• by Ray Schultz , May 1, 2024

Newspaper publisher Lee Enterprises has hired Les Ottolenghi, a veteran technology and cybersecurity executive, as chief transformation and commercial officer, a new position. 

Ottolenghi will be tasked with modernizing Lee’s IT infrastructure and developing and directing accelerators to Lee’s digital transformation strategy, the company says. 

His addition will “help Lee exceed the five-year targets in our Three-Pillar Growth Strategy of expanding our subscriber base, growing our base of annualized recurring revenue and driving new revenue streams,” says Kevin Mowbray, president and chief executive officer of Lee Enterprises, to whom Ottolenghi will report.

Ottolenghi has served as executive vice president and chief information and technology officer at Stride Inc. 

In addition, he has been executive vice president and global chief information at Caesars Entertainment Corp., global chief information officer for Las Vegas Sands Corp., and chief information officer for Carlson Wagonlit Travel.

Ottolenghi says he hopes to “collaborate with the Lee team to leverage the power of transformative AI to drive our data business and accelerate Lee’s digital leadership.”