Harvard Business Publishing was founded in 1994 as a not-for-profit, wholly owned subsidiary of Harvard University. Its mission is to improve the practice of management and its impact in a changing world. Harvard Business Publishing has approximately 400 employees, primarily based in Boston with offices in New York City, India, Singapore, and the United Kingdom. The company comprises three market groups: Higher Education, Corporate Learning, and Harvard Business Review Group. Through these publishing platforms, Harvard Business Publishing is able to influence real-world change by maximizing the reach and impact of its essential offering — ideas.
Harvard Business Review (HBR) is the world’s most influential source of management ideas and an innovative multiplatform media brand. Through its flagship magazine, books, and digital content and tools published on HBR.org, HBR aims to provide professionals around the world with rigorous insights and best practices to help lead themselves and their organizations more effectively and to make a positive impact. It provides new ideas, perspectives, information and methodologies that are at the leading edge of business and management thinking. The Harvard Business Review magazine is published six times annually with a circulation rate base of nearly 305,000. HBR.org has an average of 6.8 million unique visitors a month and more than 11 million followers on social media.
The Position
The Managing Director, Digital Content/Editor of HBR.org oversees and coordinates the discovery, acquisition, and development of digital content for the Harvard Business Review Group. He or she ensures that high-quality digital content is created, produced and distributed, and that the most important and interesting concepts in the field of business and management are covered. The Managing Director will work closely with the magazine staff to integrate efforts with the business side on revenue and product matters, and will collaborate with the book publishing group as required. He or she is also part of the leadership team that focuses on innovation, exploiting emerging technology, and creating a modern, dynamic digital content offering for the HBR audience.
Key Responsibilities
- Lead digital editorial strategy and operations for Harvard Business Review,including HBR.org, social/distributed platforms, audio, video, and email newsletters
- Manage and develop HBR’s digital editorial team; hire, train and develop content staff
- Set the direction and tone for digital content, ensuring that all content is on brand, in keeping with the mission, and of the highest editorial quality
- Oversee editorial balance between features, news, practical content, tools, case studies, profiles, etc.
- Enhance digital storytelling through use of video, data visualization, audio, and superb editing overall
- Oversee current and future podcast programming; oversee use of video as required
- Create a metrics-driven environment for measuring success of online content as it relates to driving traffic and engagement
- Contribute to the acquisition and editing process as required
- Oversee editorial analytics and new digital content experiments
- With the Editor-in-Chief (EIC), refine social media strategy, guidelines and processes, collaborating with marketing as required; help editors and writers push out their content themselves as is appropriate
- Work with distribution partners to maximize reach and sharing of content
- Work with EIC and business side to propose enhancements to the digital products or conceive new editorial franchises based on reader needs and market insights
- Assist in creating sponsored digital content, when required
- Participate as needed in sales calls and other advertiser-related functions
- Stay abreast of emerging technology and new content distribution methods, aiming to be ahead of the curve in innovation; manage the pipeline of editorially related product, tech, and content management improvements, in collaboration with product management
- With the rest of HBR’s senior leadership team, contribute to strategic planning and business model reinvention
- Collaborate with HBR’s multiple constituencies as required to ensure alignment of goals for all digital products
Scope and Impact of this Role
This is an outstanding opportunity for an editor with ambition. HBR‘s mission is to publish ideas that improve how companies operate and how people manage their careers. The Managing Director, Digital Content/Editor, HBR.org is central to this effort, acquiring top authors, developing new content forms, and publishing pieces that make a difference in the world. This editor will work closely with the Editor-in-Chief in formulating editorial strategy that will help ensure that Harvard Business Review continues its tradition of influence and innovation.
Requirements
Strong digital experience, ideally with senior management experience
Solid print experience, some long-form desired
Interest in or experience with business and/or management content
Profile of the Ideal Candidate
- Exceptional leadership attributes: visionary, confident, commanding, strategic thinker, able to lead and institute innovation
- World-class curiosity and intellect; gravitas
- Strong generator of ideas
- Strong manager and developer of staff. Demonstrated leadership experience including team-building
- Strong process management experience and budget responsibility
- Superior ability to distill complex ideas, logical constructs and analysis into a compelling story
- Strong oral and written communication skills
- High emotional intelligence
- Collaborative, team-oriented, ego checked at the door
To apply, go here.
