AOL Cuts Two Jobs, Including Just Promoted COO

AOL LLC has

AOL has cut two of their top executives to help streamline the company's structure.

eliminated the jobs of two executives, including one who was just promoted to the role by the company’s new chief executive.

According to a memo to AOL employees, the moves were intended to help streamline the company’s structure. The changes come as AOL prepares to be spun off from parent Time Warner Inc. and follow extensive management shuffling over the past few years.

Time Warner, which was originally purchased by AOL in 2001, said in May that it would spin AOL off as a separate company after years of trying unsuccessfully to integrate the two companies. AOL’s access business has long been fading, while efforts to derive more revenue from online advertising have encountered difficulties.

The two executives who have left are Chief Operating Officer Kimberly Partoll and John Kannapell, head of search and local content.

Partoll had recently been promoted to the COO post by CEO Tim Armstrong, a former Google Inc. advertising executive who joined the struggling Internet company in April. She had previously been an executive vice president leading the company’s legacy Internet access business.

Partoll’s current responsibilities for the Web access business will go to the company’s new head of Internet and mobile communications, Brad Garlinghouse. Her search duties will go to head of advertising Jeff Levick, while AOL’s international operations will now fall under Armstrong.

Kannapel’s local and MapQuest responsibilities will go to John Brod, who runs AOL Ventures. His search user interface responsibilities will go to AOL’s media head, Bill Wilson.

AOL is based in New York with sizable operations in Dulles, Va.