Editorial Director

The Editorial Director leads the people, the budget, and the client and business side of the editorial function. The role builds and guides the editorial team, plans and controls editorial spend, and carries relationships with authors, contributors, and clients from first conversation to finished book.

Creative direction for the list remains with the Founders, whose taste the Editorial Director upholds across every title. The rhythm of the list, the calendar and the delivery dates, sits with the Managing Editor, who works in parallel with this role. The Editorial Director is therefore the steady hand on team, money, and relationships, holding the editorial standard while the schedule is kept alongside them.

Reporting and Structure

The Editorial Director reports directly to the Founders and leads the editorial team, including editors, copy editors, and writers. The role engages and manages the freelance writer and copy editor roster as vendors, and works in parallel with the Managing Editor, who owns the launch calendar, the production schedule, and on-time delivery. The Editorial Director maintains strong daily links with the Design, Production, Partnership, and Marketing departments.

Scope

• The editorial team, together with the freelance writer and copy editor roster

• The editorial budget: first P&Ls, job numbers, and approval of all editorial spend

• Client and partner relationships across the full list, house titles and commissions alike

• The editorial standard, upholding the taste set by the Founders

KEY RESPONSIBILITIES

Editorial Leadership and Team Development

• Own the success, growth, and mentoring of the editorial team as the first responsibility of the role, keeping a capable and motivated group in place

• Lead, mentor, and supervise the editorial team, including editors, copy editors, and writers, ensuring the best deployment of talent

• Hire editorial staff and provide their ongoing development and guidance

• Ensure each editor project-manages their assigned titles, moving them from concept to delivery and feeding milestones into the Managing Editor’s master calendar

• Run editorial project management through Asana, working against the Managing Editor’s tracker and calendar

• Lead book assignment in partnership with the Editor-in-Chief, with the Managing Editor advising on team capacity

• Help editors source writers and shape titles and subtitles

• Engage and manage the freelance copy editor roster: sourcing, rates, and invoice approval, while the Managing Editor schedules their work against the calendar

Editorial Standard and Development

• Develop new book ideas with the Founders, who set the creative direction of the list

• Research and source new writers

• Evaluate outside edit pitches

• Hold the editorial standard across the list: quality, accuracy, and the voice of the house

• Stay informed on cultural trends, competitor titles, and emerging subjects to keep the catalog surprising and relevant

Editorial Production and Craft

• Serve as editor on your own books, sourcing the writer and acting as client liaison

• Edit and top edit text and captions across the list

• Oversee editorial quality from concept development through editing, fact checking, and final approval

• Responsible for the project management of editorial work and for initiating date-shift requests when editorial factors require them, with the Managing Editor holding the calendar of record and the President approving calendar-level changes

• Ensure all content honors copyright law, ethical standards, and the quality benchmark of the house

Budget and Financial Oversight

• Create all first P&Ls

• Create all job numbers

• Approve all editorial invoices, freelance and staff alike

Client and Partner Relations

• Build relationships with authors, contributors, and editors, keeping them informed at every stage for an experience that reflects the house

• Liaise with the Partnership team on editorial concept and plan, and join meetings with potential clients

• Liaise with clients as needed, especially on troubled projects, owning the relationship and the quality resolution

• Draft and manage writer contracts

• Collaborate with art directors, designers, photographers, and outside contributors to conceive and produce beautiful books

What Success Looks Like

• The right people are on the right books, and the team is capable, motivated, and well supported

• Editorial spend is planned and controlled, with sound P&Ls and current invoices

• Authors and clients feel guided and cared for across the whole journey

• Books move on schedule, with date shifts flagged early and landed cleanly with the Managing Editor

• The list holds its standard, and fresh ideas keep the catalog surprising and relevant

• The Editorial Director and Managing Editor operate as a clean pair, with few matters needing escalation

Qualifications

• Minimum 8 years of publishing experience leading teams

• Strong people leadership: hiring, mentoring, and retention

• Sound commercial judgment across budgets, P&Ls, vendor management, and contracts

• A record of solving problems through creative solutions that make a difference

• Proficiency with Asana or a comparable project management tool

• Excellent Microsoft Office skills and the ability to learn new systems

• A collaborative temperament, comfortable working in parallel with a Managing Editor and clear about lanes

• Strong organizational skills, with timely and consistent support to teams and partners

Compensation Range: $125,000 to $165,000 + Bonus

Assouline is an equal opportunity employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, national origin, disability status, protected veteran status, or any other characteristic protected by law.