Rights Executive, Illustrated Rights

Are you a thoughtful and confident communicator and a great team player? Are you motivated to build on your experience of selling rights and supporting global publications?

We are recruiting for a Rights Executive to join the team handling rights sales for our Adult illustrated books, working closely alongside the Rights Director to grow our business in North America and Germany.

About Rights

Penguin Random House UK Group Rights represents international and domestic rights across the company’s eight divisions. For Adult Rights, one team represents Ebury, Cornerstone, Penguin General and Penguin Press; another represents Transworld, Michael Joseph and Vintage; and another represents illustrated titles across the seven adult publishing divisions. A separate team represents the Penguin Random House Children's division, which includes Ladybird, Puffin and Penguin imprints. Our film, TV and media team works across all divisions. The Penguin Random House rights team help our books and brands go global.

The role

You’ll be working across a wide range of illustrated titles spanning cookery, art & design, graphic novels and more.

In collaboration with the team Rights Director, you’ll work to extend our sales, author care and customer service in North America and Germany. You’ll be responsible for sales of allocated titles, as well as being responsible for proactive management of deals, supporting customer relationships and providing administrative support to the Rights Director. This role will be expected to deputise for one Divisional Rights Specialist.

Key Responsibilities:

1. Proactively track and manage North American and German deals from the point of sale to publication and beyond, initiating conversations on publication timing, covers and campaign plans with our publishing partners, liaising with the UK team as needed; sharing reviews and sales news; handling queries including but not limited to permissions, file supply, cover and internal file approvals.
2. Negotiate and sell rights with ambition, representing allocated titles through year-round submissions.
3. Handle publicity requests, liaising with authors/agents, customers and UK PR contacts.
4. Develop and maintain strong relationships with specified customers, displaying strong interpersonal skills and collaborative working to maximise sales opportunities.
5. Proactively track market to capture changes/new players and extend customer base.
6. Sell and supply covers and internal files as allocated.
7. Carry out sales and administrative functions in support of the Rights Director to a high professional standard, including the processing of Subrights on Biblio, contracts, invoicing and loading submissions.
8. Evaluate new projects, contributing to rights meetings and title pitches and engaging with team strategy for ambitious, innovative and creative ways to increase title sales.
9. Build productive working relationships with editorial/marketing/publicity (according to business need) within their allocated division.

What you’ll bring

Essential criteria:

1. Understand the rights business, and already be working in or have meaningful experience of Rights or Sales.
2. Demonstrate an entrepreneurial and proactive approach to work, displaying resourcefulness and a curiosity about new opportunities and developments in the market.
3. Be a confident communicator and a responsive negotiator with growing influencing skills.
4. Work as a team player showing commitment both to individual sales opportunities and group initiatives.
5. Be a keen reader, ready to translate personal passion into generating enthusiasm for our titles in others.

How to apply

Please apply with your CV and cover letter outlining why you are the right candidate for the role by 11:59pm on Sunday 23^rd February.

Please ensure you include a cover letter, as it is a crucial part of our assessment process. The cover letter offers an opportunity to show how your experience and interests align with the role requirements. Typically, we expect the cover letter to be no more than one or two pages in length.

We anticipate 1^st stage interviews will take place in early March, and 2^nd stage interviews will take place w/c 17^th March following the London Book Fair week.

Salary

£30,000 plus bonus and benefits.

What you can expect from us

Our people are the heart of our business, and we work hard to support a culture of responsibility and recognition.

Our benefits include:

• Financial – discounted shopping, season ticket loan, rental deposit loan
• Wellbeing – healthcare cash plan, employee assistance, gym loan
• Lifestyle – taste card, tech scheme, free and discounted books

For our full benefits list please visit: https://www.penguinrandomhousecareers.co.uk/what-we-offer/

Hybrid working

While our offices across the UK are places to connect, collaborate and celebrate with colleagues, we recognise that flexibility around where you work is just as important. For this role, we expect that there will be meetings and activities that you will need to attend in person 3 days a week.

About Penguin

We’re the UK’s largest publisher; made up of some 2,000 people and publishing over 1,500 books each year. Our doors are open to all kinds of talent. In a constantly evolving industry, we work hard to stretch the definition of the word publisher. Here, you’ll work with a breadth of talent who all play their part to make each of our books a success. Together, we make books for everyone because a book can change anyone.

The recruitment process

You can read about our recruitment process at https://www.penguinrandomhousecareers.co.uk/how-we-hire/

As a Disability Confident Committed organisation, we offer interviews to candidates with a disability who meet the essential criteria for the role, and opt-in on their application form. The essential criteria for this role are listed as part of the ‘What you’ll bring’ section. There may be times when the volume of applications means we cannot take all eligible candidates to interview.

We encourage you to tell us about any reasonable adjustments you may need by emailing PRHCareersUK@penguinrandomhouse.co.uk. Remember, you only need to share what you are comfortable to for us to support your request.

Please note, we are not able to accept agency CVs for this role. Any CVs sent speculatively will not be eligible for a fee.