Senior Editor (9 month FTC)
What you’ll be doing
We are looking to bring in an experienced Senior Editor in World Languages, for a minimum of 9 months who can hit the ground running, picking up and successfully managing language titles in the early conceptual stages of development through to publication. You will also be responsible for new projects and will work adeptly across print and digital (ebooks, audio and online) to develop products and courses that deliver a flawless learning experience.
You will infuse your editorial feedback with your knowledge of pedagogy and language learning methodologies, keen understanding of the competitive landscape, language trends, international standards, and the challenges of self-study language learning.
You will work with influencer authors, academics and institutions across the globe and help develop their ideas into commercially viable products. You will also be able to rely on your own list of industry contacts to bring in new authors and freelancers. Diversity, equity and inclusion is at the heart of our language learning program and you will actively seek out authors and titles that represent the people and culture of the languages we publish.
In this role you will:
- Help commission or conceptualize new titles, series and digital projects that have been identified for publication by Teach Yourself.
- Develop new titles to the highest standards and guidelines.
- Work collaboratively with the sales and marketing teams to launch new titles and deliver growth in our existing titles’ sales, be it through metadata, internal meetings, or sales and marketing sell-in material.
- Work closely with project editors, production and design to make sure titles are to specification, budget and schedule.
- Work with authors to build strong editorial. relationships and deliver excellent care and attention
- Proactively manage the backlist programme, including metadata, reprints, new editions, etc.
- Review all contracts for titles of responsibility and manage them from signing to payment process.
Who we are looking for
We are looking for an experienced Senior Editor with a proven track record of publishing in World Languages and/or ELT, who is deeply passionate about languages and language learning, and whose knowledge of pedagogy and instructional design is matched by their entrepreneurial spirit and love of insight.
Reporting to the Publishing Director, you will have significant autonomy and an ‘ownership mentality,’ but also be a team player who will build a close working relationship with the John Murray Learning teams in Hachette’s UK and US offices. You will be an internal advocate for our language publishing and an external ambassador for language learning. You are a commercially aware, creative problem solver who delights in detail while having a clear view of the big picture at all times.
Competency in a language other than English is required, as well as teaching experience, or similar. Knowledge of assessment would be a bonus.
Skills/Knowledge:
Type of technical, specialised, professional skills required to achieve the Key Outputs above. Some examples are:
- Exceptional editorial skills
- Publishing process skills
- Subject/list subject knowledge
- Schedule and budget management
- Able to work under pressure
- Negotiation
- Project management skills
- Organisational planning
- Confident presentation skills
- Pedagogy and instructional design in self-study learning materials
- Multilingual
- Language teaching experience, certification
Experience:
- Proven publishing experience appropriate to the job specification
- Proven editorial development expertise
- Understanding and experience of financial budget management of projects
- Inter-department liaison management
- Proven language publishing experience
- Experience developing multicomponent products across different formats
What we offer
Our staff are our greatest asset and our benefits reflect this. In addition to 25 days annual leave days per year + bank holidays, we have an extensive list of benefits that include: a wide-ranging training library, development programmes including mentoring, Cycle to Work vouchers, Private Medical Insurance, eye care vouchers, up to 70% off book purchases, a charity book shelf, 2 volunteer days per year to use at your charity of choice, many employee networks to join, summer hours (finishing at 1pm on Fridays during the summer months!), season ticket loans, rent deposit loans, generous pension schemes and much more!
Please note, we're currently recruiting for this role in one of the following Hachette UK office locations; London, Sheffield, Newcastle, Manchester, or Edinburgh.
Who we are and what we do
The John Murray Learning team is seeking an experienced Senior Editor to contribute to the growth of their Languages list for a 9-month parental leave cover.
With offices throughout the UK, and in Boston and Philadelphia, John Murray Learning is home to Teach Yourself, Michel Thomas and the Chambers imprints. We sit within John Murray Press, one of the most storied publishing companies in the world with a history dating back to 1768 that includes publishing Jane Austin and Charles Darwin. John Murray Learning is a dynamic, fast-paced and fun environment where new ideas in publishing are actively explored and encouraged. We function with the meticulous focus of an independent editorial team but with the collective global insight and networks of our parent company.
Our Commitment
Hachette employs people on the basis of their abilities. We aim to attract and develop talent from a base as broad as the world of readers we want to reach, with a wide and representative range of age, faith, disability, race, gender, sexuality and socio-economic, regional and cultural backgrounds.
If you are shortlisted and need us to make any adjustments to help you attend for interview, please let us know.
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 junior roles. For more information visit www.booktradeentrysupport.org