For release Monday, September 10, 12:00 PM EDT
HACHETTE LIVRE CHAIRMAN ARNAUD NOURRY ANNOUNCES LEADERSHIP
CHANGES AT HACHETTE BOOK GROUP AND HACHETTE UK
Arnaud Nourry, Chairman of Hachette Livre, announced today that after seven years at
the helm of Hachette Book Group, David Young has decided to return to the UK to be
with his family. His last day as Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Hachette Book
Group will be March 31, 2013. He will remain Chairman of HBG and will return to the
U.S. approximately one week per month.
Effective April 1, 2013, Michael Pietsch, now Executive Vice President of HBG and
Publisher of Little, Brown and Company, will succeed David Young as Chief Executive
Officer of HBG, assuming full responsibility for the company’s profitability and direction.
He will report to David Young and will begin immediately the search for a new Publisher
for the division that he has led for the past 11 years.
Effective immediately, Ken Michaels, HBG’s Chief Operating Officer, is promoted to
President and Chief Operating Officer. Ken Michaels joined HBG in 2009 and has
overseen major contributions to HBG and Hachette Livre with the Order to Cash and
Digital Asset Distribution platform, among many other systems enhancements. He is
also responsible for HBG’s important third-party distribution services that will see the
return of Disney and Hyperion in the second quarter of 2013.
In the UK, David Young on June 1, 2013 will assume the role of Deputy Chief Executive of
Hachette UK and Chief Executive Officer of The Orion Publishing Group, a division of
Hachette UK. In that capacity he will report to HUK’s CEO, Tim Hely Hutchinson. Tim
Hely Hutchinson has today announced that Peter Roche will retire, in June 2013, from
his role as Deputy CEO of Hachette UK and CEO of The Orion Publishing Group, the
company he co-founded in 1992 and which he has led for the past 10 years.
David Young will also chair Hachette Livre’s Chief Operating Officers’ council, covering
France, UK, USA and Spain, to help all parts of Hachette Livre benefit from his
understanding of the publishing processes, systems, and efficiency. In this role and in
his capacity as Chairman of HBG, he will report to Arnaud Nourry.
Arnaud Nourry said, “David Young took over as CEO at a time when the company didn’t
have a home or even a name—and brilliantly led the building of Hachette Book Group,
one of the most extraordinarily successful and respected publishing companies in the
world. Working with a great team of executives leading every department and division,
he oversaw a transformation into best-in-class modern publishing, underpinned by
superlative systems and communications. With David's guidance and vision, HBG has
become a leading digital publisher, and he has instilled in the company a spirit of
innovation that has won HBG industry awards. He focused always foremost on
supporting his publishers in finding great writers and working with them closely on
every aspect of publication, and he did so with constant warmth, humor and
perceptiveness. In so doing he led the company to innumerable #1 bestsellers – the
highest bestseller percentage of any American publisher. I am thrilled that he is staying
with Hachette and that I will get to continue my close relationship with him.”
Nourry added, “it also pleases me immensely to be able to fill the important and
challenging role of HBG’s CEO from within the company. Michael Pietsch is a superb
publisher and I cannot wait to see all he will accomplish as he brings those skills to the
larger role of CEO. I hope you will all join me in supporting Michael and wishing him
every success in his new position.”
David Young said, “I am returning to the UK because I miss my wife and children too
much: I shall also miss all of my great colleagues at HBG and working in the U.S., but
family comes first. I have enjoyed enormously my time here and the company going
from strength to strength, and I leave behind a brilliant team who work together so
wonderfully, and will now be very ably led by Michael Pietsch. Working with Michael
and the great team of publishers and the marvelous authors we have the delight of
publishing at HBG has been a great joy. Seeing how Ken Michaels has transformed our
business to become one of the leading digital publishers and distributors – a truly 21st
century company – has been immensely fulfilling. I am delighted with my on-going
involvement with HBG – that this is more à bientôt than goodbye! – and thrilled with my
new roles with Orion, Hachette UK, and Hachette Livre.”
Michael Pietsch said, “Hachette Book Group is one of America’s great publishing
companies, and the eleven lucky years I’ve worked as Little, Brown’s publisher have
been a delightful education in the joys of making and marketing books. I am looking
forward to working with all of HBG’s brilliant publishers and executives in making this
company the #1 destination for writers, agents, distribution clients, and the inspired
people who choose to work in book publishing. I’m also thrilled to work more closely
still with the amazing David Young, a sartorial and oenological sage who has led HBG
with warmth, vigor, and rigor through the tremendous changes of the digital age, and
with Arnaud Nourry, a visionary executive and leader.”
For more information, please contact:
Hachette Book Group: Sophie Cottrell, sophie.cottrell@hbgusa.com, 212-364-1281
Hachette Livre: Myriam Simonneaux, msimonneaux@hachette-livre.fr, 011 33 1 43 92 34 20
Hachette UK: Clare Harington, clare.harington@hachette.co.uk, 011 44 20 7873 6108