Random House Turns the Page

The Random House that Peter Olson is leaving behind when he heads for the halls of academia is one in large measure that he created. Olson was Bertelsmann's lead negotiator in the deal that brought the publisher into the German conglomerate's fold and he oversaw the integration of Random into Bertelsmann's subsidiary Bantam Doubleday Dell. Although the merger wasn't always smooth, it did produce a publisher that has been profitable since its formation.

Still, while all sides insist the decision to leave was Olson's alone, Bertelsmann chairman Hartmut Ostrowski made it clear that the appointment of Markus Dohle is intended to inject new thinking into the publishing house. Ostrowski appeared confident that Dohle will find ways to grow Random in a slow-growth industry in much the same way he continued to expand Bertelsmann's Arvato group in the slow-growth printing industry.

Much of the groundwork for the expansion of Avrato was laid by Ostrowski himself when he led that unit. A key was to expand Arvato beyond traditional printing, into digital services, logistics and data management. In 2007, sales in the group rose 2.8%, to 4.9 billion euros (about $7.2 billion), with currency fluctuations and divestments offsetting organic growth of 4.7%. Ostrowski has set a goal of 4% organic growth for all Bertelsmann subsidiaries; at Random in 2007, organic sales fell 1.4%. Since the traditional book industry is growing slowly, Ostrowski said new channels must be found to distribute content to consumers. Although he has some ideas, the challenge to expand Random House “is Markus's job,” Ostrowski said.

Markus Dohle Résumé

Random House in the Olson Era