Jane Hastings has resigned as chief executive of media company NZME, and will be replaced by NZME chief financial officer, Michael Boggs, the company said on Wednesday.

Hastings said that her decision to resign was a difficult decision to make but it was time to pursue other opportunities.

It has been suggested by industry insiders that the decision could be linked to NZME's Australian parent company APN News & Media's decision to shelve plans for an initial public offering.

Hastings was brought in to prepare the company for sale, but those efforts have proved unsuccessful, despite significant investment in new premises and staff.

She was known within the company for making bold, but sometimes unpopular changes. Several high-profile New Zealand Herald staffers have lost their jobs over recent months, as Hastings oversaw the combination of the digital, print and radio teams into one operation.

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But one source said her departure was not just to do with the failed IPO.

They said the rule of thumb was that a new chief executive was given six months to settle into a role, then a year to deliver.

"Radio was to be the saviour and it hasn't been," the source said, adding that Hastings was the "radio person" brought in to transform the company.

A lot of money had been spent transforming APN into NZME but it wasn't attracting any buyers, they said. That said, they didn't rule out the prospect of some operations attracting transtasman interest.

Boggs had a reputation for "unpicking things", as seen in his former job at insurer Tower, so may be considering that.

Finally, the source said, a new chief executive often brings a new team so there might be nervousness among some senior NZME ranks.

Another media analyst said Hastings was believed to have looked for another role but had not been able to find one before announcing her depature.

NZME had also reportedly been looking for an external replacement for Hastings after disappointment over the IPO.

Hastings has been with the APN Group since May 2012.

NZME's business includes The New Zealand Herald, regional newspapers, The Radio Network and group-buying website GrabOne.

Its main competitors are Fairfax MedIa, which competes with NZME in print and digital via Stuff.co.nz as well as newspapers including the Dominion Post, Press and Sunday Star Times. MediaWorks, operates TV3 and competing radio stations.

NZME's Newstalk ZB is the top-rating station across the country but in the October audience survey MediaWorks had 56 per cent of the sought-after 25 to 54-year-old audience bracket.

Stuff.co.nz outrates NZME's nzherald.co.nz, reaching 1.8 million people a month compared to 1.3 million.

Boggs has been chief financial officer at the company since March 2015. He had over 30 years management, financial and commercial experience across the media, telecommunications and insurance industries.

APN spokeswoman Helen McCombie was approached on February 24 with speculation that Hastings was leaving APN but said at the time that she believed the rumour was incorrect.

"No one knows anything about this, so I suspect it is probably wrong," she said. "No one that I know at APN knows anything about it."



She pointed to a report that had been published the previous week that quoted Hastings saying she was looking for directorship opportunities but would not be stepping down from her position as leader of NZME.