MAIN NEWS HEADLINES
December 4 – December 11, 2008 Edition
Random House
Announces Major
Restructuring
NEW YORK, NY (Authorlink News, December 3, 2008)–Random House Chairman and CEO Markus Dohle today announced a new organizational alignment for the adult publishing divisions of Random House, Inc. in the U.S. Here are the texts of three memos posted this morning to all RH North American staff.
December 3, 2008
Dear Random House Colleagues:
I am writing today to tell you about a new publishing structure and a new leadership team for the adult trade divisions at Random House, Inc. here in the U.S., effective immediately. After looking closely and extensively at our organization and its rich diversity of authors and resources, we have created a plan for our future that aligns existing strengths and publishing affinities and fosters teamwork throughout the company. It will maximize our growth potential in these challenging economic times and beyond.
The new structure will augment the exceptional publishing programs of the Random House, Knopf and Crown divisions and draw on the veteran leadership of Gina Centrello, Sonny Mehta and Jenny Frost, respectively.
The Random House Publishing Group, under the leadership of President and Publisher Gina Centrello, will expand to include the imprints of the Bantam Dell Publishing Group, including The Dial Press, along with Doubledays Spiegel & Grau.
The Knopf Publishing Group, led by Chairman Sonny Mehta, will expand to include the Doubleday and Nan A. Talese imprints from the Doubleday Publishing Group.
The Crown Publishing Group, under the direction of President and Publisher Jenny Frost, will expand to include the other imprints from the Doubleday Publishing GroupBroadway, Doubleday Business, Doubleday Religion and WaterBrook Multnomah.
As a result of this reorganization, Irwyn Applebaum and Steve Rubin, two colleagues who have dedicated many years of service as the publishers of Bantam Dell and Doubleday respectively, will step down from their positions as announced in the accompanying memos.
Within the new Random House Publishing Group, Ballantine, Bantam Dell and Random House will continue to have separate editorial departments. Random House, true to its heritage as the flagship imprint, will continue to publish its diverse list of distinguished and bestselling fiction and nonfiction in hardcover and trade paperback. The addition of The Dial Press and Spiegel & Grau will make this group an even greater force in literary and high-profile publishing. Side by side, Ballantine and Bantam Dell will be a commercial powerhouse with their stellar lists of bestselling and critically acclaimed authors.
The Knopf Publishing Group will augment its enduring reputation as a leading publisher of quality nonfiction and literary fictionand now some of the biggest names in fictionwith the addition of the flagship Doubleday and Nan A. Talese Books imprints. Collectively, Doubleday
and Knopf have more than two centuries of distinguished publishing history, and Knopf Chairman Sonny Mehta is committed to supporting the great publishing traditions of their now sister imprint. The group will take on a new name, The Knopf Doubleday Publishing Group, and the hardcovers of all their imprints will feed the extraordinary paperback lines of Vintage and Anchor Books.
The Crown Publishing Groups unique and editorial diverse portfolio combines lifestyle and business books, along with prominent authors and branded businesses which have long dominated their nonfiction categories. The addition of Broadway as well as Doubledays business and religion imprints will complement and solidify these core areas of publishing strength. The groups high-quality nonfiction and fiction frontlist programs will feed the impressive trade paperback lists of Broadway and Three Rivers Press.
I want to stress the fact that all the imprints of Random House will retain their distinct editorial identities. These imprints and all of you who support them are the creative core of our business and essential to our success.
The newly formed publishing groups will continue to bid independently in auctions. Each group will have my full support to publish autonomously, promote aggressively, and strive for more competitive advantages in the marketplace.
Through greater collaborative efforts among the publishing, marketing and sales departments, we can sharpen our priorities, market our books more effectively, and respond more quickly and directly to a constantly changing marketplace. That, in turn, will strengthen our vital partnership with our customers.
Coordinating our online marketing and growing our digital publishing business will be further priorities.
Gina, Jenny, Sonny and I will share our more specific publishing plans and organizational structure in due course.
The highly regarded Random House Childrens Books division, led by President and Publisher Chip Gibson, will continue its remarkable publishing programs without change.
We are all proud of the hundreds of years of publishing that our combined imprints represent. In order to preserve this legacy of excellence and build upon it in the future, we must continuously examine the way we do business, and the way the business is changing. Our aim is to always be a leading force in American trade book publishing.
Because of the current economic crisis, our industry is facing some of the most difficult times in publishing history. We are very fortunate to have four of the most dynamic and accomplished publishers to lead us into this new phase of our life at Random House.
I greatly value the support of all of you who care deeply about our authors and the content and quality of the books we publish. I share your commitment to publish the best books in the best way, and I am excited about the opportunities that these changes offer us. I am convinced that our new organization, drawing on our expertise and focusing on the market with a team-oriented approach, will make our great company stronger than ever before.
In addition, Dohle announced that IRWYN APPLEBAUM, President and Publisher of the Bantam Dell Publishing Group, will step down from his position, effective immediately, and will leave the company.
Irwyn leaves with my utmost gratitude for his extraordinary 25 years of service and for all he has accomplished at Bantam Dell. I know you will join me in wishing him all good fortune, said Dohle in a separate office memo.
As a result of the reorganization of the adult trade publishing groups at Random House Inc., announced today, the position of President and Publisher of the Doubleday Publishing Group has been eliminated. Dohle is currently in discussions with STEPHEN RUBIN about creating a new role for him at Random House, Inc., working directly with the CEO.
