Smith to Succeed Pesce as Wiley President and CEO

(Press Release) Peter Booth Wiley, Chairman of the Board of Directors of John Wiley & Sons, Inc. (NYSE: JWa and JWb), announced today that William J. Pesce will be retiring on April 30, 2011, and Stephen M. Smith has been named as the Company's next President and Chief Executive Officer and will become a member of its Board of Directors, effective May 1, 2011. The Board of Directors will recommend Mr. Pesce for the slate of Director candidates that will be voted on at the Annual Meeting of Shareholders in September 2011.

Mr. Wiley said, "The appointment of Steve Smith as Wiley's next President and CEO represents continuity of leadership. Steve has been a highly influential member of our leadership team and a major contributor to the Company's success. His leadership skills and extensive experience in Asia and Europe, where he has been actively involved in all of our businesses, will be critically important to the Company's continued success. This appointment is the result of Wiley's successful development of leadership talent, the Board's thorough assessment of Steve's career at the Company, and a careful review of internal and external candidates."

Mr. Pesce added, "It has been a privilege leading this remarkable Company. I'm most proud of the culture we've created at Wiley—a high performing culture that's built on a solid foundation of trust, ethics, and integrity—a culture that values and respects our colleagues as human beings first, professionals second. Steve Smith embraces that culture. We've collaborated successfully for 18 years. I value Steve's ability to lead across organizational and geographic boundaries; his extensive experience with Wiley's businesses globally; and his impressive track record recruiting and developing talent."

Since May 1, 2009, Mr. Smith has served as Wiley's Chief Operating Officer, responsible for the leadership of its worldwide publishing businesses. He joined Wiley in 1992 as Vice President, Wiley Asia. In 1995, he was promoted to the new position of Vice President, International Development. He became Senior Vice President, International Development in 1996, when he also assumed corporate responsibility for Wiley Australia. In May 2000, Wiley's Professional/Trade business in Europe was added to his responsibilities. In 2006, Mr. Smith became Chief Operating Officer of Wiley's UK business and was appointed Senior Vice President, Wiley Europe in 2007, while continuing his role in Asia and Australia.