NEW YORK, Dec. 3, 2015 /PRNewswire/ -- Global learning
company Houghton Mifflin Harcourt (HMH) today announced the
appointment of Ellen Archer as
President of Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Trade Publishing. Reporting
directly to CEO Linda Zecher, Archer
will drive the strategic growth and expansion of the Company's
consumer publishing business – home to iconic properties, brands
and authors from Curious George to The Hobbit to
CliffsNotes. Archer will assume the role currently held by
President Gary Gentel, who will
retire in 2016.
"For almost a decade, Gary Gentel
has led HMH Trade Publishing, spearheading our transition into new
media and channels, while building our legacy of award-winning
content and authors," said HMH President and CEO Linda Zecher. "His leadership has resulted in
revenue growth of over 60% for HMH Trade, earning him the respect
of his team, the entire HMH business, and his peers across the
industry. He will be missed by all."
Throughout his twelve year tenure, Gary has led numerous
transformative projects and initiatives that have made the business
what it is today, from the merger and integration of Houghton
Mifflin and Harcourt in 2007 to the acquisition of the Wiley
business and the subsequent expansion of HMH's culinary and
reference lines.
Ellen Archer will assume the role
of President on December 7, 2015. An
experienced leader in publishing, consumer brands and
multimedia, Archer spent 15 years at The Disney ABC Television
Group. For five years she was President and Publisher of Hyperion
Books, then a division of the Walt Disney Company, responsible for
building the company's digital business, spearheading
cross-platform initiatives, and releasing over 100 New York Times bestsellers. Most recently,
Archer consulted for start-ups and non-profits, providing strategic
advice in content development, marketing, and business
planning.
"It remains an exciting time for our Trade business," added
Zecher. "I'm thrilled that Ellen has agreed to join us as we
continue to leverage the connection between our core education
business and our consumer publishing business, expanding into new
genres, further developing our brands and properties, and
delivering content in new ways and to new audiences."
"HMH is home to an incredibly rich collection of iconic assets
and award-winning content," said Archer. "I'm proud to join this
team, to continue to grow and expand our offering for lifelong
learners, and to help leverage these properties in new and exciting
ways, driving inspiration and curiosity in the home, in the
classroom, and beyond."
Archer holds a BA in English Literature from Hamilton College, Clinton, NY. She serves on the
Foundation Board of New York Women in Communications and is a
member of The Women's Forum of New
York and Golden Seeds, an
early stage investment firm with a focus on women leaders. Archer
will be based primarily in the Company's New York office, but will divide her time
between New York and HMH's
headquarters in Boston.
MEDIA CONTACT
Emma
Doherty
Director, Corporate Communications
Houghton Mifflin Harcourt
617-351-5473
Emma.Doherty@hmhco.com
About Houghton Mifflin Harcourt
Houghton Mifflin Harcourt (NASDAQ: HMHC) is a global
learning company dedicated to changing people's lives by fostering
passionate, curious learners. As a leading provider of pre-K–12
education content, services, and cutting-edge technology solutions
across a variety of media, HMH enables learning in a changing
landscape. HMH is uniquely positioned to create engaging and
effective educational content and experiences from early childhood
to beyond the classroom. HMH serves more than 50 million
students in over 150 countries worldwide, while its award-winning
children's books, novels, non-fiction, and reference titles are
enjoyed by readers throughout the world. For more information,
visit www.hmhco.com.
About Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Trade Publishing
For nearly two centuries, HMH Trade Publishing has published some
of the world's most renowned novels, nonfiction, children's books,
and reference works. As part of a leading global learning
company, it is uniquely positioned to create educational and
entertaining content for multiple channels and in various formats,
from hardcovers and paperbacks to e-books and mobile apps. Its
distinguished author list includes ten Nobel Prize winners,
forty-eight Pulitzer Prize winners, fifteen National Book Award
winners, and more than one hundred Caldecott, Newbery, Printz, and
Sibert Medal and Honor recipients.
HMH publishes such distinguished authors as Philip Roth, Temple Grandin, Tim O'Brien, and Umberto
Eco, and a celebrated roster of children's authors and
illustrators including Lois Lowry,
Chris Van Allsburg, and David Wiesner. HMH is also home to The Best
American series®; The American Heritage® and Webster's New World® dictionaries; Betty
Crocker®, Better Homes and Gardens®, How to Cook Everything®,
The Gourmet Cookbook, and other leading culinary properties;
the Peterson Field Guides®; CliffsNotes™; books by J.R.R. Tolkien;
and many iconic children's books and characters, including Curious
George®, The Little Prince, and The Polar Express.
For more information, visit www.hmhco.com/popular-reading.
Forward Looking Statements
This news release may contain certain statements that are not
historical facts, including information regarding our intentions,
beliefs or current expectations concerning, among other things, our
results of operations, financial condition, liquidity, prospects,
growth, strategies, the industry in which we operate and potential
business decisions. Those statements constitute
"forward-looking statements" within the meaning of the Private
Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Forward-looking
statements involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other
factors that could cause our actual results to differ materially
from the results expressed in or implied by our forward-looking
statements, including, but not limited to, changes in state and
local education funding and/or related programs, legislation and
procurement processes; adverse or worsening economic trends or the
continuation of current economic conditions; changes in consumer
demand for, and acceptance of, our products; industry cycles and
trends; conditions and/or changes in the publishing industry; and
other factors discussed in our news releases, public statements
and/or filings with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission,
including our most recent Annual and Quarterly Reports on Form 10-K
and Form 10-Q. We undertake no obligation, and do not expect, to
publicly update or publicly revise any forward-looking statement,
whether as a result of new information, future events or
otherwise.
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