What are the responsibilities and job description for the Manager, Book Manufacturing position at Book of the Month?
The Book Production team at Book of the Month is looking for an experienced Manager of Book Manufacturing to join us. We are a team of book lovers and problem solvers who work behind the scenes to bring every Book of the Month and Allurial title to life, creating the beautifully made books our members look forward to each month.
Reporting to the Manager of Book Design & Production, this role owns the end-to-end manufacturing process: securing press time, negotiating with printers, managing quality and logistics, and building the vendor relationships that keep our books on schedule, on budget, and on our members' shelves on time. You'll be the person our print vendors and internal stakeholders come to when a decision needs to be made about how, where, and at what cost a book gets made. If you're passionate about the craft of book manufacturing, comfortable navigating vendor relationships and hard negotiations, and energized by solving logistics problems before they become member-facing ones, we'd love to hear from you!
What you will do…
Reporting to the Manager of Book Design & Production, this role owns the end-to-end manufacturing process: securing press time, negotiating with printers, managing quality and logistics, and building the vendor relationships that keep our books on schedule, on budget, and on our members' shelves on time. You'll be the person our print vendors and internal stakeholders come to when a decision needs to be made about how, where, and at what cost a book gets made. If you're passionate about the craft of book manufacturing, comfortable navigating vendor relationships and hard negotiations, and energized by solving logistics problems before they become member-facing ones, we'd love to hear from you!
What you will do…
- Oversee the coordination of print resources across all titles: request and evaluate quotes, map printer capacity and timelines, and secure press-time
- Negotiate pricing with printers to optimize budgets while enhancing book quality and offering data-backed recommendations on printer assignment
- Evaluate new printing options (vendors, materials, effects, and machinery) and recommend cost-effective solutions
- Take ownership of the manufacturing QA process across all print vendors for Book of the Month and Allurial
- Manage day-to-day logistics: track incoming orders, troubleshoot delivery issues and delays, and alert the team proactively
- Build foundational relationships with key stakeholders throughout the company, and with our print vendors
- Assist the Production Design and Editorial teams in project scheduling to ensure that all critical deadlines are met
- Demonstrate good time management and organizational skills to stay on-schedule with your workload and consistently meet deadlines
- You have 5 years of hands-on experience working in print manufacturing or book production. Publishing experience preferred
- You are proficient in Excel, Google Sheets, and Adobe Acrobat; and have experience using task-management software
- You are knowledgeable about book-making and off-set press processes
- You have experience doing light to moderate excel modeling for costs and capacity planning.
- You are a highly organized and detail-oriented individual with an analytical mind
- You have a strong work-ethic, and time-management skills, allowing you to navigate heavy workloads and tight deadlines
- You possess a growth mindset, and view receiving and applying feedback as an opportunity for growth
- You communicate clearly and professionally with colleagues at all levels; both verbal and written communication
- You are agile and able to pivot when there is a change in priorities or process
- You understand the importance of following procedures, tracking your work in the appropriate places, and keeping your files up-to-date
- You are passionate about manufacturing and well-made books
Salary : $90,000 - $120,000