Who

The president and CEO of Condé Nast, Chuck Townsend is Si Newhouse's right-hand man at the media conglomerate.

Backstory

Townsend started his publishing career in Miami in the early 1970s, selling ads for various magazines as an independent sales rep. Hearst acquired Townsend's rep firm several years later, and he signed on as publisher of the Hearst-owned titles Motor Boating & Sailing and Sports Afield, before heading up the book and business publishing division. He jumped ship in 1986, moving to the New York Times Co. as CEO of the women's magazine division, the parent of titles like Family Circle, McCall's, and Child.

Just months before the Times sold the publications to Gruner + Jahr, Townsend departed, joining Condé Nast as publisher of Glamour, later moving up to corporate to become the company's executive vice president. In 2000, he was upped to chief operating officer; four years later, he was named CEO following the departure of Steve Florio. Townsend now has the unique pleasure of arriving at the office before 6 a.m. every morning to meet with his demanding (and early-rising) boss, Si Newhouse.

Of note

Townsend oversees day-to-day operations at Condé Nast Publications, which is now the umbrella for all of the company's magazine titles including those once part of Advance (Vanity Fair, The New Yorker, Vogue); Fairchild (W and WWD); Parade Publications; the Golf Digest Companies; and the web division, CondéNet. A mild-mannered, cerebral type—a stark contrast to his predecessor, Steve Florio, the freewheeling, tough-talking, cigar-smoking exec who passed away in early 2008—Townsend has pursued a path of cautiousness since taking over. With print media in decline, he's made efforts to cut costs, shuttering lagging titles like Cargo in 2006 and Jane and House & Garden in 2007. He's also looked to streamline operations and reduce redundancies across the legendarily spendthrifty media conglomerate. These days Condé has seven divisions, with the heads of each reporting to Townsend. Among his charges: chief operating officer John Bellando; Debi Chirichella, the company's CFO; Fairchild CEO Richard Beckman; and David Carey, who oversees Condé Nast Portfolio and Wired.

Personal

Townsend has been married three times, most recently tying the knot with Jill Roosa in 2008. The couples lives in Norwalk, Conn. Townsend also has a home in Key Largo, Florida, which he purchased for $2.7 million in 2000.