Contracts Manager

CONTRACTS MANAGER JOB SUMMARY:    

Location: New York City
Department: Contracts
Reports to: Director of Contracts, Children and Gift

ABOUT THE ROLE:
The Contracts Manager independently negotiates, drafts, and manages a wide variety of author publishing agreements of varying complexity across various HBG imprints, serving as a strategic business partner to editors, publishers, and senior leadership.

The individual will report into and work closely with the Contract Director for the children’s and adult gift product area of HBG, and will be expected to exercise a substantial level of autonomy in terms of drafting and negotiating and to participate in decision-making around process questions and boilerplate terms. The individual will work alongside and manage junior staff providing mentoring and oversight.   

ESSENTIAL DUTIES AND RESPONSIBLITIES:

• Negotiate and draft author agreements, licenses, amendments, work for hires and co-edition agreements – as well as other publishing agreements as they arise.
• Manage complex/high‑value deals independently while balancing business objectives and legal risk.
• Advise business leaders on deal structure and negotiation strategy.
• Identify, assess, and escalate legal/business risks with solution‑oriented recommendations.
• Ensure agreements comply with corporate standards and guardrails.
• Manage and mentor junior contracts staff.
• Track deal timelines and drive negotiations to execution.
• Partner cross‑functionally with Legal, Sub Rights, Finance, Production, and Operations.
• Support department process improvement initiatives. Other duties as may reasonably be assigned.

QUALIFICATIONS:
• 5+ years contract negotiation experience in publishing, media, entertainment, or licensing.
• Deep understanding of royalties, advances, grant of rights, delivery and acceptance, subsidiary rights, options, reversions, and indemnities and all pertinent publishing terms.
• Proven ability to negotiate complex agreements independently with flexibility and an orientation toward solutions.
• Excellent communication and analytical skills.

SKILLS & ATTRIBUTES  

• Superior drafting and negotiation skills
• Strategic thinker with business judgment
• Highly organized and deadline‑driven
• Professional and confident communicator
• Collaborative team player
• Direct experience negotiating with agents 
• Expertise in word, power point, excel and other standard computer programs  (experience with a title management system is a plus)
• Self-starter with excellent time-management skills

This role is based in our New York office. Employees are expected to work on-site three days per week in accordance with our hybrid work model. Candidates must be able to reliably commute to the office.

Please submit a resume and cover letter to be considered for this position.

The compensation for this position is $55,500. Salary can vary based on a number of factors including skills, experience, and location — talk with your recruiter to learn more. There may be times that you will be required (or requested) to work overtime due to the nature of your role or exceptional workload issues or special projects.

As a leading book publisher, we believe that including and representing diverse voices in all aspects of our business is fundamental to what we do. Our publishing programs must reflect the broad range of backgrounds, experiences, political views and ideas that shape our society and publish books for all readers.

Hachette Book Group provides equal employment opportunities to all employees and applicants for employment and prohibits discrimination and harassment of any type without regard to race, color, religion, age, sex, national origin, disability status, genetics, protected veteran status, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, or any other characteristic protected by federal, state or local laws. This policy applies to all terms and conditions of employment, including recruiting, hiring, placement, promotion, termination, layoff, recall, transfer, leaves of absence, compensation and training.

The following benefits are offered by the company: medical, dental, vision, basic and supplemental life, short-term and long-term disability, accidental death and dismemberment, critical illness, hospital indemnity, long-term care, health and dependent care FSA, commuter benefit plan, employee assistance program, tuition reimbursement, travel assistance, 401(k), discretionary bonus program, PTO (15 vacation days, 3 personal days, 10 holidays and generous sick leave) and group discounts on auto and home insurance and legal services. Eligibility requirements apply to some benefits and may depend on your job classification, hours worked and length of employment. Benefits are subject to change and may be subject to specific elections, plan, or program terms.

The mission of Hachette Book Group is to make it easy for everyone to discover new worlds of ideas, learning, entertainment, and opportunity. Hachette Book Group (HBG) is a leading US general-interest book publisher made up of dozens of esteemed imprints within the publishing groups Basic Books Group; Grand Central Publishing Group; Hachette Audio; Little, Brown and Company; Little, Brown Books for Young Readers; Orbit; and Workman Running Press Group. We also provide custom distribution, fulfillment, and sales services to other publishing companies.