Phoenix, Arizona-based magazine publisher and tradeshow producer Virgo Publishing has appointed John Siefert as CEO. Siefert replaces co-founder Jenny Bolton, who is stepping down as chief executive but will stay on as a member of the company’s board of directors.

Prior to joining Virgo, Siefert [pictured] served as senior vice president and publisher of the InformationWeek Business Technology Network, a division of United Business Media’s TechWeb. Before that, he served as group publisher of Network Computing and national director of sales and market development of the Network Computing Enterprise Architecture Group.

“We are confident that John’s experience and enthusiasm for the business will put him in the best position to lead Virgo in its future growth,” Perry Steiner, managing partner of private equity firm Arlington Capital, says in a statement announcing the appointment. Arlington Capital acquired Virgo in early 2008 for an estimated $100 million.

“We are also very pleased that Jenny Bolton will continue to play a major role on the Board of Directors going forward,” Steiner continues. “On behalf of the entire team at Virgo, we all thank Jenny for her dedication and leadership over the last 24 years, and look forward to working with her through Virgo’s next phase of growth.”

"With John's impressive leadership experience at United Business Media and his multiple successes in innovating and implementing new products and strategies, as well as his genuine enthusiasm for the business, we feel he is the right person to continue to build on Virgo's strong multi-faceted b-to-b platform and lead the company through the next phase of growth," Bolton tells EXPO. "Virgo continues to deliver strong performance and we are experiencing solid growth in our e-media and event revenue streams in 2010. In particular, our natural products and healthcare divisions are standouts."

Virgo’s magazines serve several industries, including healthcare, natural products and telecommunications. The company produced eight tradeshows and conferences, including the Billing & OSS World Conference & Expo, the Focus on the Future Trends & Strategy Forum and the Natural Products Marketplace virtual event.

Last week, Virgo renewed its partnership with SMB Nation to collocate Virgo’s Fall 2010 Channel Partners Conference & EXPO with SMB’s 2010 VoIP Workshop at the Gaylord National Resort & Convention Center in Washington, D.C. in September.