Janet Rollé, general manager of Beyoncé’s Parkwood Entertainment, has just made history.
According to Variety, CEO and founder of BuzzFeed, Jonah Peretti, announced that Andreessen Horowitz’s partner, Chris Dixon will step down from the company’s board of directors since his arrival in 2014. As of result, the company has appointed Rollé to its board making her the first woman and the first person of color to serve.
The news comes just two weeks following BuzzFeed’s plans to purchase HuffPost from Verizon Media.
“The common thread through Janet’s dynamic career is the ability to nurture and evolve great brands and to build and strengthen their relationships with diverse audiences, ” wrote Peretti in the memo. “Janet joins our board at a time when that is critically important for BuzzFeed especially as we welcome HuffPost into the BuzzFeed network. Janet’s experience in brand management and news media will be incredibly valuable.”
Other board members of the company include execs from its investor base such as RRE Ventures’ William Porteous, New Enterprise Associates’ Patrick Kerins, and Hearst Ventures’ Scott English. Currently, General Atlantic’s Anton Levy serves as the board observer.
“I’m honored to join the board of Directors at BuzzFeed, a company I admire both for its innovation and deep audience connection,” said Rollé in a statement. “BuzzFeed isn’t just a pioneer in the digital media industry, it’s an example of how companies can and should raise the voices of the next generation and consistently adapt to stay ahead of the curve.”
At Parkwood, Rollé leads the management and media company’s business operations and development, including investments and strategic partnerships. She also manages the P&L across the whole company, including film, touring, artist management, and film.
Prior to stepping into her role at Parkwood in 2016, Rollé served as EVP & CMO for CNN Worldwide, overseeing the promotion of all CNN brands and programming. Before that, she was the first EVP & CMO for BET Networks and has served in senior positions at HBO, VH1, and AOL.
Currently, Rollé also serves as director of one of the oldest and largest African-American managed banks in the U.S., Carver Bancorp. She has also spent two terms on the nominating committee of the U.S. Tennis Association.
At this time, it is unclear whether Rollé is investing in the company or receiving an equity stake.