Hachette Book Group has announced a new structure for their sales force under recently-hired evp and chief marketing and sales officer Evan Schnittman that will “bring the sales and marketing functions in line with the changing book market – unifying print and digital sales, and integrating research and analytics into HBG’s overall sales strategy.” The company underscores that they are not “reducing headcount as part of the re-alignmen,” and the new structure creates some new positions to be filled shortly. In the internal announcement, Schnittman explains balancing “changes that allow us to do what we do best – create massive hits – but in a manner that is cost effective and long-term…. Our approach must see that digital and print are thought of as one. We must also see frontlist and backlist as one. In short, we need to be both hit makers and long-tail efficiency experts.”
Overall the department is now divided into three groups. “As such, we will no longer have one EVP of Sales, but three senior leaders taking up the charge.” Chris Murphy will serve as svp of Retail Sales, comprising sub-departments for national accounts, CBA, Clients and Nashville, young reader sales, and the national field force. Oxford University Press global vp of business development David Bowers has been hired as svp of the new Strategy & Operations group. He will oversee both operations in sales (analytics, retail promotion, retailer services, ebook platforms services, metadata optimization, business modeling, and key author liaising) and online retailer and jobber accounts. The third group, International, Canada, & Special Markets, will continue to be led by Jean Griffin.
In other promotions: Rick Cobban is vp of national accounts; Mike Heuer is executive director of a unified national field force that brings together the ID and field sales teams; Rich Tullis is channel director, online retail & jobbers; Karen Torres is vp, account marketing & retail operations; Andy LeCount is channel director, chains; and Linda Jamison is channel director, merch & clubs.
In other personnel news, Crown announced a number of recent promotions and new hires. Campbell Wharton has been promoted to associate publisher for Three Rivers Press and Crown Forum, reporting to Mauro DiPreta. Replacing Wharton as agent director of the RH Speakers Bureau is Wade Lucas, previously at the HarperCollins Speakers Bureau. As for Wharton’s previous publicity responsibilities, publicity director for Crown and Hogarth Annsley Rosner will now oversee Broadway and Hogarth paperbacks, while Tammy Blake will run publicity for Three Rivers and Crown Forum in addition to Crown Archetype and Harmony. The paperback lines for Crown Business and the Potter imprints will also be folded into responsibility for the hardcover imprints, overseen by Tara Gilbride and Kate Tyler, respectively.
Brenda McLaughlin will join Lonely Planet on October 22 as svp, general manager of Lonely Planet Americas, reporting to Stephen Palmer. McLaughlin, who was previously vp, digital media and product marketing at Antenna International, will be responsible for defining and executing the strategy to drive growth, in both revenues and audiences in the US, Canada, and Latin America.
At Open Road, former Pocket Books editorial director Maggie Crawford will join the company as a strategic advisor, focusing on commercial fiction, including romance, women’s fiction, thrillers and mysteries, reporting to Tina Pohlman.
At Dutton, Katie Burns has been promoted to senior marketing coordinator.
Mary-Kate Gaudet will join Little, Brown Children’s as associate editor on October 8. She was most recently at Harper Festival.
Jessica Greer has joined Other Press as publicist. She was formerly an associate publicist at the Random House Publishing Group.
At Scribner, Gwyneth Stansfield has been promoted to associate publicist.