Head of Marketing, HarperFiction (Maternity Cover)

An exciting opportunity has arisen for a Head of Marketing to join the award-winning HarperFiction marketing team on a fixed-term contract to cover a period of parental leave.

HarperFiction is one of the UK’s most successful commercial fiction publishers, with a reputation for innovation and market-leading campaigns that deliver breakout success.  

We publish some of the biggest and bestselling brands in fiction, from Jeffrey Archer to Karin Slaughter, Lucy Foley to Dilly Court. We’ve achieved chart-topping success with our inexhaustible event publishing, including Rebecca F. Kuang’s Yellowface, Bella Mackie’s How to Kill Your Family and Abigail Dean’s Girl A. And we’re home to legendary names, Agatha Christie, George R.R. Martin and J.R.R. Tolkien. Complimented by our literary imprint, The Borough Press, now celebrating their tenth year, and British Book Award’s ‘Imprint of the Year’, HarperVoyager.

There has never been a more exciting time to join HarperFiction. In this role you’ll be a senior voice in the high-performing marketing team, delivering industry-leading campaigns for some of our biggest books and brands.

Key tasks and accountabilities:

• Overseeing and delivering strategic, creative and innovative campaigns for major releases and authors across the division

• Developing innovative, creative and targeted marketing activity including all planning, briefing and delivery – from pre-awareness through to launch and beyond

• Line management of two team members

• Striving for innovation across all channels to produce market leading campaigns that create cut-through and deliver on sales targets

• Ensuring that delivery of all creative, media, and digital plans are on brief and in budget

• Measuring and evaluating campaigns, share learnings and optimising for future activity

• Working alongside the consumer insight team to understand readerships and inform target audiences

• Working with brand and media partners to leverage reader interest and expand our consumer reach

• Supporting a culture of collaboration and integration, working closely with Publicity, Sales and Editorial to ensure that all stakeholder needs are met

Skills required:

• Significant experience of delivering market-leading consumer campaigns

•   Demonstrable experience of direct line managing people

• Highly organised and able to manage multiple competing deadlines, prioritising and delegating effectively  

•   Budget management

• Understanding of the commercial fiction market and book buyer

• Able to create and deliver successful author pitches

• Experience of working collaboratively with multiple senior stakeholders

• Creative flair  

• Calm under pressure

• A team player with strong interpersonal skills and the ability to build strong working relationships with multiple stakeholders across the business and externally

• Data-driven and results-focused

  Benefits

  • Hybrid working model (3 days in the office)

  • 28 days holiday plus bank holidays (option to buy and sell holiday days) 

  • Enhanced pay for maternity, paternity, adoption and shared parental leave 

  • Private healthcare cover and life assurance 

  • Summer Hours  

  • Free access to HeadSpace, employee assistance programme (24 hour helpline), mental health first aiders, and a wellbeing portal 

  • Season ticket loans (from day 1 for entry level) and cycle to work scheme 

  • Relocation Rent Support Loan  

  • Employee networks: HC All In (open forum), Elevate (for ethnic minority colleagues), HarperParents, Menopause at Work, Pride at HC, Social Mobility Network and Neurodiversity at Work

  • Unlimited training on our Learning and Development portal, management courses (up to MA level) and mentoring programmes 

  • Virtual GP and eyecare vouchers 

  • Gym membership discount 

  • Onsite physiotherapy (London only) 

  • Charitable donation matching and 2 volunteering days 

  • We're a certified Carbon Neutral company

  • Green Electric/Hybrid Car Benefit Scheme (salary sacrifice)

  • With Trees for Life we plant a tree in the Highlands of Scotland for every permanent hire

  • Free e-books and audiobooks, digital newspaper subscriptions and discounts on books 

  • Subsidised canteen and retail discounts 

  • Onsite prayer room 

  The Book Trade Charity offers financial support to people looking to enter the book trade but who may struggle to afford the costs of attending interviews and undertaking internships or entry level positions. For more information visit  https://www.btbs.org/

  If you wish to discuss anything regarding this position and/or your application to this role, please reach out directly to stephanie.jemmett@harpercollins.co.uk with subject heading ‘Vacancy Query’ plus the job title and we will aim to get back to you within 5 working days.

  Please note, if you are interested in the role you would need to submit your application via Applied. We do not accept email applications.