Editorial Director, Children's

Job Description Editorial Director, Puffin 0-6At Penguin Random House, we make books for everyone because a book can change anyone. At Penguin Random House Childrens, by entertaining and educating, we aim to publish for every child everywhere and take young people on an incredible journey from their first reading experiences right through to their teen years and beyond. We publish some of the biggest names in preschool and picture books from iconic classic brands such as The World of Peter Rabbit, Spot and The Very Hungry Caterpillar and bestselling heritage creators including Allan Ahlberg, Anthony Browne and Shirley Hughes, to major new talent including Tom Fletcher, Nadia Shireen, Rashmi Sirdeshpande, Nathan Bryon, and Dapo Adeola. We are passionate about bringing stories to life that change and shape lives.The roleAre you already an accomplished commissioning or senior editor of preschool or licensed publishing and ready to take the next step? Or perhaps you have experience in brand management within the wider publishing industry? Do you have a track record of successfully leading established and growing author/illustrator brands, working across large publishing programs, year-round? Do you have a keen eye for detail, enjoy analysing data and understand what makes a successful creative business? This is a rare and exciting opportunity to take up a key role in the Penguin Random House Childrens Division, the biggest childrens publisher in the UK, and join the 0-6 team to work across some of the best-selling global childrens book brands, as well as creating programmes for developing brands and championing heritage authors and illustrators. These are the authors, illustrators, characters and books that are often some of the first that young readers encounter; they are the books that create readers and are gateways to reading for many children and young people around the world.Key responsibilities:This role will report into and work closely with the Brands and Novelty Publisher, to drive long-term growth on some of our biggest 0-6 properties, taking responsibility for key strands of the strategy across our best-loved character and author brands. While this position will have a focus on established authors and series, it will also involve working with the Publisher and other colleagues to identify emerging opportunities across the list and fast-track growth, as well as curating and creating opportunities for further publishing from heritage creators.Lead publisher of some 0-6 brands, creating new frontlist programmes and managing backlist, working closely with estates and other external partners. You will create and deliver year-round publishing strategies for each property and lead each brands core internal team.Deputise for the Publisher (Brands and Novelty), where relevant, attending and contributing to key inter-departmental meetings, championing and contributing to the publication strategy of brands beyond your own list.Work closely with the Publisher to deliver ongoing growth including creating and developing publishing ideas and commissioning new titles for developing brands, planning further ahead across the biggest brands on the list and identifying major publishing moments and opportunities, as well as any gaps.Work closely with the dedicated custom publishing team (across sales, design, managing editorial) to improve ways of working, establish best-practise and drive growth across the custom business.Work closely with finance and sales colleagues, to run regular performance reports on our 0-6 brands and market data reports, to map growth, and determine profitability and viability of brand publishing, in line with commercial objectives.Work closely and collaboratively with the Marketing and PR teams, to improve ways of working on the 0-6 brands, establish and implement shared learnings across the 0-6 brand publishing.Work closely and collaboratively with all key internal stakeholders across departments, to establish best practise for brand publishing: from critical paths, brand sheet creation, metadata management, audience insight, and backlist management.What youll bringEssential criteria:Passion for, and ideally experience in, preschool publishing.An eagerness to work on books that are already loved by many thousands of readers, with a drive to reach more for many years to comeBrimming with ideas, insight and energy for best-in-class publishing.A proven track-record in editing, acquiring, communicating publishing strategy and performance and proactively working with authors/illustrators/brands to create ancillary book ideas and profitably publishing titles.Creativity and excellent commercial judgement.Strong skills in Power BI will be an advantage and excellent market awareness is essential.Confident negotiator who can challenge when required.Ability to operate as a trusted internal and external ambassador for the Puffin 0-6 brands and to develop each brands publishing strategy and successfully bring books to market.Flair for good copy, design, and brand messaging.Well-practised in prioritising, multi-tasking, time management and working to deadlines.Keen team player, who is collaborative, but also comfortable working autonomously and making decisions.Ability to balance long and short-term objectives and understanding of the legacy of best-loved characters, series and authors/illustrators.Disability ConfidentAs 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 youll 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 [email protected]. Remember, you only need to share what you are comfortable with, for us to support your request.Application instructionsPlease apply with your CV and cover letter outlining why you are the right candidate for the role by 11:59pm on 2nd of January 2026. As part of your cover letter, please write a paragraph (300 words max) about a successful publishing (author/illustrator/series) brand you've admired or worked on and your observations about what helped drive its growth.SalaryCirca 50,000 dependent on how your skills and experience align to the role, plus bonus and benefits.Hybrid workingWhile 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 you will be in the office a minimum of 3 days a week.

Created: 2025-12-08