In choosing Laura Lang to become the new CEO of Time Inc., Time Warner chief executive Jeffrey Bewkes could not have found a more qualified person to steer the company in the uncertain years ahead, at least on paper.

Lang's background is in digital media as the former CEO of Digitas, the respected and innovative online agency, and she comes to Time Inc. at a time when the nation's largest publisher is faced with the task of transitioning its focus from print to digital.

But as qualified as she may be, Lang faces the challenge of doing what no one who's proceeded her as CEO has been able to pull off. She must bring about change at an organization where change comes slowly and only after much struggle.

In order to succeed, she will have to dismantle the fiefdoms of the individual magazines, a huge challenge in itself, and then craft a singular direction for the publishing giant.

By most accounts, Lang has the temperament for such a job. She's described as tough but collaborative and a big believer in teamwork. She does not have a big ego and she is very goal-oriented.

Still, even with that get-along personality, her task will be difficult.

The last person to hold this post, former Meredith CEO Jack Griffin, was sacked after just six months because longtime managers chafed under his efforts to centralize Time Inc. operations.

Griffin did his job without apology and with a cadre of outsiders he brought in to assist him, many of whom left after he was booted last February.

If his short tenure proved anything, it's that the old guard still very much rules Time Inc., and Lang's task will be convincing them to buy into her approach.

Lang joins Time Inc. at a volatile time for the magazine industry. Ad pages are projected to end the year in negative territory for the second time in three years, and the second half of this year was especially rough, with nine of 12 top ad categories sliding in third quarter, according to the Publishers Information Bureau.

The ad revenue declines come as publishers struggle to transition from print to digital models. Most now have some sort of tablet app, but they are still feeling out issues like tablet subscriptions, tablet ad sales and how much content to make available on the web for free.

Revenue at Time Inc. has declined by nearly a third over the past five years, and the publisher has had several rounds of layoffs.

Despite those woes, Time Inc. still turned an operating profit of 3.5 percent last year.