Rafat Ali reports that Jim Bankoff, EVP, Consumer & Publisher Services; Joe Redling, President, AOL Mobile, Customer Management & Paid Services, and Chairman & CEO, AOL International; and John Buckley, EVP, Corporate Communications are all leaving AOL because they can–i.e.–they have clauses in their contracts that make slamming the door on their way out at this very moment possible.
Jim and Joe are long-term AOLers of the longest standing; Joe started back in the day, and Jim began as an intern in the AOL Greenhouse, working for Ted Leonsis, back in the early 90s and just kept making it work, moving up in the ranks. Jim was my co-worker and then my boss at Netscape and briefly–but importantly– my boss at AOL –and I consider him one of the best of breed for the AOL mothership and a decent guy. More importantly, he was one of the people who could make a decision and make things happen and keep order among the factions and stay afloat himself and…all the things that so few people can do in a big company gripped by constant change.
Jim contributed alot to AOL, IMHO, as did Joe, and this is the changing of the guard, for sure.
Happy trails, Jim–can’t wait to see what your next adventure is!