Appointment of new President of American Chemical Society's CAS Division, effective Sept. 30

NEW YORK, Sept. 10, 2013 /PRNewswire/ -- The American Chemical Society has appointed Manuel (Manny) Guzman to be the next president of CAS, the world's authority for chemical information. Guzman will begin his appointment on Sept. 30. He succeeds Robert J. Massie, who has led CAS—based in Columbus, Ohio—for  more than 21 years and who is retiring at the end of March 2014.

Prior to his appointment as CAS President, Guzman was Executive Vice President of Learning and Research Solutions and International at Cengage Learning, a leading provider of innovative teaching, learning, and research solutions for academic, professional, and library markets worldwide.  In this position, from 2010-2013, he managed a $2 billion product development operation, including strategy, editorial (product conception/acquisition), business development, and product and platform technology. He also managed international operations generating $300 million in annual revenues.

"Manny was the unanimous and enthusiastic choice of our Search Committee, which looked at a field of highly capable executives," says Madeleine Jacobs, ACS Executive Director and CEO. "He is an extremely articulate, knowledgeable, accomplished and personable executive with substantive experience in relevant information businesses. He has led and managed information businesses at the scale of CAS and his knowledge of the library, education, government, and industry marketplaces, both domestically and internationally, places him advantageously to enhance ACS's core products—SciFinder^® and STN^®— as well as create new opportunities."

"Manny has a proven track record of success in spurring product development and international business development," she continues. "He is exceptionally customer and member focused and enjoys talking with them, learning their needs, and working with teams to come up with new products that will serve those needs. He has extensive international experience, most notably in Asia and Latin America. I am looking forward to working with Manny in his new role."

"It is an honor to be asked to lead CAS on behalf of the American Chemical Society," Guzman says.  "CAS has a long and successful history of serving universities, businesses, and patent offices around the world with market-leading products and services.  This foundational success provides the opportunity to exceed the digital customer expectations of the future.  I'm proud to be joining such a prestigious organization as the American Chemical Society at this time and I'm looking forward to leading the CAS team."

Guzman joined Thomson Corporation in 2003. He rose in Thomson to increasingly important positions. Between 2005 and 2007, he was Chief Financial Officer and President of Thomson Learning, Career & Professional Group. After it was sold to Cengage, he became Executive Vice President, Finance, Operations & International for the Academic and Professional Group. During his ten years at Thomson and Cengage, he developed and launched innovative learning solutions, acquired a number of units such as National Geographic School Publishing, and engaged in other alliances, acquisitions, and partnerships. 

At the outset of his career, Guzman earned a B.S. in accounting and an MBA in Finance from Seton Hall University, South Orange, N.J. He rose quickly from a budget analyst at Crum and Foster Corporation, through Simon & Schuster/Prentice Hall to Macmillan Inc., where he was Vice President/Director, Finance and Administration for the College division of Macmillan.

In 1995, he co-founded and became CEO of Monument Information Resource/MIR Management Corporation in Princeton, N.J. This was a marketing research firm serving clients participating in the higher education market. Seven years later, he sold the business to Cambridge Information Group/RR Bowker.

The American Chemical Society is a nonprofit organization chartered by the U.S. Congress. With more than 163,000 members, ACS is the world's largest scientific society and a global leader in providing access to chemistry-related research through its multiple databases, peer-reviewed journals and scientific conferences. Its main offices are in Washington, D.C., and Columbus, Ohio.

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SOURCE American Chemical Society