Manager, Originals (6 month contract)

Job Description:

Here at Rakuten Kobo Inc. we offer a casual working start-up environment and a group of friendly and talented individuals. Our employees rank us highly in terms of commitment to work/life balance. We realize that for our people to be innovative, creative and passionate they need to feel valued and supported. We believe in rewarding all our employees with competitive salaries, performance based annual bonuses, stock options and training opportunities.  

If you’re looking for a company that inspires passion, personal, and professional growth – join Kobo and come help us on our mission of making reading lives better. 

The Role: 

Reporting to the Director of Catalog Europe, you will support the acquisition and production of French language ebooks and collaborate with Kobo’s marketing teams to promote the Originals program inside the Kobo platform and through our French retail partner Fnac.com.

You’ll be living and breathing content creation – negotiating contracts, overseeing creative and production processes, making sure projects get delivered and external parties get paid, working with our marketing and analytics team to build great support plan and monitor accurate reporting.

This is a 6 month contract covering a parental leave

• Research authors who match our catalog (thrillers, romance, feel-good)
• Communicate directly with authors to introduce them to Kobo Originals, who we are, how we work, and ensure that the collaboration will be fruitful.
• Present the project internally, negotiate with authors, and draft contracts.
• Follow up on advance payments and contract signings.
• Monitor the production process: ensure that each step is followed and completed on time so that the publication date is met.
• Monitoring payment o production invoices and budget
• Follow up on communication with the agency working for Kobo on the French side.
• Marketing follow-up: CRM requests, briefs, promotions, etc. in conjunction with Content Sales and the Marketing team.

The Person:

• You are a relationship builder - a natural communicator and someone who loves the world of publishing and reading in the digital era.
• You know what authors, publishers, retailers and customers care about.
• You are keenly aware of the intersection of traditional publishing and self-publishing in the digital space, and the key players in each. You are comfortable with the changing roles in the publishing supply chain and are ready to re-jig the value chain.
• You feel comfortable in a team but can get things done on your own. The idea of a virtual office spread across countries and time zones doesn’t scare you. You can build a budget, project, process or publishing plan. You mix good instincts with quantitative skills and you can apply commercial acumen to creative processes. You can throw serious heat with Excel if required.
• You have ideas and like to take initiatives while closely working with your manager. You are also a very organized person, who can handle multiple tasks and projects simultaneously, with clear prioritization. You know how to assess issues and can suggest solutions to solve them.

More Skills:

• 3-5 years relevant industry experience (publishing, tv production, marketing preferred)
• Experience in digital publishing/marketing
• Minimum BA/BS; Masters a plus
• Fluent in French and English required; comfortable in at least one other language a plus

About Rakuten Kobo Inc.  

Owned by Tokyo-based Rakuten and headquartered in Toronto, Rakuten Kobo Inc. is one of the most advanced global ecommerce companies, with the world’s most innovative e-reading services offering more than 6 million eBooks and audiobooks to 30 million + customers in 190 countries. Kobo delivers the best digital reading experience through creative innovation, award-winning e-readers, and top-ranking mobile apps. Kobo is a part of the Rakuten group of companies.  

Rakuten Kobo Inc. is an equal opportunity employer. Accessibility accommodations for candidates with disabilities participating in the selection process are available on request. Any information received related to accommodation needs of applicants will be addressed confidentially.  

Rakuten Kobo would like to thank all applicants for their interest in this role however only qualified candidates will be shortlisted.  

Beware of fraudulent job offers claiming to be from Rakuten. Rakuten does not send unsolicited job offers or request money during the recruitment process. Learn more: https://rakutenemploymentalert.com/
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