AOL (NYSE: TWX) People Networks president Joanna Shields, who was promoted from being Bebo president after the March 2008 acquisition, is leaving the company, AllThingsD reported and we have confirmed with the company. This is CEO Tim Armstrong’s second major exec change, with ex-Googler Jeff Levick having replaced Greg Coleman as Platform-A president last month.
Armstrong’s staff memo (via AllThingsD) says Shields will continue as an advisor and credited her with being “a start-up executive … at her core”; she will “return to London to reunite her family and explore her entrepreneurial interests,” he wrote. But Armstrong did not say whether a replacement would be sought, which may prompt speculation about the People Networks division’s future.
The unit’s spokesperson told us: “Tim is in the middle of a 100-Day process where he is doing deep dives on all aspects of the business as well as listening to employees around the globe. So far, he