SiriusXM has tapped former Team Coco president Adam Sachs to expand his role at the satellite radio company. He is now serving as senior vice president of entertainment, comedy and podcasts programming, the company announced.
The newly created role brings SiriusXM’s podcasts together with its entertainment and comedy programming. The company said it is representative of its effort to streamline “all audio programming across entertainment and talk, regardless of distribution method, to better serve both our talent and our listeners.”
Sachs joined SiriusXM in May through the acquisition of Team Coco, Conan O’Brien’s podcast company. His career has included a variety of roles, including as an angel investor and startup advisor, and CEO of Midroll Media, the parent company of Earwolf, Howl.fm, Midroll and Stitcher, which SiriusXM bought in 2020 for $325 million.
“Adam’s new role is a clear signal to everyone in this business that SiriusXM has its eye not only on integrating podcasting and radio, but also taking it to the next level,” said a joint statement issued by Paul Scheer and June Diane Raphael, co-hosts of Earwolf’s “How Did This Get Made?”
“Adam is a talent developer, a passionate consumer of the form, and a genuinely lovely human being. In the last 10 years, we’ve watched him stay ahead of the game in a world that is perennially playing catch-up,” the duo’s statement said. “We’ve never met a person who doesn’t love working with and for Adam. And we’ve really searched!”
Sachs will report to Chief Content Officer Scott Greenstein.
“Adam is a leader who has developed more than one podcast company into a top content network with groundbreaking talent and scaled revenue streams,” Greenstein said in a statement. “In this new position, he’ll play a critical role in continuing to grow our premium portfolio of comedy and entertainment programming on SiriusXM and our industry leading podcast network.”
The move comes just days after SiriusXM said it was cutting 475 jobs, or 8% of its workforce.
CEO Jennifer Witz announced the layoffs via company memo, citing the company’s “new phase” and “today’s uncertain economic environment.” Witz also said that “nearly every department across SiriusXM will be impacted.”
“We believe the new operational design will allow us to move faster and more effectively as we take on new challenges across our business,” Witz wrote.
“This was not an easy decision to make, nor one we took lightly. However, it is critical for us to take the right steps now to secure the long-term health and profitability of our business.”
The company in February reported that revenue rose 3.5% in 2022 to $9 billion, but higher operating expenses drove profit for the down 7.7% for the year to $1.21 billion.
It was the latest in a string of media, entertainment and tech companies to announce layoffs amid an uncertain economy. In February, the satellite radio company said it expects to lose subscribers in 2023 as many consumers brace for a recession.
Shares of SiriusXM Holdings dipped 6.5 cents to $3.735 in morning trading Thursday as the broader markets declined. The stock has plunged 35% since the start of the year.