A+E Networks confirmed today that President and CEO Nancy Dubuc is leaving the company in April. She’ll be replaced in the interim by former A+E CEO Abbe Raven.
Dubuc has been at A+E for more than 20 years and was appointed CEO in 2013. Before that, she helped run A+E brands including A&E, History and Lifetime.
“In her roughly 20 years at A+E Networks, Nancy played a major role in building the success of A&E, History and Lifetime, and we thank her for her leadership,” said Steven R. Swartz, president and CEO of Hearst, and Ben Sherwood, co-chair of Disney Media Networks and president of Disney/ABC Television, in a joint statement. “We are also very grateful to Abbe, a former CEO of the company and one of A+E’s first employees, for agreeing to return on a temporary basis as acting chair.”
Dubuc is reportedly in talks to take over as CEO of Vice Media. Earlier this year, Dubuc was reported to be in the running for the top job at Amazon Studios, a position that eventually went to NBC Entertainment President Jennifer Salke.
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“For nearly 20 years, I have called A+E Networks home and the team has been an extended part of my family,” Dubuc said in a statement. “Together, we have had the privilege to build some of the most iconic brands in media. Every step of my career, I have had the opportunity to learn and grow from some of the most inspiring and innovative minds at A+E and in both the creative and business community. I could not be prouder of what we achieved together.
“Anyone who knows me well knows I am an entrepreneur, creator, rebel and disruptor at heart. I have a famous neon sign in my office that blares ‘Who dares wins.’ After 20 years at A+E, the hardest thing will be to leave the people and company I love. But, as a creative executive and leader, and to stay true to my personal mantra, I need my next dare and my next challenge.”