Job Description

Overview

Packt\'s mission is to help the world put software to work in new ways, through the delivery of effective learning and information services to IT professionals. We are one of the most prolific and fast-growing tech publishers in the world with over 8000 books and videos published. Community Relations Specialists in the Packt Expert Network team add value to the team, and all our products, by acquiring expert Technical Reviewers (TRs), Authors and developing and maintaining a strong community on Discord. Each Community Relations Specialist specializes in specific area(s) and builds a network around the specific area. This role involves negotiating contract terms with the TRs and explaining the work involved. They look for leads for potential authors, try to build a relationship with them and connect them with the Senior/Publishing Product Managers for onboarding them for upcoming titles. They also support the Senior/Publishing Product Managers to conduct peer reviews on Expert Network books by helping them with leads for User Insights. This is a lead generation and acquisition role to build a user database and a deep network in the community. As a Community Relations Specialist, you will build a professional network and make decisions that impact Packt Expert Network\xe2\x80\x99s product quality. You\xe2\x80\x99ll get the experience of connecting and working with people across the world. You\xe2\x80\x99ll also have a key role in the company that millions of software developers recognize and rely on. Although you don\xe2\x80\x99t need to be highly technical, you will need to build an understanding of software developers and their needs and how the products assigned to you fulfill their daily needs. You\xe2\x80\x99ll need strong negotiation/communication skills, an inclination towards community building/engagement and the ability to inspire authors to do an excellent job.

Responsibilities

Core

• Own the acquisition of expert Technical Reviewers as per the demands of the book pipeline, acting as the key point of contact to nurture relationships and build a pool of expert reviewers.
• Author Lead Generation: Connect with the developer community and generate expert author leads from within the community who are interested in writing books for Packt
• Work towards expansion of the Discord Community and ensure regular engagement with the members
• Ensure regular activity on the Discord Server alongside the Senior Publishing Product Manager
• Onboard Tech Advisory Board (TAB) members and generate tech insights through them
  

Additional

• Managing Potential Author Pool: Build and manage a pool of potential authors who are interested in working with Packt. Periodically engage with the pool to keep the relationship intact for future projects
• Working alongside Development Editors and Project Managers, be responsible for ensuring technical feedback is delivered effectively and addressed appropriately
• Take responsibility for meeting both acquisition and tech quality targets and to ensure tech reviews are complete, valuable and incorporated into our books
• Project manage the supply of author leads and technical reviewers for both books and book proposals when required
• Communicate daily with editors, authors, and reviewers to facilitate the technical review process for your team
• Compile information on the performance of technical reviewers to identify poor performance
• Work with the Senior/ Publishing Product Managers to improve reviewer acquisition methods
  

Responsiveness and Improvement

• Consider and suggest ideas for improvements, sharing this feedback with others in a constructive manner
• Conduct regular reviews of what and who is required to make a project successful and make on- going improvements
  

Decision Making

• Examine complex information and obtain further information to make accurate decisions
• Explain clearly, verbally and in writing, how a decision has been reached
• Provide advice and feedback to support others to make accurate decisions

Growth

• Take ownership of your individual development by identifying capability needs and consistently achieving development objectives
• Take responsibility for the quality of your own work and seek opportunities for improvement through continuous learning
• Encourage and be open to developmental feedback from others

Delivering at Pace

• Take ownership of problems in your own area of responsibility
• Remain positive and focused on achieving outcomes despite setbacks
• Check your own performance against outcomes, make improvements or take corrective action when problems are identified

Key Areas:

• Successfully onboarding and retaining high quality Technical Reviewers
• Generating high quality 1E Author Leads
• Increasing Engagement in Discord Servers
• Successfully setting up User-Insight calls
• Expanding LinkedIn community network

Skills

Lead generation: Ability to find leads on a particular topic and build a database of leads Research and analysis: Research on the technology, topic area, and competition to fully comprehend the vision of the product and the customer problems addressed by it. Use the web to find appropriate people and a means of contacting them. Ability to keep abreast with developments and advances in the tech domain Product awareness: Awareness of various market categories, product types, and in-depth knowledge of product series and their specifications Influence and negotiation: Demonstrate the ability to influence potential leads and negotiate with them to convert the leads into acquisitions with the assigned payment ranges as available Communication skills: Excellent written and verbal communication with proficiency in English is a key tool for this role, as the Community Relations Specialist is required to effectively communicate with internal and external stakeholders as and when required. Empathy while communicating is also a key aspect of communication Community Building: Ability to develop a strong network of tech experts Driving engagement: Ensure regular, value-added activity on the Discord server, in order to keep the community engaged Problem solving and decision making: Compare data, information, and input from a variety of sources to draw conclusions and take action that is consistent with available facts, constraints, and probable consequences Drive for results: Has a high level of determination and willpower to deliver results that meet or exceed targets, even in the face of setbacks and obstacles

Competencies

• You will be able to deliver on both acquisition and quality targets in a fast-paced environment.
• You will have excellent relationship management skills
• You are comfortable using a combination of intuition, experience, and expertise to identify potential problems and able to take corrective action quickly
• You will have strong project management skills
• You are inclined towards Community Building and can drive engagement in a tech community

Criteria

You will have a tech or acquisition background with 1+ year of research/publishing experience

Why work at Packt?

We recognize how important our people are and acknowledge and support the things that are important to them. We focus on the full team member experience. We aim to create a positive working environment that supports personal and collective development \xe2\x80\x93 where our people can not only grow their skill sets, continuously challenge themselves, and develop their careers, but also work together as a team and with our customers.
We try to achieve this by:

• Ensuring a positive working environment for all team members, supportive of flexible and remote work.
• Supporting individual development through growth opportunities and internal mobility.
• Encouraging social collaboration within teams and communities and knowledge-sharing.
• Fostering a culture that supports a healthy work-life balance.

We seek to achieve this by:

• Providing a broad range of benefits and initiatives.
• Advocating a healthy lifestyle where wellbeing is seen as an essential responsibility.
• Celebrating success stories and encouraging peer-to-peer recognition.
• Fostering a culture of self-development.
• Providing a work environment where the best idea wins, and challenge is encouraged.

Benefits You will also have access to a range of flexible benefits that are designed to help you make the most of your time with us.

• Bonus scheme
• 25 days\xe2\x80\x99 holiday (plus bank holidays)
• Flexible hours: choose how, when and where you work

Salary Range - 35K - 60K per month