Hachette Book Group has rounded out its executive team appointing Joe Mangan as executive v-p and chief operating officer starting February 3. Mangan has served in a similar role at Perseus Books Groups for the last 10 years. At HBG, Mangan will take over many of the responsibilities of Ken Michaels who left the house for Macmillan Science and Education in August. “With his deep expertise in IT and vision for our digital future, his wealth of experience building distribution businesses, and his insight into strategic business development, Joe will be a tremendous asset for us,” Michael Pietsch, HBG’s CEO, said in a statement.
“I am excited about the new challenges and opportunities that joining Hachette brings, and feel strongly that this is a unique opportunity for me to bring my skills and experience to a top-flight management team in a symbiotic way,” Mangan said.
Mangan’s departure, which is set for January 31, touched off a number of changes at Perseus. Charles Gallagher, chief financial officer, will be promoted to COO, effective January 1. Gallagher has been at Perseus since 2010 and, according to a memo from Perseus CEO David Steinberger, ”has played a key role in the creation of our joint venture with Faber & Faber…strengthened our analytic capabilities, overseen the continued growth and development of our Sales Department and guided the company to better business results year after year.” He will continue to serve as CFO while Perseus evaluates what additional financial and operational resources it needs moving forward.
Steinberger also announced new reporting relationship. Effective January 1, Chris Wagner (VP, Distribution & GM, Jackson), Melissa Serdinsky (VP, Boulder Operations & Production), Carolyn Savarese (Group VP, International Sales / Subsidiary Rights / Legal Affairs), Greg Orr (VP, Information Technology) and Patrick Kirk (VP, Program Office) will report to Gallagher. Starting January 15, Susan Reich (President, PGW), Julie Schaper (President, Consortium), Sabrina McCarthy (President, Perseus Distribution Client Services) and Mark Suchomel (President, Legato Publishers Group) will report to Steinberger, and Scott Edinburgh (Director, Corporate Strategy & Business Development) will report to Chief Marketing Officer Rick Joyce.
