Kevan Lyon, who had served in a variety of roles at Advanced Marketing Services and, until spring 2003, was responsible for the advertising department, has resigned. AMS's ad department has been the target of two ongoing investigations and, late last month Marcy Roke, the former advertising director for creative services, pleaded guilty to two charges of conspiracy. AMS declined to say if the investigations played a role in Lyon's resignation and referred inquiries to Lyon's attorney, who had no comment other than to confirm Lyon's departure.
AMS did not announce an immediate replacement for Lyon. For the time being, the company said, her duties will be handled by AMS CEO Charles Tillinghast. Lyon had been with AMS since 1988 and most recently was executive v-p for wholesale merchandising/ distribution, a job that gave her responsibility for Publishers Group West. PGW head Rich Freese will now report to Tillinghast. For most of her time with AMS, Lyon served as the top liaison between AMS and publishers, many of whom considered her, in the words of one publisher, "the go-to person" at the company.
