Penguin Australia marketing and publicity director Dan Ruffino is being promoted to group digital director for Penguin Group worldwide, starting September 1 based in New York. He will report to chairman and ceo John Makinson and “focus on digital publishing and new digital revenue opportunities; direct to consumer communication and business intelligence; and global partnerships.”
Makinson comments: “He is a hugely talented marketing professional who has spent the last six years thinking about ways to make our content more enticing to the consumer. He has all the right qualifications and qualities for the job, but, above all, he has the enthusiasm and creative energy to ensure that Penguin continues to lead the way in digital innovation.”
Random House UK announced a variety of digital group personnel changes “to take advantage of new multimedia color devices, smartphones and tablets.”
Zoe Howes has been promoted to the new position of editorial director, ebooks and audio. Her agenda includes looking at “cross-company digitally led publishing initiatives – possibly involving synergies with audio.” A new digital editor will report to Howes, and Jon Salt has been promoted to multimedia editor, reporting to digital publisher Jonathan Davis. Nicole Gross has been promoted to senior digital executive and will become “a key part of the creative digital publishing team, providing support in project management and project specifications.”
Following the birth of her third child, Martha Kanya-Forstner has resigned as editor-in-chief of Doubleday Canada, where she was worked for 12 years. She will continue to work for the company with some of her authors “in a new, independent, freelance editorial arrangement.”
As the Portland Business Journal underscores, next month Emily Powell takes as as president of Powell’s Books, part of a planned succession crafted four years ago. Hoover’s estimated Powell’s sales as $64.8 million in 2008.
On the rise of online sales and ebooks, Michael Powell remarks: “It’s certainly shaking up the industry, and retailers aren’t sure what their role is. It’s an industry with an enormous amount of flexibility, and I hope with a little help from me, Emily is going to have to make some changes to help Powell’s compete and survive.”
Business Journal
Also in bookselling, Barnes & Noble selected Isabel Wolff‘s just-released novel, A VINTAGE AFFAIR as their latest chainwide BN Recommends “main selection.”
Release
At Viking Penguin, Liz Van Hoose has been promoted to editor.
In the UK, Richard Mollet will take over as chief executive of the Publishers Association. He is currently director of public affairs at the BPI, a trade organization for the UK music business.
Bookseller
Franklin & Siegal Associates has been named literary scout for Sigongsa in Korea, for both adult and YA/middle grade.
In yesterday’s write-up of the Andrew Wylie profile, my silly fingers typed “fighting privacy” when I meant “fighting piracy.”