Commissioning editor/senior commissioning editor

Closing date for applications: Saturday 14 February 2026

Salary: Up to £45,000 (dependent on experience and location) (+bonus, +benefits)

Location: Sheffield or London

A chance to develop and publish non-fiction titles at the heart of a major UK publishing group.

Expand your thinking. Transform your life. Launching in 2026, Orion Ignite is a new imprint dedicated to publishing agenda-setting non-fiction that makes a lasting impact: timeless books that help us strive for more in the way we live and work. We are home to dynamic innovators, cutting-edge experts and bold thought-leaders. Our titles span smart-thinking, self-improvement, psychology, business & business narrative, finance, economics, health and life-optimisation.

Educate. Empower. Inspire. Orion Spring was founded in 2016 to publish the best in personal wellbeing, health and inspiration. Our authors are experts, thinkers, healers, and paradigm-shifters, and together our mission is to help our readers live happier and healthier lives, full of self-belief. We’re home to major names including Dr Nicole LePera, Jillian Turecki, Davinia Taylor, Lydia Millen, Dr Sarah Hill, Louise Glazebrook, Kelly and Juliet Starrett, John and Julie Gottman, Professor Emily Oster, Elissa Epel and many more.

The Orion Publishing Group is one of the UK’s leading publishers. Our mission is to bring the best publishing to the greatest variety of people. Open, agile, passionate and innovative – we believe that everyone will find something they love at Orion. The Orion Publishing Group is a division of Hachette, one of the largest publishing groups in the UK, with 10 publishing divisions and over 60 imprints. Everyone here is proud to be in the business of opening doors and minds.

What you'll be doing

We are looking for a confident and entrepreneurial commissioner with a passion for personal development, smart-thinking and self-help to join the rapidly expanding Orion Ignite and Orion Spring imprints. This is a unique opportunity to join and help shape a new imprint in its foundational years.

Reporting to the Publishing Director of Orion Ignite, you will be responsible for commissioning and publishing around 10-12 new non-fiction titles a year, with your focus split evenly across Orion Ignite and Orion Spring. This is an exciting opportunity for someone looking to make their mark, with a particular focus on titles that have strong potential for international markets, foreign rights and the growing audio market.

You can also expect to:

• Proactively acquire books through direct approaches and IP development, based on trend insight and identifying opportunities in the market.
• Establish and maintain strong relationships with authors and agents, in the UK and internationally.
• Retain ownership of your books from acquisition through to publication, liaising with authors, agents and key departments across the company.
• Be a champion for your books and the Orion Ignite and Orion Spring lists, internally and externally.
• Be an engaged member of the wider Commercial Non-Fiction editorial team, reading submissions and feeding back in editorial meetings.

Who we are looking for

We are looking for a dynamic and ambitious individual who can thrive as part of a fast-paced and commercially minded team. You might be a Commissioning Editor excited for a new challenge and the opportunity to help shape the future of a list, or an Editor with experience acquiring and publishing titles looking to take the next step within a supportive and growth-oriented environment.

You will already have experience commissioning profitable non-fiction titles and market knowledge of personal development, smart-thinking and self-help markets. This role is perfect for someone with a strong commercial mindset, excellent communication skills and the ability to communicate effectively with a wide range of people, and a keen passion for self-improvement trends.

What we offer

Our staff are our greatest asset, and our benefits reflect this:

• 28 annual leave days per year, increases to 29 days after 2 years' service and goes up to 30 days after 5 years' (+ bank holidays)
• Private medical insurance
• Dental insurance
• Generous pension schemes
• Rent deposit loans
• 2 community days per year
• Summer hours (finishing at 1pm on Fridays during the summer months)
• Retail discounts through Hachette rewards
• Cycle to Work scheme
• Eye care vouchers
• Wide-ranging training library
• Development programmes (including mentoring)
• Up to 70% off book purchases
• A charity bookshelf
• 12 Staff-led employee networks that are voluntary, including AgeWise, Gender Balance, Thrive, Pride, All Together, Wellbeing and religious networks
• Season ticket loans
• And much more!

This role can be based at our London or Sheffield office, with a blend of in-office (3 days) and homeworking (2 days) per week.

Our commitment

Hachette employs people on the basis of their abilities. We aim to attract and develop talent from a base as broad as the world of readers we want to reach, with a wide and representative range of age, faith, disability, race, gender, sexuality and socio-economic, regional and cultural backgrounds.

If you are shortlisted and need us to make any adjustments to help you attend your interview, please let us know.

The Book Trade Charity offers financial support to people looking to enter the book trade but who may struggle to afford the costs of attending interviews and undertaking junior roles. For more information visit www.booktradeentrysupport.org

We welcome and encourage applications from candidates who are under-represented in the creative industries.

Please make sure that you state in your application that you found this role via Creative Access.