Posted on March 3, 2008 at 3:45 PM
Filed under: Movers & Shakers | Slides
Tagged: Jake Winebaum , RH Donnelley , stock , transformation

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The resignation of Web strategist Jake Winebaum from R.H. Donnelley Inc. was "not a surprise" to the company. That's the word from a spokesperson for the North Carolina-based Yellow Pages and local commercial search company. Winebaum, the founder of Business.com, was appointed  president of R.H. Donnelley's interactive division after Donnelley acquired Business.com in July 2007 for $345 million. He was expected to lead an online strategic transition for the company.

Last Thursday, though,  Donnelley announced that Winebaum had resigned to spend more time with his family. Since then share prices have fallen from $17.80 to a recent $7.28. Mike Truell, director of external communications for R.H. Donnelly, said that the economy is the main reason share price has fallen and the company remains optimistic it will recover.
 
But some analysts point to Winebaum's resignation during a strategic transformation as a big factor in the stock's slide. In one report, Goldman, Sachs & Co.'s Peter Salkowski said that Winebaum's resignation was a "total surprise" to the company. Salkowski also said that his departure should not have a meaningful impact on the transformation of R.H. Donnelley's Internet platform. However, other analysts disagree. Reports say Winebaum was supposed to lead the transformation from print to online, and that his management experience was one of the reason's R.H. Donnelley acquired Business.com.

Besides Business.com Winebaum also founded Jamdat, Boingo, USBX Advisory Services and was a lead investor in Lower My Bills, which sold to Experian, and FamilyFun, which he sold to the Walt Disney Co. He also served as the president of Disney Online.

In December, Winebaum spoke at an ILM conference about how the acquisition of Business.com would help R.H. Donnelley make a transition to the  digital world. He said R.H. Donnelley needed to leverage its base of 600,000 advertisers and told the audience he would be focusing on providing better reporting, compelling databases and stronger profiles.

What now for Donnelley? "We are looking for someone that can lead us in the same direction Winebaum would have led us on the Internet and has experience with print offerings as well as online offerings," Truell said.  Brian Barnum, Business.com's COO and CFO, will replace Winebaum on an interim basis. - Maria Woehr

Update:
Mike Truell,  Director of External Communications for R.H. Donnelley  has emailed a clarification of that last quote.  RHD, he says, is  not looking for print experience in Winebaum's successor; the company is seeking someone with Internet and leadership experience. Truell also says that RHD's strategy, which was in place even before the acquisition of Business.com, continues to be: "to offer our advertisers (small and medium sized businesses) a combination of print and online solutions to help them best promote their businesses and gain sales leads. "- Maria Woehr


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