UPDATE 2-Reed Elsevier names Ian Smith as CEO designate

* Outsider Ian Smith to take over as CEO next spring * No comment on other matters in CEO succession statement

(Adds shares, analyst comment, background)

By Dan Lalor and Georgina Prodhan

LONDON, Nov 4 (Reuters) - Anglo-Dutch publisher Reed Elsevier Plc/NV (ELSN.AS) (REL.L) named industry outsider Ian Smith as its chief executive designate from Jan. 1, ahead of assuming the top spot when Crispin Davis retires.

Smith, who will take over the helm of the professional publisher and exhibitions organiser in March, was most recently the chief executive of British housebuilder Taylor Woodrow Plc (TW.L), staying only briefly at the company before it merged with George Wimpey Plc.

He was before that chief executive of General Healthcare Group and previously held senior positions at management consulting firm Monitor, Royal Dutch Shell (RDSa.L) and Exel Group -- which he helped transform into a full logistics firm from a freight management business.

He will take over a company that Davis has helped evolve from a publisher mainly of printed business journals and textbooks such as Gray's Anatomy into a leading digital provider of professional information in his nine years as chief executive.

The appointment will come as a surprise to those who had tipped an insider such as Andrew Prozes, head of Reed's legal and risk-management division LexisNexis, as the next chief executive.

"Ian Smith is an outstanding business leader who will build on Reed Elsevier's strong foundations of global leadership positions, a growing digital presence and a dynamic management team," Chairman Jan Hommen said in a statement on Tuesday.

The statement contained no comment on current trading or the planned sale of Reed's trade publications unit, which includes titles such as Variety, New Scientist and Farmers Weekly and is estimated to be worth about 1 billion pounds ($1.6 billion).

Last month a source familiar with the matter said a financing package offered by Reed for the sale of the unit might come in smaller than expected, causing bidders to reexamine their offers.

Reed is also integrating commercial data broker ChoicePoint, whose $4.1 billion acquisition it completed this year.

"We believe the strategy for Reed Elsevier is likely to remain focused on execution in the near term as it integrates ChoicePoint and drives new efficiency savings," UBS analyst Polo Tang wrote in a note.

Reed Elsevier shares were down 0.3 percent at 547.5 pence by 0902 GMT, underperforming a 1.3 percent rise in the DJ Stoxx European media index .SXMP. (Editing by Greg Mahlich)