Advertising Women of New York Adds Four To Board; Watson Becomes President

NEW YORK, June 7, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- Advertising Women of New York (AWNY), the premiere association for women in the advertising, marketing, media, digital, promotion and public relations industries, today welcomes its 55th new president, Carol Watson, president, Tangerine-Watson, and four new board directors: Sarah Kim Baehr, SVP, Digital Director, Carat; Carryl Pierre-Drews, VP, Strategic Marketing-USA Network, Cloo and UniHD, NBC Universal; Jill Montaigne, President, Original Spark; and Sheri Reagan, VP, Business Affairs, Global Marketing Partnerships, American Express.

The new, 18-member board will be installed at a leadership luncheon, sponsored by Facebook, which will be held at the New York Hilton this afternoon. Mary Beth West, Kraft Foods EVP, Chief Category and Marketing Officer, is this year's keynote speaker.

Watson's appointment comes as AWNY gears up for its 100th year celebration, slated for October 4. "It's a pivotal time in AWNY's evolution," she said, adding that she looks forward to building on the momentum established by the organization's outgoing president, Karen List.

Key goals moving forward include growing membership, expanding and developing programs beyond events, as well as establishing chapters outside of New York. AWNY currently has 1,700 members.

List, who is currently Director, Agency Relations at The New York Times, will continue to serve on the board as immediate past president.

Watson founded Tangerine-Watson, a national executive search consultancy specializing in sourcing and retaining African American, Hispanic and Asian advertising/marketing talent, in 2006. An eight-year AWNY member and most recently Vice President, she is credited with creating the organization's "Changing the Game" awards, which honor innovative and entrepreneurial risk takers, and most recently led the committee's "2012 x 2012" membership drive initiative. She began her career at Bates advertising agency, and later worked at Essence Magazine, The New York Times, and also served as publisher of Vibe.           

The following members will continue to serve on the AWNY board:

• Melissa Goidel, VP Sales, Brand.net—Vice President
• Amy Wilkins, SVP, Publisher, Martha Stewart Weddings—Vice President
• Cyndi April, SVP, Group Account Director, TargetCast tcm—Treasurer
• Carey Witmer, EVP, President, Meredith Parents Network—Assistant Treasurer
• Diana Bald, SVP, Director of Marketing, ID Media—Recording Secretary
• Sheila Buckley, Global Chief Revenue Officer, Vibrant Media—Corresponding Secretary
• Directors:

• Allison Arden, VP, Publisher, Advertising Age
• Christa Babcock, Senior Global Marketing Manager, Zinio
• Rachel Honig, COO, G.S. Schwartz & Co.
• Joan Sheridan LaBarge, VP, Group Publisher, Working Mother Media
• Rosemarie Ryan, CEO/Co-Founder, Co:Collective
• Liz Schroeder, Executive Director, AWNY

About Advertising Women of New York (AWNY)

AWNY, founded in 1912 as the first women's association in the communications industry, today boasts a membership of more than 1,700 dynamic and influential women and men representing the advertising, marketing, media, digital, promotion and public relations fields. Its mission is to provide a forum for personal and professional growth, to serve as a catalyst for the advancement of women in the communications field and to promote and support philanthropic endeavors through the AWNY Foundation. For further information, visit http://www.awny.org.

SOURCE ID Media