Karen Acton, who takes over as chief executive of Post-Newsweek Media Jan. 2, doesn’t foresee any sweeping changes with the newspaper group in the near future.

But that’s not to say there won’t be some tweaking.

“We are always looking for ways to innovate and create and do things better,” said Acton, 52. “But there are no grand plans to make any sweeping changes. ... It’s a tough economy, and we have to continue to tweak it.”

After leading The Gazette to roughly five-fold readership growth since 1993, Chuck Lyons is stepping down as CEO of Post-Newsweek Media, the newspaper group’s parent company. Lyons, who cited family reasons for the move, will become chairman of the organization, according to an announcement Monday.

Acton will report to Ann McDaniel, senior vice president of The Washington Post Co., parent of Post-Newsweek Media. There has been no directive from the parent company on what to do differently, Acton said.

She said she wants to continue “Chuck’s legacy of doing a great job serving the community and providing high-quality journalism.”

Building the online side will continue to be a key goal, Acton said.

“It’s possible for us to have a good, viable print product and a presence on the Internet that balances the two,” she said.

Acton currently serves as president and publisher of Southern Maryland Newspapers, president of Comprint Printing and Post-Newsweek Media’s chief financial officer.

Post-Newsweek Media’s businesses include The Gazette and Southern Maryland community newspaper groups, Comprint Military Publications, Comprint Printing and The Herald in Everett, Wash.

‘Succession strategy’

The transition is part of a “succession strategy,” said Lyons, who also will be chairman of The Herald.

“It’s more of a nice hand-off,” said Lyons, 65. “I want to spend more time at home with family ... I still enjoy the work, but I’m getting to the age where you think about finding the right balance between work and family.”

Acton is a “very competent” executive who has served many years as a seasoned publisher, Lyons said. “She really appreciates the values of the company,” he said.

When Lyons became president and publisher of The Gazette in Montgomery County in 1993, the total readership was about 200,000. That grew to more than 1 million, with some of the growth through the acquisition of papers in Southern Maryland and Northern Virginia.

When Lyons joined The Gazette, it largely was a Montgomery County operation with the only paper outside the county in Mount Airy, said Jack Murphy, executive director of the Maryland-Delaware-D.C. Press Association in Annapolis and a former Gazette executive editor who worked with Lyons during his first few years at The Gazette. Lyons led the expansion into other Maryland counties and Northern Virginia.

“I learned a lot about how to run newspapers from him,” Murphy said. “He is a tremendous leader. He did a great deal to create the company that exists today.”

Lyons increased the community participation of executives at the business, getting more people to join community boards and volunteer, Murphy said.

“There was some community involvement before at The Gazette, but not near as much as after he joined the company,” he said.

During Lyons' tenure, The Gazette received 11 awards for general excellence from the Suburban Newspapers of America, an industry association. This year, the company had three first-place winners for general excellence.

As far as what he most remembers from his time at the helm of The Gazette and Post-Newsweek Media, Lyons said it was more the smaller moments rather than any single memory. Among his achievements, he mentioned community service projects such as adopting Viers Mill Elementary School in Wheaton, where staffers mentor students, and his volunteer work with the Music Center at Strathmore.

Lyons was president of the Strathmore Hall Arts Center board and chairman of the steering committee for Strathmore’s $90 million concert hall.

Lyons is a “visionary, dedicated entrepreneur who never lost sight of doing good for the community in which his business thrived,” said Eliot Pfanstiehl, CEO and founder of Strathmore.

“He was the fearless and forthright leader for the creation of the Music Center at Strathmore, both in his capacity as chair of the board of directors and throughout his career," Pfanstiehl said.

Long before the center broke ground, Lyons asked Pfanstiehl to sit down and write a press release that he would like to see published on the day the center opened, Pfanstiehl recalled.

“It was his way of envisioning the future before it arrived,” he said. “I still use that to this day."

Lyons also is a founding board member of the Montgomery County Community Foundation and co-chaired the Montgomery Community College Humanities Endowment Campaign. A graduate of Leadership Montgomery and Leadership Maryland, he also served on the Montgomery County Economic Advisory Council and is a member of the Maryland Chamber of Commerce board.

“The quality of journalism we do really stands out,” Lyons said. “I really enjoyed working with the kind of high-quality people we have here.”

Lyons sees his board chairmanship as more a consulting role with fewer day-to-day responsibilities.

“I will still be engaged and helpful when needed,” he said.

Lyons earned a master of arts degree in journalism from Michigan State University. Growing up in Michigan, his newspaper career took him through a variety of editorial, marketing and executive positions in Michigan, Texas, South Carolina, Virginia, New Jersey and Maryland.

Buyout program

Lyons’ shift to chairman comes as the newspaper industry continues to struggle against Internet competitors and a print advertising decline.

In an unrelated development, Gazette executives announced Monday that because of the sluggish economy and highly competitive environment, they are implementing a voluntary buyout program with incentive packages for editorial and creative services employees who have at least 18 years of employment with the company.

Acton said there is not a specific number of buyouts in mind.

Post-Newsweek Media shed some employees during the recession but not as many as some media companies. The full-time employee number dropped from 492 in 2007 to 402 in 2010, according to The Washington Post Co.’s annual reports.

Acton worked for Chesapeake Publishing in various positions from 1982 through 2001, and became president and publisher of Southern Maryland Newspapers when the company was bought by The Washington Post Co. in 2001. She became CFO of Post-Newsweek in November 2008 and president of Comprint Printing in April 2010.

Acton is “very bright and very committed,” said Murphy, who worked with her at both Post-Newsweek Media and through the press association. “She will be a super leader of Post-Newsweek Media,” he said. “She knows every aspect of the company.”

Acton said she is in the process of hiring a controller for Post-Newsweek Media and plans to grant more responsibilities to others at Southern Maryland and Comprint Printing. She plans to split time between the Gaithersburg and Southern Maryland offices.

“I thank Chuck for offering me this opportunity,” Acton said. “I look forward to working with everyone to grow our company and thrive in the future.”

Acton is a board member of the Maryland-Delaware-D.C. Press Association and was president of the organization in 2006. She is a past board member of the Charles County Chamber of Commerce and Southern Maryland Higher Education Center.

Acton grew up in Camp Springs and earned a master’s in finance management from the University of Maryland University College. She also obtained a bachelor’s of science degree in business management with an emphasis in accounting from UMUC.

Acton lives in LaPlata with her husband, Mike. They have an adult son.

kshay@gazette.net