Author Engagement Coordinator

Job Description:

Here at Rakuten Kobo Inc. we offer a casual working start-up environment and a group of friendly and talented individuals. Our employees rank us highly in terms of commitment to work/life balance. We realize that for our people to be innovative, creative and passionate they need to feel valued and supported. We believe in rewarding all our employees with competitive salaries, performance based annual bonuses, stock options and training opportunities.

If you’re looking for a company that inspires passion, personal, and professional growth – join Kobo and come help us on our mission of making reading lives better.

The Role:

Reporting to the Author Engagement Manager, the Author Engagement Coordinator will work with independent authors who publish through Kobo Writing Life (KWL), Rakuten Kobo’s self-publishing platform. In this role, you will balance author care, strategic merchandising, and content marketing initiatives to help our authors reach global readers. This role is an exciting opportunity to join a dynamic team dedicated to supporting and growing the indie author community. 

Responsibilities:

• Provide high-quality, timely assistance to authors via Intercom, ensuring a best-in-class user experience

• Collaborate with the KWL team on the KWL blog, podcast, and newsletters, using analytics to drive relevant content decisions

• Support the Author Engagement Manager in executing merchandising initiatives

• Partner with the wider KWL Team on creative initiatives to drive community growth and strengthen author loyalty

Required qualifications:

• College/university diploma or equivalent course study, ideally with a focus on publishing, book selling or digital media/content, or other book related experience (for example: working at a bookstore, running a book blog/Bookstagram/BookTok) 

• Detail and task-oriented, with strong research and organizational skills.

• Excellent written and verbal communication skills

• Ability to juggle many projects and priorities simultaneously

• Creative thinker with ideas on how the platform can further develop and diversify

• Self-starter and motivated to work independently as well as within a team

• Bonus: An interest in writing is a plus

Nice to Haves:

• A strong interest in bookselling, e-commerce, and digital reading

• A passion for self-publishing and the prospect of working with indie authors

• Experience in customer service with the ability to answer questions and concerns gracefully

• Confident computer skills: you don’t have to have used our programs before, but should be confident in your ability to learn quickly

• Experience with Excel, Google Sheets, and Google Analytics (or similar dashboards)

• Entrepreneurial mindset with a “DIY” approach to problem-solving.

• Comfort asking questions and working independently in a fast-paced environment.

The Perks:

• Flexible hours and hybrid remote working environment
• Subsidized in-office lunches
• Four extended long weekends in the summer
• Full benefits starting from your first day
• Paid Volunteer days, unlimited sick days, and 3% RRSP matching
• Work From Anywhere Program for up to 3 months (90 days)
• Lifestyle spending account
• Talent and development training budget
• Free Kobo device + free weekly e-book or audiobook
• Weekly Kobo Spark sessions
• Maternity/paternity leave top up
• Dog friendly office

About Rakuten Kobo Inc.
Rakuten Kobo Inc. is the world’s digital bookseller created by and for booklovers. Owned by Tokyo-based Rakuten Group, Inc. and headquartered in Toronto, Rakuten Kobo’s millions of worldwide users can read anytime, anywhere, and on any device. With a mission to make reading lives better for all, Rakuten Kobo connects readers to stories using thoughtful and personalized curation of eBooks and audiobooks, and the best dedicated eReaders and apps for reading. With the singular focus of making reading lives the best they can be, Kobo’s open platform allows people to fit reading into more moments in their busy lives. To learn more about Rakuten Kobo, visit www.kobo.com.

Rakuten Kobo Inc. is an equal opportunity employer. Accessibility accommodations for candidates with disabilities participating in the selection process are available on request. Any information received related to accommodation needs of applicants will be addressed confidentially.  

Rakuten Kobo would like to thank all applicants for their interest in this role however only qualified candidates will be shortlisted.  

#RKIND

Five Principles for Success
Our worldwide practices describe specific behaviors that make Rakuten unique and united across the world. We expect Rakuten employees to model these 5 Shugi Principles of Success.
Always improve, Always Advance - Only be satisfied with complete success - Kaizen
Passionately Professional - Take an uncompromising approach to your work and be determined to be the best
Hypothesize - Practice - Validate – Shikumika - Use the Rakuten Cycle to succeed in unknown territory
Maximize Customer Satisfaction - The greatest satisfaction for our teams is seeing their customers smile
Speed!! Speed!! Speed!! - Always be conscious of time - take charge, set clear goals, and engage your team

Rakuten is an equal opportunity employer. Accessibility accommodations for candidates with disabilities participating in the selection process are available on request. Any information received related to accommodation needs of applicants will be addressed confidentially. 

As part of our Rakuten interview process, we encourage applicants to use their own words, rather than AI-generated content. Tell us your story in a way that's personal and authentic.

Rakuten would like to thank all applicants for their interest in this role however only qualified candidates will be shortlisted.

Beware of fraudulent job offers claiming to be from Rakuten. Rakuten does not send unsolicited job offers or request money during the recruitment process. Learn more: https://rakutenemploymentalert.com/

At the time of posting, Rakuten expects the Compensation (base salary + discretionary bonus) for this role to be within the range shown below. Individual compensation will vary based on job-related factors, including the skills, qualifications, and experience of the successful candidate as well as business need and geographic location. The successful applicant for this role will be eligible for stock options, health, vision, dental insurance, RRSP matching, Personal Time Off (PTO), Volunteer Time Off (VTO), and other employee benefits as the company implements.