julie McGehee, 46, will become vice president of compensation and benefits with responsibility for designing, planning and implementing the company’s strategies for delivering rewards packages that attract and retain talented employees across all three Scripps divisions – newspapers, broadcast television and licensing/syndication.
Scripps announced in October 2007 that its board of directors had unanimously authorized management to pursue a separation of Scripps into two publicly traded companies. On July 1, when the transaction is expected to be completed, Scripps Networks Interactive will be separated from The E. W. Scripps Company, which then will have approximately 7,200 employees.
“The evolving dynamics of workplaces in the media industry require the type of experienced and creative human resources leadership that we have tapped with these appointments,” said Lisa Knutson, who will become the senior vice president of human resources for Scripps after the separation. “Mary Minser and Julie McGehee are widely respected in the industry, and our employees will benefit tremendously from their knowledge, vision and talent.”
Minser has been the director of human resources for the newspaper and licensing/syndication divisions since 2006. For the previous 14 years she was the company’s primary internal HR consultant in the areas of employment law, employee relations, policy development and company-wide management training. She joined Scripps as HR director for the corporate office in 1988 after serving four years in various HR positions with The Kroger Company. Minser, a graduate of the Scripps Leadership Institute, received her bachelor’s in human resources from Northern Kentucky University (NKU) and is a certified Senior Professional in Human Resources.
For the past seven years, McGehee has been at Duke Energy where she has held positions within the executive compensation, compensation and benefits areas. She has been the primary point of contact for executives under purview of the board’s compensation committee. She also has overseen equity administration, been responsible for the long-term incentive plan process, supervised the internal HR call center and helped implement the first online enrollment of health and welfare benefits. McGehee previously was an HR manager at Cintas Corporation, and also has held HR/finance positions at Corporex, Inc., Key Bank and Cincinnati Microwave. She received her bachelor’s in accounting from NKU and a law degree from the Chase College of Law.
About Scripps
The E. W. Scripps Company (NYSE: SSP) is a diverse and growing media enterprise with interests in national cable networks, newspaper publishing, broadcast television stations, interactive media, and licensing and syndication.
The company’s portfolio of media properties includes: Scripps Networks, with such brands as HGTV, Food Network, DIY Network, Fine Living and Great American Country; daily and community newspapers in 15 markets and the Washington-based Scripps Media Center, home to the Scripps Howard News Service; 10 broadcast TV stations, including six ABC-affiliated stations, three NBC affiliates and one independent; Scripps Interactive Media, including leading online search and comparison shopping services, Shopzilla and uSwitch; and United Media, a leading worldwide licensing and syndication company that is the home of PEANUTS, DILBERT and approximately 150 other features and comics.