BCE has announced that Sean Cohan will assume leadership of Bell Media and join the BCE leadership team on Nov. 1, following the retirement of Wade Oosterman.
Oosterman, who has served as Bell Group President since 2015 and Vice Chair since 2018, assumed operational leadership of Bell Media in January 2021, following the departure of division president Randy Lennox.
A streamlining of Bell Media’s executive leadership, senior management, and more than 200 frontline staff swiftly followed, with Oosterman signalling the need for transformative change in line with changing consumer media habits. He has been with Bell since 2006, joining the company as President of Bell Mobility and Chief Brand Officer. He’ll remain in his role as Vice Chair, BCE and Bell Canada until early January.
Cohan, who’ll also serve as an Executive Officer to BCE, joins Bell Media from Nielsen, where he was Chief Growth Officer & President, International, up until last February. He spent 15 years with A+E Networks in numerous executive roles, ending his tenure there as President, International and Digital Media. Savoy Magazine named him one of the Most Influential Black Corporate Directors and Most Influential Black Executives in Corporate America last year.
“On behalf of everyone at Bell I want to thank Wade for his leadership in making Bell a strong competitor in Canadian communications and media,” said Mirko Bibic, President and CEO of BCE Inc. and Bell Canada. “Over the years, Wade has done outstanding work to advance Bell’s Strategic Imperatives, as well as playing a key role in the transformation of Bell Media with a focus on content leadership and digital innovation.”
“I look forward to working with Sean as he leads the Bell Media team in delivering the most compelling content across every platform,” he added.
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