Broadview Press, a higher education textbook publisher, is looking to fill the position of Publisher’s Representative at our office in Guelph, Ontario. This is a permanent, salaried role that involves significant travel and requires in-person marketing skills.

The primary responsibility of Publisher’s Representatives is to promote Broadview’s catalogue of textbooks to postsecondary instructors. Representatives work as a team to provide relevant text suggestions, send complimentary examination copies, and respond to questions about our books. This position also includes the opportunity to learn about many aspects of both Broadview’s operations and the academic publishing industry.

More details about the position follow below. The application deadline is June 6, 2025.

In-Person Publisher’s Representative

ADVANTAGES OF THE POSITION

• A high degree of autonomy: Broadview’s representatives receive a substantial amount of training and support, particularly in their first academic terms at Broadview. However, once they’ve gained some experience, representatives are given considerable discretion in how they schedule their sales travel, approach their on-campus conversations with professors, and plan their overall marketing strategies to boost sales in their territories.

• Connections to other parts of Broadview: Though sales will be the successful candidate’s main focus, our in-person representatives are a major driver of new acquisitions at the press. Representatives are encouraged to pass on editorial ideas based on professor and bookstore feedback, observations of adoption trends at their assigned schools, and understanding of the markets in which Broadview operates.

• Camaraderie and mentorship: Though the majority of our sales work involves solo travel (with the exception of a few conferences), our representatives exchange ideas and strategies, celebrate their wins, and commiserate over tough days with their peers and with senior sales reps and managers. We actively encourage communication, support, and collegiality across all levels of the sales team, and strive to mentor new representatives by providing peer and senior staff support.

• Ongoing learning: In this role, our representatives are exposed to a range of professors across a variety of disciplines. By listening to their needs, learning about their course goals and their students’ needs, and by understanding new educational challenges, representatives are constantly exposed to new ideas and information across disciplines.

SUMMARY OF THE POSITION

• Full-time position (37.5 hours per week) starting mid-July 2025, with travel to begin in September.
• Travel responsibilities totalling 50–70 days per academic year, depending on territory size and conference attendance. Much of this travel is taken in week-long chunks, with overnight travel required.
• Weeks not spent travelling are expected to be spent in-office on a hybrid basis (at least 3 days per week in person at the office).
• All travel expenses are paid by Broadview via a company-issued credit card
• The successful candidate will act as Broadview’s representative for a defined territory of universities and colleges within Canada and the United States. They will maintain existing adoptions and increase revenue across their sales territory by:
  • setting goals in conversation with the Sales Manager and Vice President of Sales and Distribution, and reviewing them every 6 months
  • contacting academics at their colleges and universities through in-person visits to campuses (cold-calling and scheduled appointments) and by email in title-specific and school-specific marketing campaigns
  • promoting Broadview’s extensive catalogue, with a focus on new and recently published titles, by identifying potential adopters of our titles and matching relevant texts to upcoming courses
  • developing and maintaining relationships with academics and bookstores to uphold Broadview’s reputation for excellent customer service
• The successful candidate will also assist their colleagues as needed through:
  • additional sales efforts
  • market research
  • sharing acquisitions leads from their sales territory with editors
  • attending conferences and select book fairs

COMPENSATION AND BENEFITS
Currently available benefits include:

• Salary to start at $48,000 annually, plus inclusion in the company-wide profit-sharing plan.
• Eligibility for benefits after three months; these include vision, dental, and paramedical services like physiotherapy and massage therapy. Coverage for spouses and dependent children is available.
• Vacation time starts at 15 days for new staff and increases over time. Staff are also entitled to sick and personal days, company holidays, and the statutory holidays of all provinces in which Broadview operates.
• All Broadview staff receive a 50% discount on Broadview titles.
• Company-provided laptop and tablet for the duration of the position

THE IDEAL CANDIDATE

• Is genuinely enthusiastic about sales work, and is interested in honing their sales-related skills in the long term
• Has a bachelor’s degree (required) or master’s degree (asset)
• Has previous experience in sales or marketing, or has taught at a postsecondary institution (asset)
• Has previous experience in publishing (asset)
• Has a valid driver’s license and passport (required)
• Has a good understanding of the culture and operations of the postsecondary environment
• Is interested in learning about new teaching strategies, new developments within our disciplines, and the directions textbooks and new technologies are taking
• Has strong written and verbal communication skills
• Is able to pick up new information quickly, and can be nimble in their thinking and strategy
• Is comfortable with significant amounts of business travel throughout the year, concentrated largely into a 5-month period during the academic year
• Is self-motivated, has strong analytical skills, and thrives on new challenges
• Is persuasive and not easily daunted in tough conversations
• Has experience working both independently and collaboratively
• Must be eligible to work in Canada

Broadview Press embraces diversity and is committed to an inclusive workplace. People who identify as being from communities underrepresented in publishing and academia, including Indigenous people, racialized people, people with disabilities, people identifying as 2SLGBTQ+, and people from low-income backgrounds are encouraged to apply.

The word “broadview” expresses a good deal of the philosophy behind our company. Our focus is very much on the humanities and social sciences, but within these fields we are open to a broad range of academic approaches and political viewpoints. We strive to produce high-quality, pedagogically useful books for higher education classrooms—anthologies, editions, sourcebooks, surveys of particular academic fields and sub-fields, and also course texts for subjects such as composition, business communication, and critical thinking. The company has over 800 titles in print and currently publishes approximately 30–40 new titles per year. Broadview Press was incorporated in 1985; since then, the company has grown steadily and now employs over 30 people, 6 of whom are based out of the Guelph office.

To apply, please send your resume and cover letter in a single PDF to Christine Handley, Vice President of Sales and Distribution, at [email protected].