Oahu Publications Inc., the parent company of the Honolulu Star-Advertiser, has promoted Dave Kennedy, senior vice president/marketing, to chief revenue officer of OPI and the Star-Advertiser amid a reorganization of the OPI management team.

Kennedy’s promotion comes weeks after Glenn Zuehls was named publisher of San Francisco Media Co., which produces the San Francisco Examiner, SF Weekly and the San Francisco Bay Guardian. OPI also owns San Francisco Media Co. Zuehls had been OPI’s senior vice president/advertising based in Honolulu.

Kennedy and Zuehls played pivotal roles in the 2010 merging of the Star-Bulletin and The Honolulu Advertiser and are credited with the steady growth of the Star-Advertiser since the merger.

"I have worked with Dave for many years, and he has done an outstanding job helping navigate Oahu Publications and the Honolulu Star-Advertiser through very challenging times in the newspaper and publishing industry," Dennis Francis, OPI president and publisher and president of San Francisco Media Co., said Thursday. "Dave is an extremely talented individual with a deep knowledge of newspapers, and I have every confidence that he will be successful in guiding OPI and the Star-Advertiser as chief revenue officer."

In his newly created role, Kennedy will supervise all of OPI’s revenue-generating divisions.

"I am honored by the trust and confidence that Dennis has placed in me, and I look forward to doing everything I can to continue growing OPI and solidify our reputation as premier publishing and media company, not just in Hawaii, but in the Asia-Pacific region," Kennedy said.

The promotions of Kennedy and Zuehls led to a reorganization of the advertising, sales and marketing departments of OPI and the Star-Advertiser. As part of the reorganization, six Hawaii-based executives are being promoted to new positions with added responsibilities, effective immediately:

» Marty Black, vice president/production

» Troy Fujimoto, vice president/digital media

» Rebecca Stolar, vice president/human resources

» Linda Woo, group publisher/magazine division

» Patrick Klein, director of advertising

» Jay Higa, director of advertising/business development

In addition, four OPI sales team members were promoted to new management positions:

» Leianne Pedro, advertising manager — local agencies/major accounts

» Cyd Kamakea, advertising manager — real estate/employment/legal

» Kellie Nakahara, automotive sales manager

» Holly Suyama, senior account executive — local agencies/major accounts

"The ability to promote valued and proven professionals throughout our organization allows OPI to not only reward talent, but also leverage the extraordinary depth of our team," Francis said. "The growth of OPI and our diverse collection of award-winning newspapers, magazines and online media products in recent years is testament to the hard work and dedication of our team.

"In an era when many newspapers and magazines have been in decline, OPI and its portfolio of publications have demonstrated that keen strategic thinking and embracing technology has helped make OPI the market leader for media in Hawaii."

In addition to the Star-Advertiser, Oahu Publications is the parent company of MidWeek, Oahu’s most widely distributed weekly publication, and a growing roster of community periodicals and in-room resort magazines.

ENLARGE