Charles Buchwalter Named President, CEO of Symphony Advanced Media

Nielsen veteran and noted industry thought leader to manage SymphonyAM’s rapid growth in new-media measurement and big-data consumer insights

SAN FRANCISCO--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Symphony Advanced Media (SAM), a provider of strategic cross-media advertising effectiveness and consumer insights, today announced the appointment of Charles Buchwalter as president and CEO. Buchwalter, a thirty-year veteran of information services and media analytics, will oversee day-to-day operations and set strategic initiatives to foster the company’s rapidly expanding media measurement and advertising effectiveness businesses. In addition, Buchwalter will advise other companies within parent company Symphony Technology Group’s portfolio. He will be based in San Francisco.

“I’m delighted to have Charlie on board. His track record in media analytics and consumer insights, deep industry connections and his proven organizational and motivational abilities make him the ideal leader to take SymphonyAM to the next level”

“Few industries can match the sheer dynamism and excitement of the changing media landscape,” said Buchwalter. “Advances in media delivery—especially second- and third-screen—and savvy consumers are driving a range of new imperatives for our industry that go way beyond the usual stream of media insights. SymphonyAM is breaking new ground on panel methodologies and big data analytics, delivering fresh perspectives about changing consumer behavior. I am thrilled to be part of SAM’s top-notch team at this critical juncture in media measurement.”

Prior to his appointment with SAM, Buchwalter held a range of leadership roles for more than 13 years at Nielsen, most recently as SVP, Online Campaign Ratings, where he led the product’s go-to-market initiative. From August, 2009 through March, 2011 Buchwalter served as Chairman/CEO of Nielsen Online Japan, where he oversaw client services, research and analytics, product leadership and engineering operations in Nielsen Online’s second largest global market. Previously, Buchwalter served as SVP of Research and Analytics at Nielsen Online where he developed processes and strategies to align sales, client services and analytics teams to support media, retail, financial services, CPG and technology clients. Buchwalter joined Nielsen in 1999 as an early member of the AdRelevance management team.

“I’m delighted to have Charlie on board. His track record in media analytics and consumer insights, deep industry connections and his proven organizational and motivational abilities make him the ideal leader to take SymphonyAM to the next level,” said Dr. Romesh Wadhwani, founder, chairman & CEO of Symphony Technology Group.

Buchwalter is highly regarded in the media analytics industry, serving as speaker and advisor for several industry associations and conference boards. Buchwalter started his career with DRI/McGraw-Hill where he served as Group Vice President of the financial information group managing DRI's national financial services practice. Buchwalter has also held strategic roles with CMP Media and ParaMarketing, developing go-to-market Internet channel strategies for IBM, Digital Equipment, Novell, Oracle and Sun Microsystems.

Buchwalter holds an M.S. in Natural Resource Economics from the University of California, Berkeley, and a B.S. in Forestry Economics from the University of Washington.

About Symphony Advanced Media

Symphony Advanced Media (SAM) enables clients to assess cross-platform advertising campaign performance, optimize channel strategies and drive increased consumer response. SAM’s solutions provide an integrated view of consumer media consumption, purchase behaviors and brand attitudes. SAM’s innovative analytic methods deliver rapid strategic insights on advertising performance across all media including online, TV, print and mobile, and identify opportunities for improved marketing ROI. Clients include leading global brand advertisers in the media, automotive, financial services, pharmaceutical, consumer packaged goods and telecom industries. SAM is part of Symphony Technology Group (STG) whose portfolio of companies includes Symphony IRI, Symphony Health Solutions, Symphony Teleca and EYC. Learn more about SAM at www.symphonyam.com.