More high level management departures at CME

CME’s CFO and strategy boss are leaving the central and eastern Europe-focused broadcast group.

The news comes in the same week that the Time Warner-backed firm said the general director of its largest single business unit, TV Nova, was stepping down.

Company CFO David Sach will exit at the end of the month. David Sturgeon, deputy CFO since 2009, will fill Sach’s role on a temporary basis while CME looks for a replacement.

Anthony Chhoy, executive VP, strategic planning and operations, will leave the company on November 15. Following his departure, CME’s country bosses will report to co-CEO Christoph Mainusch.

Jan Andrusko, the general director of CME’s Czech commercial TV station, TV Nova, said earlier this week that he will step down at the end of the month. He is being replaced by former Nova programming director David Stogel.

In another senior appointment and exit at CME, Matthias Settele has replaced Zuzana Tapakova as general director of TV Markiza in the Slovak Republic.

The wholesale senior management changes follow the resignation of Adrian Sarbu as CEO earlier this year and Mainusch and Michael Del Nin (pictured) being appointed co-CEOs in his stead. They took charge in mid-September.

The most recent CME financial results illustrate the challenge the new bosses face.

For the six months to end-June it reported a US$40.1 million operating loss compared with a US$13.4 million profit in the corresponding period a year earlier. Revenues fell to US$317.3 million from US$378.7 million across the same period and costs increased to US$24.6 million from US$20.1 million. At that point the previous management said that the company would return to growth in 2014.