Commissioning and List Management

This is the definitive course for anyone who wants to learn how to build profitable lists.

If you are an editor with responsibility for commissioning and list-building in educational, academic, or professional publishing, this unique programme will give you the best possible start. The course is supported by the top publishers in these fields and is considered by many to be an essential highlight on a good commissioning editor's CV.

This is an intensive residential event, which is hugely rewarding for those who take part, not only in terms of the knowledge and skills gained, but also the networking and relationship building opportunities.

You will learn how to:

• develop an effective list that meets overall company strategy and management goals
• evaluate markets and exploit publishing opportunities
• source and retain valuable authors
• understand and evaluate financials
• negotiate mutually-beneficial author contracts
• plan for profit and return-on-investment
• structure and present considered and commercially attractive publishing proposals.

The course will teach you how to create a market-led proposal, and how to plan publications working closely with colleagues in other functions, particularly in sales and marketing. You will also get a clearer understanding of financial management, how costings work and ways of managing yourself and your time constraints to better effect.

The formal group sessions are each led by a different expert tutor, ensuring a variety of teaching styles, experience and pace. A case study is threaded through the four days. Working in a group, you will develop a full publishing project proposal, including all the detail from title and content, through financial details and routes to market. Finally, the groups will present their proposals to a 'Board of Directors'.

Set in picturesque surroundings, the dedicated training facility at Milton Hill House provides an atmosphere conducive to learning and networking. After four days of hard work, you will leave the course tired but inspired!

Programme

Day One

• What kind of publishing world is it
  • An overview of the industry
  • Current pressures, challenges, threats, demands and opportunities
• The role of the commissioning editor
  • An examination of the skills, knowledge and attitudes necessary to become a successful commissioning editor
• What a successful commissioning editor needs to know about market research
  • Market wisdom rather than market knowledge
  • Planning and managing your research
  • Top tips and effective techniques
  • Overcoming obstacles
• Working with authors
  • How to most effectively manage the author or editor relationship

Day Two

• Finance
  • Costings, margin and profit - a practical interactive session explaining financial terminology, how products are costed, how to improve their profitability and why your organisation makes the demands on you that it does
• Planning and investing in digital products
  • Consideration of the many different types of digital products, from Visual Learning Environments (VLEs) to Wikipedia Commons, and how the approach differs from traditional print media
• Scoping the case study
  • Title, costs, income and profit - delegates will have an expert advisor on hand to assist with decisions and spreadsheet preparation

Day Three

• Case study work
  • Delegates work on their plans for commissioning, producing, marketing and selling their chosen project in preparation for the presentation on the final day
• Essential features of an author's contract
  • Key elements of the author-publisher contract and the responsibility of the editor to understand and communicate these clearly
• The marketing/editorial interface
  • How this important relationship can be improved for optimum results by thoroughly understanding of each party's pressures and concerns
• Building a successful list
  • The editor's role in building a list within company context
  • Building brands
  • Managing demands of format revenue and time
  • Building a profitable list

Day Four

• Routes to market
  • An academic bookseller gives his views on how publishers and booksellers can work together more closely for mutual benefit
• Case study presentations
  • Groups present their project proposals to a 'Board of Directors'
• Feedback and conclusions.

Who will benefit from this course?

Development editors, assistant editors, commissioning editors, research editors, production and managing editors.

Your course directors

Philip Walters has over 30 years' experience in the educational publishing industry and recently held the position of Chief Executive Officer of Hodder Education. He is currently Chairman of Rising Stars, a successful small publisher of educational books and software, and a Trustee of the Yale University Press (London). Over the years he has held positions in many influential publishing bodies, including the Educational Publishers' Council and the Publishers' Licensing Society.

Heather Morris has more than 20 years' experience in the educational and children's publishing industries. She was Director of Educational Publishing at the BBC and since 1996 she has been running her publishing consultancy and has been involved in a wide range of projects. She also writes and publishes her own children's books. She continues to work with a variety of commercial and non-commercial clients, covering a mix of markets and media.

Heather and Philip will be joined on the course by eight experts on specific topics, including Kay Symons and Brenda Stones.

We also offerJournals Management,Business Planning for Digital Products and, for more experienced commissioning editors,Managing Publishing Strategy.

Note that most of our short courses can also be run as in-company events.