Creative Services Director, Warner Chappell

Job Description:

At Warner Music Group we’re all about our people. Our global company is made up of knowledgeable, passionate, and creative individuals. Our commitment to Diversity, Equity and Inclusion fosters a culture where you can truly belong, contribute, and grow. We believe in each individual’s value and encourage applications from people of any age, gender identity, sexual orientation, race, religion, ethnicity, disability, veteran status, and any other characteristic or identity.

It is the mission of every member of the WMG team around the world to create a nurturing environment for artists, songwriters, and the people behind the music – at every stage of their career. We strive to set WMG apart by embracing innovation – an integral part of our company’s DNA.

Consider a career at WMG and be a part of one of the most influential forces in culture today.

A little bit about our team:

Warner Chappell is seeking a highly organised, detail-oriented, and motivated professional to join our Creative Services team. Creative Services was recently established to service our writers and catalogues in innovative, new ways. We strategically work to amplify and add value for our iconic songwriters and legacy catalogues through non-traditional opportunity, media/brand partnerships and IP development. We play a key creative role, working closely with our catalogues and songwriters to identify, develop and execute initiatives that drive revenue and ensure our songs stay front of mind culturally. Collaboration is key - we work closely across departments within Warner Chappell Music, the broader Warner Music Group, and beyond!

Why this could be your next big break:

The Creative Services (CS) Director position is a great opportunity to play a key role within a future-focused department of a top global music publishing company! As a member of the Creative Services team, the CS Director will be responsible for executing the global CS strategy for the UK. By digging deep into WCM’s world class music catalogue, this role will find opportunities for revitalizing songs and will engage the best creative, commercial and strategic partners to add value, increase engagement and build legacy by creating new assets for Sync (covers, remixes, etc.), new content for media partners (short-form, podcasts, Film/TV, immersive, Theatrical, orchestral, etc.), and new cultural touchpoints around anniversaries, album releases and other key dates.

Leading the UK CS team, you will implement global CS initiatives for the region, and create/execute dozens of projects, while managing strong relationships across a large roster of key catalogues signed out of the UK, many with global rights.

The CS Director will communicate with and meet artist/writer managers, estates and WCM writers daily, so you will enjoy a chat, be a fantastic listener and get excited about uncovering the areas of opportunity within each catalogue, strategically developing ideas and strategic partnerships to ensure projects are completed in the timely manner.

The role will report directly into the SVP of Global Creative Services (based in the US), and work closely with the regional UK MD to deliver and operate regional goals as well as the VP of Sync, Europe on shared initiatives.

Here you’ll get to:

• Lead Catalogue strategy for UK, organize and manage a high volume of writer catalogues, closely with Business Affairs and Finance to prioritize catalogues and titles at risk/up for renewal.
• Assess catalogue assets and deliverables, identify catalogue opportunities, and engage appropriate partners to execute content activations.
• Attend high level meetings representing the CS Department to help sign new songwriters and catalogues.
• Roll out the strategy for the UK Creative Services team for opportunity development and creative project execution.
• Play an integral role in developing and managing a high volume of globally integrated, multi-faceted creative projects, timelines, and deliverables.
• Collaborate with the broader global Creative Services team to effectively manage complex projects, making sure deliverables are clear, timelines are hit & dependencies are identified, and KPI’s are met.
• Work closely with catalogue managers/songwriters/internal teams to understand priorities and needs, collaborating across departments including finance, administration, legal, digital, strategy, A&R and Sync.
• Independently manage creative projects effectively from ideation to execution, while collaborating closely with the rest of the team and within requirements, processes and expected results.
• Prioritize and multi-task effectively, maintain and communicate project milestones effectively and anticipate potential risk or challenges.
• Manage opportunities to ensure requests are fulfilled in a timely manner and partners are contacted effectively with updates.
• Strategically manage project details, negotiate general deal terms, and ensure all aspects of vendor onboarding, rate agreements and campaign performance remain aligned with contractual obligations.
• Manage relationships with key internal partners across departments, with our songwriters and throughout the media industry.
• Support on creation of internal, cross-team & upper level management presentations.
• Identify additional areas of opportunity for further potential development.

About you:

• Significant entertainment project management experience
• Proactive and self-motivated, with leadership skills and understanding of developing and executing on strategic pillars
• An ability to be analytical, identify gaps, develop workflows, and operate on both a macro and micro level.
• Possess general working knowledge of music rights and music business structure
• A creatively led individual, but will have a keen commercial focus on maximizing revenue from Catalogue
• Responsible for identifying catalogue opportunities, establishing KPI’s. engaging appropriate partners and executing content activations in a timely and clearly defined fashion
• Meticulously organised
• An effortless collaborator
• Un-knockable, with a ‘can do’ approach to troubleshooting
• Strong ‘soft skills’ and are brilliant with clients. You are a safe pair of hands and have an ability to inspire writers and catalogues to collaborate on CS projects

It would be music to our ears if you also had:

Experience across the following areas:

• Account Management (i.e. managing client relationships, results, timelines etc.)
• Business Development
• Advertising/TV/Film Production
• Live music / events management
• General music industry experience
• Content development (across various mediums)
• Marketing/Tech/Social Media

About us:

With its broad and diverse roster of new stars and legendary artists, Warner Music Group is home to a collection of the best-known record labels in the music industry including Asylum, Atlantic, East West, Elektra, FFRR, Fueled by Ramen, Nonesuch, Parlophone, Rhino, Roadrunner, Sire, Warner Records, Warner Classics and Warner Chappell Music, one of the world’s leading music publishers with a catalogue of more than one million copyrights worldwide.

For more than four decades, WMG has been an industry-leading force in providing a world-class array of services designed to help artists and labels grow their careers and their businesses. Artist & Label Services is the umbrella for WEA (Warner-Elektra-Atlantic) – the pioneering WEA distribution and marketing network – and Alternative Distribution Alliance (ADA) – the ground-breaking global distribution company for independent artists and labels.

Love this job and want to apply?

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Don’t be discouraged if you don’t hear from us right away. We’re taking our time to review all resumes, and to find the best people for WMG.

Thanks for your interest in working for WMG. We love it here, and think you will, too.

WMG is committed to inclusion and diversity in all aspects of our business. We are proud to be an equal opportunity workplace and will evaluate qualified applicants without regard to race, religious creed, color, age, sex, sexual orientation, gender, gender identity, gender expression, national origin, ancestry, marital status, medical condition as defined by state law (genetic characteristics or cancer), physical or mental disability, military service or veteran status, pregnancy, childbirth and related medical conditions, genetic information or any other characteristic protected by applicable federal, state or local law.

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