Zondervan head Scott Macdonald to serve in advisory role

Mark Schoenwald has been appointed president and CEO of HarperCollins’ new division, comprised of Zondervan and the newly acquired Thomas Nelson.

Formerly president and CEO of Thomas Nelson, Schoenwald will report to Brian Murray, president and CEO of HarperCollins Publishers Worldwide, and will serve on the HarperCollins executive committee.

“Mark is an experienced leader in the Christian publishing market, and we are thrilled to have him at the helm of our newly expanded Christian division,” Murray said. “The new division adds further scale and balance to HarperCollins’ overall portfolio, and Mark will work closely with the leadership teams of HarperCollins, Thomas Nelson and Zondervan to build on the individual strengths of each company.”

Scott Macdonald will leave his position as president and CEO of Zondervan and will serve in an advisory role. HarperCollins did not respond to an inquiry for comment on Macdonald’s position.

“I am grateful to Scott for his leadership and professionalism during his tenure with Zondervan,” Murray said. “He has achieved everything I asked him to achieve at Zondervan during a most challenging time in the company’s history.”

Under Schoenwald’s leadership at Nelson, the company saw both double-digit revenue and operating income growth, and has had several titles place as New York Times best-sellers, including Heaven Is for Real and Jesus Calling.

Schoenwald said he feels “blessed to have the opportunity to lead” HarperCollins’ Christian publishing division.

“I am fortunate to move into this role with the benefit of a strong foundation to build on, coupled with many talented people on both teams,” he said. “I anticipate a smooth transition as we begin to work together, optimizing all strengths to create an even more successful publishing program for these two distinct brand which, combined, have 300 years of publishing experience and history.”

Schoenwald will continue to be based in Nashville, and will spend part of his time in Grand Rapids, Mich., where Zondervan will continue its operations. However, it has only signed a one-year lease.

Zondervan and Nelson each will continue to publish its respective brands and maintain its own editorial focus, “competing as they have in the past, but collaborating where appropriate,” a company statement said.

HarperCollins has “a good record of increasing the value of the companies they purchase,” said David Lewis, executive vice president, sales and marketing at Baker Publishing Group. “I was working at Zondervan the year they bought that company. Our benefits increased, our travel expenses went down—thanks to the size of News Corp.—and we had additional money to invest into the business. It is likely that something similar will happen with Nelson.”

Mark Kuyper, president and CEO of the Evangelical Christian Publishers Association said he sees Schoenwald as “an incredibly capable and gifted leader, and I look forward to working with the Zondervan and Thomas Nelson teams in the future. I'm excited to see how both houses will grow under his direction.”

Last fall, HarperCollins agreed to buy Thomas Nelson, but did not disclose the purchase price. In mid-2010, an investor group led by Kohlberg & Co. bought majority ownership in the Nashville publishing company.

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