Key account manager, sales development

Closing date for applications: Sunday 1st March 2026 11:55pm

Salary: £40,000 - £44,000

Location: London

Step into a high-impact sales role at HarperCollins UK, managing major accounts and driving strategic growth in the thriving children’s non-trade market.

With a history stretching back over 200 years, HarperCollins is the second largest consumer book publisher in the world. Here at HarperCollins UK, we publish around 1,500 books a year for readers of all ages and interests. Our bestsellers include Bernard Cornwell, Adele Parks, Jonathan Franzen, David Walliams, and Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie. Memoirs of British prime ministers. Hilary Mantel’s Wolf Hall trilogy. George R. R. Martin’s A Song of Ice and Fire series. And legendary titles by legacy authors J.R.R. Tolkien, Agatha Christie and C.S. Lewis.

Join our dynamic Sales Development team at HarperCollins as a Key Account Manager, where you will play a pivotal role in driving the growth of our children’s publishing in the non-trade market. This exciting position focuses on managing key accounts, including The Works, and requires a proactive approach to creative account management and strategic implementation. You will collaborate with talented editorial, sales and production teams to develop innovative publishing strategies that resonate with our customers. We are eager to welcome a passionate individual who will contribute significantly to our team’s success and the overall growth of the business, all within a supportive environment that values collaboration and fresh perspectives.

What you'll be doing

• Sales Management: Deliver revenue growth across key non-trade accounts for our children’s publishing.
• Market Expertise: Leverage your knowledge of the non-traditional book market to enhance sales and develop new products that meet customer needs.
• Portfolio Maximisation: Drive sales across HarperCollins' bestselling authors, IP projects, and backlist genres, aligning with our strategic vision for non-traditional markets.
• Relationship Building: Establish and nurture constructive relationships with internal teams and key customer contacts to foster collaboration and drive results.
• Order Management: Collaborate with the customer service distribution team to ensure efficient order processing and account support.
• Business Development: Elevate the profile of Sales Development within the wider business by presenting insights and strategies that enhance understanding of new market opportunities.

First Six Months Goals

Product Knowledge: Develop a comprehensive understanding of the HarperCollins children’s catalogue.

Account Performance: Maintain and enhance the performance of your account portfolio while cultivating strong relationships with key stakeholders.

Market Insights: Analyse customer and consumer trends in the non-traditional market to inform product development and publishing strategies.

Cross-Functional Collaboration: Forge close partnerships with production and distribution teams to align operations with customer requirements and enhance service delivery.

Knowledge, skills and experience

• Proven experience in account management, ideally with The Works.
• Deep understanding and passion for the non-traditional book market, including consumer trends and product development.
• Demonstrated ability to creatively respond to customer briefs and produce high-quality sales presentations, including performance analysis and projections.
• Strong knowledge of sales functions, including customer relationship management, margin calculation, and supply chain processes.
• Experience in a high-performing sales environment, adept at managing priorities while maintaining a self-motivated approach to a high-volume workload.
• An optimistic, can-do mindset that drives results.
• Ability to work quickly, accurately, and effectively under pressure.
• Respond to briefs for submissions with fresh and creative ideas
• Exceptional communication and presentation skills with a customer-centric focus.
• Initiative to explore new ideas and opportunities.
• Strong negotiation abilities to foster beneficial agreements.
• Proven capability in managing relationships and organisational skills.
• Excellent time management skills with a keen attention to detail.
• Ability to work independently to achieve goals while collaborating effectively within a friendly and supportive team environment, where authenticity is valued and encouraged.

Benefits

• Hybrid working model (3 days in the office)
• 28 days holiday plus bank holidays (option to buy and sell holiday days)
• Enhanced pay for maternity, paternity, adoption and shared parental leave
• Private healthcare cover and life assurance
• Summer Hours
• Free access to HeadSpace, employee assistance programme (24 hour helpline), mental health first aiders, and a wellbeing portal
• Season ticket loans (from day 1 for entry level) and cycle to work scheme
• Relocation Rent Support Loan
• Employee networks: HC All In (open forum), Elevate (for ethnic minority colleagues), HarperParents, Menopause at Work, Pride at HC, Social Mobility Network and Neurodiversity at Work
• Unlimited training on our Learning and Development portal, management courses (up to MA level) and mentoring programmes
• Virtual GP and eyecare vouchers
• Gym membership discount
• Onsite physiotherapy (London only)
• Charitable donation matching and 2 volunteering days
• We're a certified Carbon Neutral company
• Free e-books and audiobooks, digital newspaper subscriptions and discounts on books
• Subsidised canteen and retail discounts
• Onsite prayer room

At HarperCollins, we value authenticity and integrity in our recruitment process. To ensure a fair and accurate evaluation of all applications, we ask that all responses to assessment questions reflect your own thoughts, experiences, and capabilities. This allows us to fairly assess your knowledge, skills, and experience to determine how they align with the role. We value diverse perspectives and genuine contributions, even if answers are not perfect. The use of AI tools or external assistance to generate responses is discouraged unless explicitly permitted for specific tasks.

If you wish to discuss anything regarding this position and/or your application to this role, please reach out directly to stephanie.jemmett@harpercollins.co.uk with subject heading ‘Vacancy Query’ plus the job title and we will aim to get back to you within 5 working days.

Please note, if you are interested in the role you would need to submit your application via Applied. We do not accept email applications.

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.