Don't Copy Your Predecessors When Taking Over the Top Job
Taking over a top job from an admired veteran can be a tough
assignment.
Gina Centrello discovered that when she was named president
and publisher of Bertelsmann's Random House Publishing Group after the abrupt
ouster of literary icon Ann Godoff in January 2003.
Unlike her predecessor, Ms. Centrello hadn't risen through
the publishing ranks as a book editor. Her success at the group's Ballantine
imprint flowed from her marketing and sales prowess -- and her relentless focus
on the bottom line.
Bertelsmann had picked Ms. Centrello for the top job because
of her strengths. But, notes Stephen Mader, an executive recruiter in
At Random House, writers loyal to Ms. Godoff, outraged over
her dismissal, were following her to a rival publishing house. How could Ms.
Centrello keep top editors from fleeing, too?
Ms. Centrello knew better than to try to replicate Ms.
Godoff's editing talents herself. "I was asked to direct the division and
make it profitable," she says. "I didn't see why I should change from
being a publisher. It's what I am."
Instead, Ms. Centrello moved quickly to hire a respected
literary figure as the editor in chief of Random House imprints. Her choice of
Daniel Menaker -- a 26-year veteran of the New Yorker magazine and a Random
House senior editor before he became an executive editor at HarperCollins --
signaled that she planned to respect the editorial independence of her staff.
Meanwhile, she gave salary raises and new titles to some of Random House's top
editors.
"Gina made it clear that she would be available when
editors needed her, but that agents would send us their big projects while she
set the group's priorities," says Jonathan Karp, who took over Mr.
Menaker's job last spring when the latter was given broader responsibility.
"She reads the books that we're most excited about, which lets her make
decisions without each one being a referendum on her relationship with specific
agents."
Meanwhile, Ms. Centrello wasn't shy about asserting herself
on business matters. She told editors that more attention would be paid to
profits -- including the size of book advances -- and the various formats in
which books are sold.
Ms. Centrello also had the tough job of convincing two rival
imprints -- Random House, the home of John Irving, E.L. Doctorow and William
Faulkner, and Ballantine, best known for its paperbacks -- to break down
decades-old barriers and work together. In the publishing world, editors at
hardcover houses have always had more stature within the industry. But Ms.
Centrello told Random House subordinates that their future at the
book-publishing company depended on their willingness to set aside old
prejudices. Today the two staffs hold joint editorial meetings, review
acquisitions together, and even put titles on each other's new-book lists.
Increased cooperation throughout the group means that books
that might have once left the Random House umbrella can find another home.
These include a coming biography of Merian C. Cooper, a creator of "King
Kong," which wasn't right for Del Rey, a science-fiction publisher, but
will be issued by sister imprint Villard Books. "It's a much more blended
family than in the past," says Bruce Tracy, Villard's editorial director.
Ms. Centrello's innovations are also allowing writers to
reach bigger audiences. This summer readers will be able to buy a cheap,
rack-size paperback edition of the Robert Kurson bestseller "Shadow
Divers" from Ballantine, in addition to a fancy paperback from Random
House. "We can sell it at places like Safeway and the airports," says
Anthony Ziccardi, director of sales and marketing at the group. In the past,
Random House authors were primarily published in pricey paperback editions.
Publishing isn't the only arena where top executives in new
situations have found that playing to their strengths is smarter than trying to
re-create themselves.
Lawrence Stevenson, a seasoned retailer who became CEO of
auto-parts-retailer and service-provider Pep Boys in May 2003, says he knew
little about the business when he took it over and still has a lot to do. But
instead of trying to master arcane details about brake pads and radiator hoses,
he hired a top merchant, added a new chief information officer, and focused on
building the company's marketing and merchandising strengths. The stock of Pep
Boys has about doubled since Mr. Stevenson took over.
"The board's view was that they had a tremendous amount
of industry-specific knowledge about auto parts; what was needed was someone to
challenge the things they were doing and build a strong team," says Mr.
Stevenson. "I wasn't going to turn the company around on my own, but I
could build a team of senior executives who would have the core skills needed
to supplement the ones that existed here."
Pat Cook, the CEO of Cook & Co., an executive-search
boutique based in
Article from
CareerJournal Online – January 2005