Director - University Press

Location

Europe | United Kingdom

Job description

Morgan Healey Retained Assignment
Location:  Vienna / Europe / Hybrid 
Salary: Attractive Basic + Benefits 

Our client a leading University Press is searching for a new leader to oversee the business. The press currently publishes 40 new titles a year in both print and digital formats. The Press publishes in the Humanities and Social Sciences, with an emphasis on history, political science, economics and gender studies.

The Press is part of a leading European University, the leading English-language-speaking university in Central Europe, established over 30 years ago by the philanthropist, George Soros. The Press has been extremely successful, consistently in the top echelons of the major rankings for new universities. It is the most successful university in the region in winning large-scale EU research grants in HSS subjects.

Over the last 3 years, the Press has increased its turnover and become a leading OA university press. The Press aims to continue to grow through a mix of sales, grants and a library membership scheme, as well as to increase impact through excellent book commissioning, more titles published in OA, and the support of other digital communication strategies.

This is an exciting new role that will shape the next phase of growth for the Press.

Key Responsibilities:

• Update and execute the mission and operation of the Press in conjunction with the senior leadership team of the University
• Develop further the editorial vision and strategic plan for the Press
• Manage the small staff of 7 FTE and freelancers
• Hire and provide training for Press staff, as needed
• Achieve ambitious turnover growth of the Press over the next five years through a mix of print, digital sales and Open Access
• Continue with the development of infrastructure that began in 2021 with new financial processes, partnerships and websites
• Improve internal processes such as production while maintaining high-quality standards
• Stabilise the Opening the Future programme with renewals and new signs and keep in close
• Champion the Press both inside and outside of the University
• Prepare and oversee annual budgets and five-year plans in conjunction with the University’s CFO
• Represent the Press at meetings, conferences and events.
• Increase visibility with potential partners, authors, donors and reviewers
• Negotiate and agree contracts with authors, editors, distribution partners, and vendors
• Manage the new website to grow usage, readership and D2C sales
• Ensure consistency of branding both written and visual
• Continue the development of the digital communication strategy for all Books
• Develop relationships with state and local organisations, foundations and individuals to create partnerships, collaborate on projects, or secure funding

Skills & Experience:

• BA from an accredited university. An advanced degree would be an advantage
• At least 10 years in academic publishing, ideally in a number of different positions
• At least 5 years of experience in acquiring, developing and promoting scholarly titles
• Knowledge of and interest in the issues and trends in scholarly publishing, libraries, scholarly communication, open access, data sharing, and intellectual property.
• Proven ability to manage, motivate a team and outsource as and when necessary
• Understanding of modern marketing techniques including social media
• Comfortable with all aspects of digital technology and digital publications
• Understanding of the finances of university press publishing
• Ability to maintain productive working relationships with the university’s administration, faculty and other stakeholders
• Ability to articulate a vision and provide forward-thinking strategic direction in a rapidly changing publishing environment.
• An understanding of the major challenges facing small scholarly presses today.
• Strong communication skills,
• Good writing and speaking skills in English. 
• Entrepreneurial vision to find and support new ideas

Apply online or send your CV to:  [email protected]

Or call: +44 (0)1827 373750

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Referrals: We will reward you with GBP500.00 if you know the perfect candidate for this position and our client hires them. You can send contact details of anyone you want to recommend to  [email protected]

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