American Public Media Group in St. Paul, Minn., made an array of organizational changes that took effect Monday.
Among the changes, APMG changed Chandra Kavati’s role from SVP and chief partnerships & revenue officer to a newly created position, SVP of business development and president of American Public Media. APMG is the parent organization of APM, Minnesota Public Radio and Southern California Public Radio.
Kavati “will be accountable for aligning APM’s national content and media revenue growth approach to our FY25-27 strategy, including by prioritizing local relationships and public service in our national strategies,” according to a press release.
“Chandra’s role will not be to run an independent division of APMG, rather the title reflects her accountability for evolving our national media revenue streams, national brands and national distribution channels,” an APMG spokesperson said in an email. “She will also continue to lead our business development efforts, which include national distribution and both regional and national underwriting sales.”
Dave Kansas previously served as APM’s president until a 2022 reorganization.
Kavati will also assume oversight of Marketplace, which previously reported to MPR President and SVP Duchesne Drew.
Meanwhile, APMG moved its YourClassical brand under Drew’s oversight. Liwanag Ojala had led YourClassical since 2022 as CTO and is transitioning into a new role as COO and SVP.
Ojala will “broaden her focus from digital transformation to operationalizing transformation as that multi-year program comes to its conclusion at the end of 2025,” the release said.
David Safar is now interim managing director of MPR’s music services, which consist of YourClassical and The Current, an indie and alternative station. He was previously managing director of The Current.
APMG is making the changes to “better position APMG to execute on our 2025-2027 strategic plan,” according to the release. “… These changes will further our efforts to fulfill our vision to ‘create a connected America fueled by trust and understanding.’”