Consumer >> CEO Interviews >> May 25, 1998
WILLIAM T. KERR is Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Meredith
Corporation. He was elected to the position effective January 1, 1998,
having served as President and Chief Executive Officer since January 1,
1997. As Chairman and CEO, Mr. Kerr is responsible for the strategic and
operational performance of the company. In 1994, he was appointed
President and Chief Operating Officer of Meredith, responsible for
overseeing the day-to-day business of the company's operating groups. At
that time, Mr. Kerr was also appointed as a member of the Meredith Board
of Directors and a member of the Board's executive committee. Prior to
that he served as President of the Meredith Magazine Group and Executive
Vice President of the company, where he was responsible for the
strategic direction and day-to-day management of all magazine
operations. Before coming to Meredith in September of 1991, Mr. Kerr was
a Vice President of The New York Times Company and President of its
magazine group, a position he held since 1984. He has also held posts
with Dillon, Read & Co., and McKinsey and Company. He is a member of the
Board of the Principal Mutual Life Insurance Company, Storage Technology
Corporation, and Maytag Corporation. Mr. Kerr also serves on the Board
of The Business Committee for the Arts, The International Federation of
the Periodical Press and the University of Iowa, Henry B. Tippie College
of Business, Board of Visitors. He is a past Chairman and an advisory
board member of the Magazine Publishers of America. A native of Seattle,
Mr. Kerr is a Phi Beta Kappa graduate of the University of Washington.
He earned a degree in Modern History as a Rhodes Scholar at Oxford
University, and an MBA from the Harvard Graduate School of Business
Administration. Profile
then bring us up to date on Meredith Corporation. What are the key
challenges and opportunities that you see for the company
