New York, NY – November 16, 2011 – Arthur W. Page Society, the leading professional organization for chief communications officers, today named Roger Bolton, former senior vice president of communications at Aetna, and a recognized thought leader in the communications and public relations industry, as president of the organization. Bolton has served as chairman of the Page Society and currently serves on the Board of Trustees.
As president, Roger Bolton will be chief executive of the organization, directing the staff, overseeing operations, and working closely with the organization's elected volunteer leaders. Bolton will serve as a strategic partner to the current chairman Bill Margaritis, who serves as chairman of the Board, as well as to the Board of Trustees. Jon Iwata, senior vice president of marketing and communications at IBM, will succeed Bill Margaritis as chairman of the Page Society on January 1, 2012. Bolton will officially start in his new role on December 5, 2011. He replaces Julia Hood who recently left the Page Society to accept a position at Haymarket Media.
Roger Bolton brings a wealth of experience to the role. In addition to his leadership position at Aetna, he chaired Aetna's Council for Organizational Effectiveness – a group of senior executives responsible for helping the company achieve high performance through culture change – and served on the board of the Aetna Foundation. Bolton has also served in senior corporate communication roles at IBM. Prior to his business career, he was assistant secretary of the Treasury for public affairs under President George H.W. Bush, assistant U.S. trade representative for public affairs in the Executive Office of the President under President Reagan, and special assistant to President Reagan in the White House, with responsibility for the president's relations with business and labor.
Bolton has been recognized with a number of prestigious honors. He was recently named one of the Top 100 Thought Leaders in Trustworthy Business Behavior by Trust Across America. He is also the recipient of the U.S. Treasury Distinguished Service Award.
At the Page Society, Roger Bolton has been a leader and driver of important organizational imperatives including “The Authentic Enterprise" report that proposes a set of strategic options for CEOs and other C-suite executives to consider in helping the enterprise successfully respond to the new realities of global business and society. He was also instrumental to the development of “The Dynamics of Public Trust in Business" report, a collaboration between the Page Society and the Business Roundtable Institute for Corporate Ethics, that identifies opportunities for business leaders to build and sustain public trust. Bolton currently co-chairs the Page Society's Thought Leadership Committee that drives the development and production of high-level investigation, analysis and explanation of some of the most critical topics in business and communications.
“Roger will bring the right intellectual horsepower and leadership skills to this important position and he has the ability to help take the Page Society to a higher level, building on our solid momentum over the past couple of years. I can think of no one better to help lead us into the future," said Bill Margaritis, chairman, Arthur W. Page Society.
“It's an honor to be asked to lead the Page Society at this critical time, building on Julia Hood's immense contributions during her service as president," Bolton said. “The role of corporate communications is evolving rapidly and becoming even more critical to global enterprises as they seek to thrive and create broader value. The Page Society expects to be a leader in helping businesses and their chief communications officers understand and respond to the opportunities presented in this dynamic environment."
The Arthur W. Page Society is a professional association for senior public relations and corporate communications executives who seek to enrich and strengthen their profession. Membership consists primarily of chief communications officers of Fortune 500 corporations, the CEOs of the world's largest public relations agencies, and leading academics from the nation's top business and communications schools. The Page Society is dedicated to strengthening the management policy role of chief public relations officers. For more information please visit www.awpagesociety.com
For more information, contact:
Anuneha S. Mewawalla
Email: amewawalla@awpagesociety.com
Phone: 212-400-7959 ext. 103