Rights & Permissions Specialist

We are seeking a Rights & Permissions Specialist who will join a team of exceptional professionals at the Johns Hopkins University Press committed to bringing the benefits of discovery to the world by providing global access, impact, and influence for the scholarship that we publish and distribute. This position will help to ensure that the Press is a leader in the selection and development of innovative ideas and scholarship; the creation of pioneering technologies to enhance discovery and learning; and the connection of people to the most trusted knowledge from global researchers, scholars, and educators.

The Press is committed to honoring every person’s inherent dignity as human beings and making that the foundation of our organizational culture. We proactively find ways to ensure opportunities that promote justice, equity, diversity and inclusion. We strive to publish courageously, while giving a voice to groundbreaking ideas. We support each other and our stakeholders and envision a future where knowledge enriches the lives of every person. The successful candidate will join a welcoming community that is inclusive and values the contributions and perspectives of individuals from all backgrounds.

Specific Duties & Responsibilities:

• The Rights & Permissions Specialist will join a team responsible for a budget of $1,000,000 revenue for books and journals revenue.
• Responsible for the permissions budget for books and journals published and for maintaining and increasing the $100,000 budget revenue.
• Involves independently coordinating permissions requests, including researching rights and assessing and negotiating fees with global publishers and vendors. Includes developing and implementing in-house industry practice fee assessment structure.
• Basic understanding of copyright in an academic book publishing environment is required.
• Will work with the Copyright Clearance Center to oversee and supervise account for books and journals in order to increase and maximize permissions revenue via regular account reviews.
• Involves identifying and seeking new revenue streams for licensing book and journal content.
• Excellent written and oral communication skills required to communicate time-sensitive matters globally with publishers and vendors, with a sensitivity to culturally diverse institutions and authors
• Assist the Rights Manager with pitching titles to global partners for subsidiary rights and negotiate multi-cultural licenses.
• Negotiation of terms involves communication with the Rights Manager, Director of Press, CFO of Press, Director of Journals, and University Counsel required.
• Includes identifying and developing new foreign publisher relationships and maintaining those relationships through correspondence, meetings, and domestic and international travel to international book fairs and conferences if required.
• Working with the Marketing Department, this position may also represent the press at academic conferences.
• Prior contract negotiation experience required.
• Must keep current with copyright law in relation to academic book publishing.
• Position involves identifying publishers to license audiobook as well as serial rights and other subsidiary and digital licenses. Responsibilities include drafting, tracking and sending all subsidiary rights contracts to global partners as well as all other rights related agreements including rights reversions.
• Involves tracking expired licenses and outstanding payments.
• Independently coordinate logistics for foreign book fairs including exhibits, travel, display, supplies, including payment of global vendors and processing of wire and international and domestic credit card payments.

Minimum Qualifications (Mandatory):

• Bachelor’s Degree required.
• Two years of related copyright work experience required.
• Additional education may substitute for experience.*
  

* JHU Equivalency Formula: 30 undergraduate degree credits or 18 graduate degree credits = 1 year of experience. For jobs where equivalency is permitted, up to two years of non-related college coursework may be applied towards the total minimum education/experience required for the respective job.

** Applicants who do not meet the posted requirements but are completing their final academic semester/quarter will be considered eligible for employment and may be asked to provide additional information confirming their academic completion date.

Preferred Qualifications:

• Experience with Microsoft Outlook, Word, Excel.
• Ability to prioritize multiple time sensitive tasks.
• Candidate must be detail oriented, flexible, have exceptional organizational skills in a fast-paced environment.
• Excellent critical thinking and communication skills.
• Superior problem-solving skills.
• Creative thinker; embracing new ideas; passionate about exploiting the potential of JHUP.
• Inclusive in decision-making and problem-solving.
• Excel in effective use of resources; keen self-awareness of strengths and weaknesses.

Classified Title: Rights & Permissions Specialist
Role/Level/Range: ATP/03/PB
Starting Salary Range: Commensurate with experience
Employee group: Full Time
Schedule: M-F, 8:30 am - 5:00 pm
Exempt Status: Exempt
Location: Hybrid/Homewood Campus
Department name: Press General Administration
Personnel area: Academic and Business Centers

The successful candidate(s) for this position will be subject to a pre-employment background check.

If you are interested in applying for employment with The Johns Hopkins University and require special assistance or accommodation during any part of the pre-employment process, please contact the Talent Acquisition Office at jhurecruitment@jhu.edu. For TTY users, call via Maryland Relay or dial 711.

Johns Hopkins has mandated COVID-19 and influenza vaccines, as applicable. Exceptions to the COVID and flu vaccine requirements may be provided to individuals for religious beliefs or medical reasons. Requests for an exception must be submitted to the JHU vaccination registry. For additional information, applicants for SOM positions should visit https://www.hopkinsmedicine.org/coronavirus/covid-19-vaccine/ and all other JHU applicants should visit https://covidinfo.jhu.edu/health-safety/covid-vaccination-information/.

The following additional provisions may apply, depending on campus. Your recruiter will advise accordingly.

The pre-employment physical for positions in clinical areas, laboratories, working with research subjects, or involving community contact requires documentation of immune status against Rubella (German measles), Rubeola (Measles), Mumps, Varicella (chickenpox), Hepatitis B and documentation of having received the Tdap (Tetanus, diphtheria, pertussis) vaccination. This may include documentation of having two (2) MMR vaccines; two (2) Varicella vaccines; or antibody status to these diseases from laboratory testing. Blood tests for immunities to these diseases are ordinarily included in the pre-employment physical exam except for those employees who provide results of blood tests or immunization documentation from their own health care providers. Any vaccinations required for these diseases will be given at no cost in our Occupational Health office.

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