Back to the Future
A PRH reorg divides the Random House Publishing Group into separate Random House and Crown units, albeit in different forms than they had in 2017
A PRH reorg divides Random House Publishing Group into separate Random House and Crown units, albeit in different forms than they had in 2017.
The reorganization of Penguin Random House US unveiled last week features the creation of a fourth adult publishing group, as well as the formation of an executive leadership team that will oversee the U.S. business with interim global CEO Nihar Malaviya. As PW previously reported, the new structure does not include a replacement for Madeline McIntosh as PRH US CEO.
The most dramatic change is splitting the Random House Publishing Group back into two groups: the Crown Publishing Group as well as the standalone RHPG. Sanyu Dillon, previously chief marketing officer for PRH, has been named president of RHPG, and David Drake has been promoted to president of CPG. Both will report to Malaviya.
The addition of a new adult publishing group is intended to meet one of PRH’s priorities for a restructuring: to revive competition among its imprints while providing more touchpoints for agents to meet editors. In announcing the changes to PRH staff, Malaviya wrote, “Books and the people who make them are at the heart of what we do. Our editors’ ability to aggressively pursue the works they are most passionate about, and the autonomy and independence of our divisions and imprints, is what drives our business and ensures our success.”
Random House and Crown had long operated as separate publishing groups until they were combined in late 2017 under the direction of Gina Centrello, who retired as president and publisher of the united group in January. Forming separate Random House and Crown publishing groups does not mean the divisions are returning to their prior incarnations, however. The major imprints within the new RHPG are Ballantine Bantam Dell and Delacorte, Convergent, Dial Press, Harmony and Rodale, Hogarth, Modern Library, One World, Random House Worlds, and
WaterBrook & Multnomah. Of those,
Convergent, Harmony and Rodale, Hogarth, and Waterbrook & Multnomah had originally been part of Crown but had moved under the RHPG umbrella over the years. The major imprints making up the new CPG are Crown, Clarkson Potter, Currency, and Ten Speed Press. Dillon and Drake are currently deciding where a number of smaller imprints will end up—a process expected to take a few weeks.
In addition to the creation of a new adult publishing group, Jeff Abraham, head of Penguin Random House Publisher Services, has been promoted to president of publishing operations, technology, and services. In his expanded role, Abraham will lead IT, publishing operations, and PRH Labs, in addition to his continued oversight of PRHPS.
Abraham is reporting to Malaviya, as are the following division heads, all of whom run publishing groups: Amanda D’Acierno, president and publisher of Penguin Random House Audio Publishing Group; Allison Dobson, president of Penguin Publishing Group; Jen Loja, president of Penguin Young Readers; Barbara Marcus, president and publisher of Random House Children’s Books; and Maya Mavjee, president and publisher of Knopf Doubleday Publishing Group.
Along with the division heads, other Malaviya direct reports include Annette Danek, global executive v-p and chief supply chain officer; Paige McInerney, executive v-p and director of human resources at PRH US; Kimberly Ayers Shariff, executive v-p of strategy for diversity, equity and inclusion at PRH US; and Nina von Moltke, president and director of strategic development at PRH US.
Still another new Malaviya report is Jaci Updike, who has been promoted to president of sales and marketing for the company. Updike herself has gained some new reports, including Erica Curtis, who replaces Dillon as senior v-p of consumer marketing. In addition, John Bohman, senior v-p of sales and customer operations, will now report to Updike. By
bringing the sales and consumer marketing departments together, Malaviya wrote, “our goal is to become even more reader-focused and market-facing.”
Referring to the leadership group, Malaviya told employees, “These colleagues make up an incredibly talented, experienced team of leaders with diverse backgrounds and skill sets. To position ourselves for future growth, I have chosen to elevate this executive team to lead the U.S. business and work directly with me—and with all of you—as we write our next chapter together.”
Malaviya also noted that while overseeing PRH US, the heads of the global support areas and the CEOs of each of PRH’s international divisions who sit on the global executive committee will continue to report to him.
—Jim Milliot