Managing Editor - Custom & Proprietary

Sourcebooks; Naperville (IL); Hybrid; USD 70,000 - 75,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Medical and dental benefits

401(k) retirement plan

Job summary

Sourcebooks is seeking a highly collaborative Managing Editor to oversee scheduling and coordination across Custom and Proprietary titles. This role sits at the center of Editorial, Marketing, Sales, Design, and Manufacturing—building realistic project plans and surfacing risks early.

The right candidate will turn ambiguity into executable plans, thrive in a fast-paced publishing environment, and use data and cross‑functional partnership to move complex projects forward with clarity and

Qualifications

• 7+ years of experience in editorial production or project management.
• Proven track record managing complex schedules across teams.
• Strong problem-solving and analytical skills with curiosity.
• Experience with Smartsheet, Filemaker, or Basecamp.
• Excellent written and verbal communication.
• Adaptability and collaborative work style.
• Familiarity with Agile methods preferred.

Responsibilities

• Take ownership of schedule creation for Custom/Proprietary projects from testing to delivery.
• Define project scope, milestones, and production needs with cross-functional partners.
• Act as primary liaison to keep stakeholders aligned on schedules and risks.
• Map publishing seasons and track manuscript milestones using Smartsheet.
• Coordinate with Manufacturing to protect on-sale dates.
• Communicate deadlines and risks clearly and convene stakeholders to resolve issues.
• Track data accuracy across tracking systems.
• Identify bottlenecks and opportunities for improved execution.
• Explore best practices and new workflows to improve processes.

Skills

Editorial production

Scheduling management

Cross-functional collaboration

Data-driven decision making

Analytical thinking

Communication

Problem solving

Agile project management

Team coordination

Tools

Smartsheet

Filemaker

Basecamp

Job description

Shape the schedules, questions, and cross-functional partnerships that move custom publishing projects from idea to delivery.

Sourcebooks is seeking a highly collaborative and intellectually curious Managing Editor to oversee scheduling and coordination across Custom and Proprietary titles. This role sits at the center of Editorial, Marketing, Sales, Design, and Manufacturing—building realistic project plans, keeping teams aligned, surfacing risks early, and helping complex projects move forward with clarity and momentum.

The right person will bring more than strong project management. They will ask why a process works the way it does, challenge assumptions before they become constraints, and use data, curiosity, and cross-functional partnership to improve how the work gets done. This is an ideal opportunity for someone who thrives in a fast-paced publishing environment and enjoys turning ambiguity into thoughtful, executable plans.

This position can be hybrid or remote in New York or Naperville, Illinois, or remote based in any of the following states: Arizona, Connecticut, Illinois, Louisiana, Massachusetts, Maryland, Michigan, Minnesota, New Jersey, New York, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, Texas, Virginia, Washington DC., and Wisconsin.

This is an exempt, salary position with a salary range of $70,000 - $75,000. We determine starting pay based on a thorough evaluation of job-related factors, including geographic location, market conditions, relevant experience, training, and education. This process ensures a fair and competitive salary that aligns with both the company and the candidate’s qualifications.

What you’ll do

• Take ownership of schedule creation and entry for Custom/Proprietary projects, building realistic timelines from title testing through final delivery.


• Partner with the Custom Sales Publisher, Marketing, Sales, Design, Editorial, and Manufacturing to define project scope, dependencies, milestones, and production needs.


• Act as a primary cross-functional liaison, keeping stakeholders aligned on schedules, priorities, risks, and business goals.


• Use Smartsheet to map publishing seasons, track key manuscript and final-production milestones, and monitor schedule adherence in real time.


• Coordinate closely with Manufacturing to ensure adequate production time for all versions and imprints and protect on-sale dates.


• Bring a questioning mindset to project scoping by challenging assumptions about timelines, dependencies, and scope before they create downstream problems.


• Communicate deadlines, schedule changes, and risks clearly and proactively, and convene the right stakeholders when issues need resolution.


• Ensure project specifications and key data are accurate and consistently maintained across tracking systems.


• Track metrics across Editorial, Design, Production, and Manufacturing, identifying patterns, bottlenecks, and opportunities for stronger execution.


• Continuously evaluate workflows and recommend or implement improvements that increase scheduling accuracy, efficiency, quality control, and cross-departmental coordination.


• Explore publishing best practices, emerging tools, and adjacent workflows to bring fresh thinking into established processes.

What you bring

• 7+ years of experience in editorial production, managing editorial, or project management within publishing.


• Demonstrated success managing complex schedules across multiple teams, projects, or imprints in a deadline-driven environment.


• Strong problem-solving and analytical skills, paired with the intellectual curiosity to question the problem itself—not just solve the most immediate symptom.


• Expertise with project management platforms such as Smartsheet, Filemaker, or Basecamp


• Excellent written and verbal communication skills, with a strong sense of clarity, transparency, and stakeholder awareness.


• Agility and adaptability when priorities shift, timelines change, or project requirements evolve.


• Strong organizational skills and comfort using data to support decision-making and continuous improvement.


• A collaborative working style and the ability to build genuine partnership across teams.


• Comfort with ambiguity and a habit of asking the questions that help teams surface risks, assumptions, and better paths forward.


• Familiarity with Agile project management methodologies is preferred.

Why Sourcebooks?

Sourcebooks is a thriving entrepreneurial publisher driven by our mission to change lives through books. The fifth-largest publisher in the U.S. by print units sold, we bring extraordinary authors to readers in dynamic, data-driven ways, leading to hundreds of national and international bestsellers. Our insight-driven approach has earned us recognition from Fast Company as a Most Innovative Company, a Best Workplace for Innovators, a Most Loved Workplace by Newsweek, a Best Workplace by Inc., and Publishers Weekly’s nod as \"the most successful self-made publisher operating in the 21st century.\" Story by story, book by book, we have changed more than 300 million lives. Join us as we change 300 million more!

Ready to Apply

Full-time employees are eligible for our comprehensive benefits program. Our range of benefits includes, but is not limited to, Medical/Prescription Drug Insurance, Dental, Vision, Health Care and Dependent Care Flexible Spending Accounts, Health Savings Account, 401(k), Short- and Long-Term Disability Insurance, Life/AD&D Insurance, and generous paid time off.

Sourcebooks values the array of talents and perspectives that a diverse workforce brings. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, national origin, religion, age, color, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, disability, or protected veteran status.