Caryn Mandabach, a partner in TV producer Carsey-Werner-Mandabach ("That '70s Show"), is leaving the company to set up her own shop.

Mandabach, the first person Tom Werner and Marcy Carsey hired when they opened their company in 1981, says she wants to become a "scrappy solo operator," as she was before joining Carsey-Werner.

"There's more for me to accomplish," Mandabach tells the Los Angeles Times. "I just felt like now is the time for me to see what I have in me."

Mandabach's announcement comes two weeks after Carsey-Werner-Mandabach said it would remain an independent producer, among the last of its kind in the TV business. The company explored aligning with one of the big studio-network conglomerates earlier in the year but in the end decided against it.

With Mandabach leaving, the firm will revert to its former name, Carsey-Werner. Mandabach's credit as an executive producer of Carsey-Werner's current series, "That '70s Show" and "Grounded for Life," will be removed, but she'll keep a financial stake in the shows.

Mandabach was Carsey-Werner's first employee in 1981. She was a producer of the studio's first big hit, "The Cosby Show," and became its president in 1987. As president she helped develop and served as executive producer of "Roseanne," "Grace Under Fire" and "3rd Rock from the Sun," among others. Her name joined Carsey's and Werner's in the company's title in 2001.