Tulsa, OK – PennWell Corp., organizers of the POWER-GEN brand and 60 other conferences and exhibitions worldwide, shuffled its executive ranks in September when President and CEO Robert “Bob” Biolchini announced his retirement after 15 years on the job.
Biolchini will remain with PennWell as chairman of the board of directors, replacing Frank Lauinger, who is stepping down.
Mark Wilmoth was promoted to president and CEO. He has been with PennWell for 11 years and was most recently CFO and senior vice president, finance. Among other moves, PennWell promoted Jayne Gilsinger from senior vice president, planning and development to executive vice president, corporate development and strategy.
Biolchini led PennWell through the same choppy waters that many business media companies sailed through in the past decade as print publications struggled, and digital platforms and events became a higher priority.
“These tumultuous changes in business media were exacerbated by the Great Recession of 2008 and its lingering effects, which are still felt around the world today,” Biolchini said. “Yet we have remained steady on our course of enhancing PennWell’s enviable reputation as one of the largest and finest private, family-owned business media companies.”
Biolchini said PennWell was financially solid and debt-free.
Biolchini celebrated his retirement and his 76th birthday during a special board meeting on September 22 to make Wilmoth’s appointments and several other changes. Three members of the fifth generation of the family who have been involved on PennWell’s board of directors were also elected to its executive committee: Thomas A. Biolchini, Frank T. Lauinger, Jr., and Kathleen A. Lauinger.
PennWell still produces publications, such as the venerable Oil & Gas Journal and also organizes 60 conferences and exhibitions worldwide. The flagship is POWER-GEN International, which takes place in Las Vegas December 8-10, and last year drew 20,210 attendees in Orlando and covered 365,022 net square feet.
Reach Bob Biolchini at (918) 835-3161 or robertb@pennwell.com; Mark Wilmoth at (918) 835-3161 or markw@pennwell.com
