NEW YORK: Cohn & Wolfe corporate practice leader Michael Bayer has left his role after more than two years at the agency.

Bayer is retiring from the PR industry to pursue a career in academia, he said.

“It's something I've wanted to do for years and I'm finally taking the plunge,” Bayer said in an email on Friday.

Jim Joseph, the WPP Group agency's North America president, said the firm was “actively searching for a replacement” to lead its corporate practice. ...