Universal Music Group (UMG) has appointed Oana Ruxandra to the newly-created position of Senior Vice President of Digital Strategy and Partnerships, effective August 29.
Ruxandra moves across from Warner Music Group in New York, where she was Vice President of Digital Strategy and Business Development.
Based in New York, she was responsible for generating, structuring, negotiating, and maintaining strategic partnerships with global partners at WMG – as well as leading the major’s strategy and analysis team.
Ruxandra joined Warner Music in 2012 as Director of Digital Strategy and was promoted through the years.
In her new role at Universal, Ruxandra will help develop digital strategy and implement critical business priorities into the company’s partnerships.
She will be based in Santa Monica and report to another former Warner exec – Michael Nash, UMG’s Executive Vice President of Digital Strategy.
Nash said, “At UMG, we are focused on advancing transformational business strategies in close consultation with our labels that serve our artists and promote key relationships that are critical to the evolution of the digital marketplace.
“With Oana, we’re bringing on board a very talented and innovative executive.”
Michael Nash, UMG
“With Oana, we’re bringing on board a very talented and innovative executive, who will collaborate with our labels and partners to make sure we effectively guide and harness the marketplace’s evolution to the benefit of the entire music ecosystem.”
Ruxandra said: “Digital distribution continues to rapidly create new opportunities and open new areas of the world, many for the first time. As a result, more people are listening to more music in more ways than ever before.
“This is an incredibly exciting time for music, and I’m looking forward to working closely with our labels and partners to ensure the entire value chain profits from this unprecedented access. I’m thrilled to join Michael and the incredible team at Universal Music.”
Prior to Warner Music, Ruxandra held a number of positions in finance over a span of seven years, most recently leading quantitative and risk management of the global fixed income desk at BlackRock Inc., the world’s largest asset manager.
Ruxandra holds Bachelor of Arts degrees in Economics and Political Science from Columbia University and an MBA from The Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania.Music Business Worldwide
