EMI plays musical chairs in board shuffle

Emi group added considerable weight to its boardroom line-up yesterday when it announced that Martin Stewart, the former British Sky Broadcasting (BSkyB) executive, was joining as finance director.

Roger Faxon, whom Mr Stewart will replace, is moving to New York as heir apparent to EMI's music publishing division, run by Martin Bandier.

Mr Stewart left BSkyB last year after losing out in the race to replace Tony Ball as the broadcaster's new chief executive. That job went to James Murdoch. Mr Stewart, 41, has a background in the music business, having worked for Polygram for five years before joining BSkyB in March 1996.

The reshuffle announced yesterday was unusual in the amount of detail it gave investors and the length of time over which the complicated changes at EMI Music Publishing will take place. The changes mean Mr Bandier, 63, a music industry veteran, will work for EMI until he is 70.

Mr Faxon leaves for New York next month, where he will take up the newly created role of president and chief operating officer of music publishing, reporting to Mr Bandier, who is chairman and chief executive. Mr Faxon will stand down as a main board director of EMI.

From April 2006 Mr Faxon will become the joint chief executive of the music publishing operation with Mr Bandier, whom he will simultaneously replace on the main board. From April 2007 Mr Faxon will become the sole chief executive of music publishing, with Mr Bandier remaining as full-time chairman until March 2008. After that Mr Faxon will become chairman and Mr Bandier will be a consultant for three years, taking him to 2011 and his 70th birthday.

Before becoming EMI's group finance director, Mr Faxon was the finance director at the music publishing business from 1999-2002, and so knows the business well.

The company stressed yesterday that the changes do not affect EMI Music, the record label division run by Alain Levy, nor do they have any impact on Eric Nicoli, the group executive chairman.