iHeartMedia has announced that Rick Hencley will retire on April 1 as Market President of their Eau Claire WI and Rochester MN operations.
Hencley has also worked at Laird Broadcasting, Great Duluth Broadcasting, Phillips Broadcasting, and Cumulus during his career. He will remain with iHeart as an Advisor for the Great Lakes Region until June 30.
Succeeding him in leading the two markets will be Jeanna Berge. Berge has spent her entire professional career at the company starting as an Account Executive in 2011. She was promoted to Eau Claire SVP/Sales in 2018 and will also continue in that role.
iHeartMedia announced today that Jeanna Berge has been named Market President for the Eau Claire, Wisconsin and Rochester, Minnesota markets, effective April 1. She will succeed media veteran Rick Hencley who will be retiring on April 1 after 27 years at iHeartMedia. Berge will also retain her role as Senior Vice President of Sales for the Eau Claire market.
As Market President, Berge will work closely with the programming, business and sales teams for all station brands in Eau Claire and Rochester and will oversee the stations’ on-air and digital programming as well as create new revenue opportunities. She will report to Shosh Abromovich, Division President for iHeartMedia.
Before being elevated to Market President for Eau Claire and Rochester, Berge joined iHeartMedia Eau Claire in 2011 as an Account Executive and rose to Senior Vice President of Sales in 2018, where she currently oversees the Eau Claire sales team. She is a graduate of Winona State University.
“I am extremely grateful for this opportunity and I am beyond ecstatic to lead and learn from these incredible, dedicated, multi-talented teams in the Eau Claire and Rochester markets,” said Berge. “Rick has been an inspiring leader throughout my career at iHeartMedia and I’m honored to have had him as my mentor. His passion to have his employees always strive to be the best is evident with the success of his career, and I am determined to share that same motivation, positivity and creativity to help these ambitious teams excel. My mission is to continue to build on our already strong connection while having a positive impact on our employees, listeners, advertisers and our communities.”
Hencley’s retirement marks a large change in the Eau Claire and Rochester markets. Throughout his career, Hencley has held several positions within the media industry, including Laird Broadcasting, Great Duluth Broadcasting, Phillips Broadcasting, Cumulus, Clear Channel and iHeartMedia. Hencley will serve as an Advisor for the Great Lakes region beginning April 1 to June 30.
“Jeanna Berge will do a tremendous job leading these high-quality markets to their maximum potential,” said Hencley. “She has excelled at every leadership position, and her passion for our media industry makes her the perfect candidate at the right time to lead these top markets.”
