Operations and inventory assistant, Operations

Location: London

Support the smooth running of Bloomsbury’s publishing operations, keeping orders, stock and deliveries on track.

Bloomsbury Publishing is a leading independent publishing house, established in 1986, with authors who have won the Nobel, Pulitzer and Booker Prizes, and is the originating publisher and custodian of the Harry Potter series. Bloomsbury has offices in London, New York, New Delhi, Oxford and Sydney. Within Bloomsbury’s Academic division, it publishes under Bloomsbury, as well as under a number of prestigious and historic imprint names.

Our mission is to be a creative, entrepreneurial, independent publisher of books, audiobooks and digital content of excellence and originality and to bring these works to a worldwide audience. Our purpose is to inform, educate, entertain and inspire readers of all ages and backgrounds. We champion a life-long love of reading and learning and seek to help build a reading culture with all the benefits which that brings society.

This is a fantastic opportunity to join the Operations department at Bloomsbury Publishing. Our team sits right at the heart of the business, driving the supply chain from printer to reader. We are responsible for the daily execution of publishing logistics: managing orders, tracking stock, and co-ordinating with our global teams to maintain exceptional service levels. As Operations and Inventory Assistant, you will play a pivotal role in supporting all our divisions and ensuring the seamless delivery of our books into the hands of readers worldwide. Reporting directly to the Head of Consumer Inventory UK, this role acts as a vital point of contact for teams across the whole business.

The Role

This role is responsible for the smooth running of our publishing operations. Your time will be spent on a variety of key tasks, including:

• Monitoring incoming orders and operational activity through daily reporting.
• Co-ordinating direct delivery requirements and supporting order fulfilment.
• Acting as a key contact for operational queries from internal and external partners.
• Investigating and resolving routine operational issues.
• Maintaining and updating core publishing and operational systems to ensure data accuracy.
• Assisting with inventory tracking, stock alignment, and reporting.
• Managing the setup and administration of print instructions for upcoming titles.
• Assisting with print fix routines and stock allocations across our divisions.
  

Knowledge, skills and experience

We are looking for a candidate with the following skills and experience:

• Proficient in Microsoft Excel and comfortable handling operational reporting.
• High level of accuracy and attention to detail.
• Strong written and verbal communication skills.
• A supportive approach to cross-departmental queries and inbox management.
• Excellent organisation and prioritisation skills, with the ability to balance daily tasks and weekly deadlines.
• A prior interest or experience in publishing, operations, supply chain, or inventory administration is desirable.
• Familiarity with publishing management systems (such as SAP or Biblio) would be an advantage.

Additional information

The role is a full-time, permanent position based at our London office, 50 Bedford Square, London, WC1B 3DP, on a hybrid-working pattern of 2 days office-based and 3 days home-based. Allocated office days for this role are Monday and Tuesday.

Application

This position is eligible for Bloomsbury’s Rental Deposit Loan Scheme. To assist candidates who want to start and to establish a career in publishing, Bloomsbury offers an interest-free rental deposit to support securing somewhere to live. The rental deposit loan can be up to £3,000 and will be paid back over 2 years.

For best results, please use a desktop to apply as some mobile browsers may not fully support the application portal.

Bloomsbury reserve the right to close the role early if we exceed the required number of applications.

Bloomsbury Benefits

As well as an opportunity to join a global award-winning organisation, Bloomsbury offers the following competitive benefits package:

Working Pattern

• Hybrid working pattern of: 2 days office based/3 days home based

Holidays

• 25 days holiday
• 3.5 days Christmas company holiday

Other Benefits

• Two paid Personal Wellness Days
• Flexible Fridays – take Friday afternoon off by working an additional 3 hours and 30 minutes earlier in the week
• Work Anywhere Fortnight - For two weeks of any calendar year. The minimum period for Working Anywhere is one week, the maximum period is two weeks.
• Season Ticket Loan
• Learning & Development - Free access to LinkedIn Learning, BookMachine Campus, InRehearsal & IPG Skills Hub
• Share Save Scheme
• AXA Healthcare Plan (Private Medical Insurance)
• Ride to Work Scheme
• Peppy Health App
• In-house Doctor
• Eye Care Voucher Scheme
• EAP Advice and Counselling

Company culture – Employee Voice Meetings, Staff Networks (Bloom, Accessibility, Mental Health, Pride, and Parents, Guardians and Carers, Multi-Faith) and Mental Health First Aiders trained across the UK offices, Publishing Events and access to free Publishing Resources.

Bloomsbury is a place where anyone of any background, race, ethnicity, religion, sexuality, gender identity, age, ability, or socio-economic status can thrive, feel comfortable, and be heard and accepted. We are an equal opportunities employer and welcome applications from all sections of the community.

We are willing to make any reasonable adjustments throughout the recruitment process, please flag to the recruitment team if required.

Applicants must have the legal right to work in the UK.

The Book Trade Charity provide financial assistance for people looking to get into the publishing industry; you can find more information and talk directly here: http://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.