Steve Lacy, the architect of Meredith’s $2.8 billion acquisition of Time Inc. a year ago, is going to step down from his position as executive chairman on March 31.

Lacy turns 65 on March 20.

He will continue to serve as chairman of the board in a non-executive role, the company said. He joined as chief financial officer in 1998 and was named president and CEO in 2006. Amid sell-offs and shutdowns and consolidations, he reduced the combined staffs by several thousand people, but his consolidation plans drew a favorable response from Wall Street.

During his tenure at the TV and magazine giant, revenue doubled and profit tripled. He was succeeded as president and CEO by Tom Harty in January 2018, following the completion of the Time Inc. deal.