Meet Felicia in brand management...
| Name: | Felicia |
| Company: | Random House, Inc. |
| Title: | Vice President & Director, Brand Management & Sales Analysis |
| Location: | New York, NY |
My life in a nutshell:
a fabulous wife, daughter, sister and friend. I live in the garden, even in the winter months. It my favorite pastime to be covered in dirt, pruners in hand with a glass of Veuve waiting to be consumed. My goal is simple and singular: to laugh often. Role models: none, people I admire , few. As for memories, I create them everyday.
Describe your educational background. Where did you study? What degrees did you receive?
Kean College- Union NJ, B.A English
Describe your career history. What have been your professional experiences prior to your current position?
I began my career in publishing at John Wiley, a professional, technical, and reference publisher as a Sales Assistant. I was promoted to a Sales Promotional Coordinator after only two short months. A year later, I accepted a position at HarperHarperHarperCollins as a Promotions Manager. Two years later, I accepted a position at the now-defunct Van Nostrand Rheinhold publisher, a subsidiary of Thompson International as an Events Manager. One year later, I accepted a New York Sales Rep position. In 1994 I came to Random House as a National Accounts Manager for the Children’s Division. In 1999 I accepted the position of Director, National Accounts, Mass Market for the Children’s Division. In 2001, I accepted the position of Vice President, Brand Management, Random House Children’s Books.
What are your current roles and responsibilities?
I lead cross-functional efforts of internal and external initiatives, and identify and initiate opportunities to expand/license programs. I recommend changes to product, positioning, advertising, promotional, pricing, and retail strategy after close evaluation to ensure growth and development of our programs and publishing lines.
Describe a typical day at your job?
A typical day can include: Providing updates to licensors on retail and sales performance of their respective brands. Making recommendations on editorial direction in relation to marketplace and licensor initiatives, or pricing and publishing strategy. Identifying and communicating market trends, holes, and growth opportunities via verbal/written proposals with supporting data to marketing and editorial. Establishing aggressive and realistic sales targets by brand/title.
What attracted you to your company and position?
The long-standing reputation of excellence in publishing is what initially attracted me to Random House. What has kept me here are the extraordinary people that I continue to learn from. The attraction to my current position as Vice President,Brand Management was the exciting chance to develop a brand new team. Although Brand Management is common in CPG companies it is a fairly new concept in publishing. To be the first to lead a new team in a new arena is always exciting.
What has been your most memorable moment (so far) in your job?
My most memorable and fulfilling moment came after months of developing my team in unchartered (sometimes rocky) waters. After returning from a long vacation my boss reported that my team performed beautifully and never missed a beat. “Ah… a well-oiled machine at last.” That’s a great feeling.
What qualities do you feel are necessary to be a successful employee at your company?
One word. Flexibility. Change is essential to growth. One must be flexible in order to participate in change
Do you feel you have a good understanding of Bertlesmann and its corporate culture?
Yes, I also have a clear understanding and respect for the many micro-cultures within the corporate culture.
