Maria Walsh has been named vice president, head of benefits for Hearst. The announcement was made by President and CEO Steven R. Swartz and Chief Operating Officer Mark Aldam. Walsh will report to Vice President of Finance Jeana Stanley.
“Over the course of her career, Maria has been instrumental in designing innovative global benefit programs to meet the needs of a highly diverse and growing workforce,” Aldam said. “As we continuously work to maintain best-in-market competitive welfare and benefit programs to attract, retain and reward top talent across the industries we operate, we look forward to drawing upon Maria’s experience to provide great impact for our employees at Hearst.”
Walsh — who succeeds Arleane Soto, former vice president and head of benefits, following her retirement in 2019 — joins Hearst after nearly 13 years at Nielsen, where she most recently served as vice president, global benefits and mobility, overseeing the benefits and wellness strategies for the company’s more than 46,000 employees across 100 countries. She managed vendor negotiations, contracts and relationships; designed and implemented measurable tools to monitor and evaluate the effectiveness of initiatives; and ensured compliance with existing and new regulations across locations.
“The right employee experience is what often gives a corporation the competitive edge to bring in talent, and a highly personalized benefits experience is a vital part of that package,” Walsh said. “I’m excited to continue the work being done at Hearst and deliver programs that align with the company’s mission and values.”
Prior to joining Nielsen, from 2002 to 2007, Walsh was a manager of health and well-being strategy at Citigroup, where she designed and executed the benefits programs for 150,000 employees in the U.S. across the medical, pharmacy, dental, vision, flexible spending accounts, health savings accounts, retiree medical and well-being policies.
From 2000 to 2002, she served as senior analyst, retirement plans at UBS. Walsh began her career at Prudential Financial. She earned a bachelor’s degree in political science from Drew University.
