Ruth Batson, chief executive officer of American Gem Society (AGS), has been named to the same position at AGS Laboratories.
The news comes about a year after AGS acquired outstanding shares of the lab, making it a wholly owned subsidiary. AGS previously held a 51 per cent majority stake.
“Simply put, this appointment made sense,” said David Gardner, president of AGS’s board of directors.
“Ruth has led the American Gem Society as CEO for the last 10 years, and has been passionate about AGS Lab’s role in the industry. She now is empowered to act in the best interest of AGS Labs and its clients.”
A nine-year veteran of AGS, Batson was appointed its executive director and CEO in 2002.
“It will be a privilege to serve as the CEO of both of these organizations,” she said. “It is my goal to make sure the combined forces of both the AGS and AGS Labs work more closely together to better service customers of the lab and the members of the AGS.”
Mark Moeller, chair of AGS Lab’s board of managers, called her appointment “long overdue.”
“[Ruth] understands the success of the lab is predicated on giving diamond buyers the most accurate diamond grading report in the world,” he added.
