About the Role
The Vice President, Online & Digital Sales is responsible for developing and executing the commercial strategy that drives HarperCollins' online and digital revenue across U.S. publishing divisions and Harper360. This role leads the organization's largest online retail partnerships and is accountable for accelerating growth across digital retailers, e-commerce, international markets, and emerging business models. The executive serves as the company's senior commercial leader for online channels, translating consumer trends, retailer insights, data analytics, and marketplace innovation into sustainable revenue growth.
Responsibilities
- Develop and execute the long-term online and digital sales strategy across HarperCollins U.S. and Harper360.
- Establish ambitious revenue, profitability, and market share objectives while ensuring alignment with overall corporate strategy.
- Lead and develop a high-performing organization that embraces accountability, collaboration, innovation, and continuous improvement.
- Serve as the executive voice for online and digital sales, communicating strategy, market dynamics, risks, and opportunities to senior leadership.
- Influence organizational priorities by providing market intelligence and customer insights that inform publishing, marketing, and investment decisions.
- Drive profitable growth across online retailers, digital marketplaces, subscription services, and emerging commerce platforms.
- Identify and capitalize on new digital business models, strategic partnerships, and evolving consumer purchasing behaviors.
- Lead initiatives that increase discoverability, conversion, and lifetime value across frontlist and backlist titles.
- Build executive-level relationships with key online retailers, distributors, and strategic partners.
- Lead complex commercial negotiations that deliver mutual value while advancing HarperCollins' strategic objectives.
- Represent HarperCollins in senior-level meetings with major retail partners and industry stakeholders.
- Leverage sales analytics, consumer insights, pricing intelligence, and market trends to optimize revenue and profitability.
- Partner with Data Science and Metadata teams to improve title discoverability, recommendation performance, and backlist growth.
- Establish performance metrics and dashboards that enable data-driven decision making across the organization.
- Monitor competitive activity, emerging technologies, and industry trends to identify new opportunities for innovation and growth.
- Ensure operational alignment across Sales, Supply Chain, Transportation, and Finance to maximize product availability and customer satisfaction.
- Drive continuous improvement in forecasting accuracy, inventory productivity, and execution against retailer expectations.
- Establish disciplined business review processes using POS, inventory, profitability, and financial performance metrics.
- Collaborate closely with Editorial, Marketing, Finance, Operations, Business Development, Data Science, and Metadata teams to ensure coordinated execution of commercial strategies.
- Champion enterprise-wide initiatives that improve speed-to-market, title performance, and organizational effectiveness.
- Foster a culture of transparency, accountability, and shared ownership across functional teams.
Requirements
- Bachelor's degree required; MBA or other advanced degree preferred.
- 10+ years of progressive leadership experience in sales, e-commerce, digital commerce, or commercial strategy.
- Demonstrated success leading large, high-performing commercial organizations with responsibility for significant revenue portfolios.
- Proven ability to drive sustained revenue growth through strategic planning, customer development, and business transformation.
- Experience negotiating and managing executive relationships with major online retailers, preferably Amazon and other large digital commerce partners.
- Strong financial acumen with expertise in forecasting, pricing strategy, profitability analysis, and performance measurement.
- Exceptional leadership, communication, and influencing skills with the ability to lead through change.
- Deep understanding of digital commerce, omnichannel retail, consumer behavior, and data-driven selling.
- Publishing industry experience strongly preferred; experience in adjacent media, consumer products, or digital commerce sectors will also be considered.
- Willingness to travel domestically and internationally (approximately 10–20%).
Skills
- Sales
- E-commerce
- Digital Commerce
- Commercial Strategy
- Leadership
- Revenue Growth
- Strategic Planning
- Customer Development
- Business Transformation
- Negotiation
- Relationship Management
- Financial Acumen
- Forecasting
- Pricing Strategy
- Profitability Analysis
- Performance Measurement
- Communication
- Influencing
- Change Management
- Digital Commerce
- Omnichannel Retail
- Consumer Behavior
- Data-Driven Selling
- Publishing Industry
- Media
- Consumer Products
- Data Science
- Metadata
Location
- U.S.
Work Type
- Full-time
Experience Level
- 10+ years of progressive leadership experience
- Executive
Education Level
- Bachelor's degree
- MBA or other advanced degree preferred
Salary/Compensations
- $200,000-$250,000
Benefits
- Comprehensive and highly competitive benefits package
- Variety of physical health benefits
- Retirement and savings benefits
- Caregiving benefits
- Emotional wellbeing benefits
- Transportation benefits
- Other benefits
- Elective benefits
About the Company
- HarperCollins Publishers is a company full of people who are passionate about books.
Equal Opportunity
- HarperCollins Publishers is an equal opportunity employer.
- HarperCollins Publishers is committed to providing reasonable accommodation for qualified individuals with disabilities, in our job application and/or interview process. If you need assistance or accommodation in completing your application, due to a disability, email us at TalentManagement@harpercollins.com. Note: we will only respond to accommodation requests.
