Director, Catalogue, Warner Chappell Music in London

Overview

The Catalogue team acts as the dedicated engine for maximizing the cultural and commercial value of Warner Chappell Music's legendary assets.

We serve as a strategic bridge between our iconic legacy compositions and the modern entertainment landscape, ensuring our catalogues remain vibrant, relevant, and profitable.

Responsibilities

• Lead Catalogue Strategy & Business Development
• Develop and deliver the UK catalogue acquisition and administration strategy in partnership with the Managing Director and Global Head of Catalogue.
• Build and maintain a robust pipeline of acquisition and administration opportunities across the UK and international markets.
• Identify new catalogue opportunities through proactive market engagement, market intelligence and strategic relationship management.
• Contribute commercial insight and market expertise to support Warner Chappell's wider global catalogue strategy and investment priorities.
• Lead Commercial Evaluation & Deal Execution
• Lead the commercial evaluation of catalogue opportunities, assessing financial performance, copyright position, historical significance, market trends and long‑term strategic value.
• Develop commercial business cases and investment recommendations for senior leadership.
• Lead complex negotiations with songwriters, estates, publishers, lawyers, managers, investors and other rights holders.
• Partner with Finance, Legal & Business Affairs, Copyright, Creative and Sync teams to structure, negotiate and execute catalogue acquisition and administration agreements.
• Market Intelligence & Strategic Insight
• Maintain expert knowledge of the global music industry landscape, licensing developments, copyright legislation and catalogue investment trends.
• Identify emerging commercial opportunities, evolving market dynamics and new revenue streams that support catalogue growth.
• Provide strategic market insight and recommendations to senior leadership, helping inform acquisition priorities and long‑term planning.
• Portfolio Leadership & Value Optimisation
• Oversee the successful onboarding and integration of newly acquired and administered catalogues.
• Work closely with global catalogue, Creative, Sync, Copyright and Commercial teams to maximise the long‑term value and performance of Warner Chappell's catalogue portfolio.
• Monitor portfolio performance, identifying opportunities to increase commercial returns, creative engagement and catalogue exploitation.
• Champion initiatives that unlock new revenue opportunities across existing and emerging platforms.
• Industry Leadership & Relationship Management
• Build and maintain trusted relationships with leading songwriters, artists, estates, publishers, lawyers, managers, investors and other key rights holders.
• Represent Warner Chappell at industry events, conferences and commercial negotiations.
• Act as a senior ambassador for Warner Chappell, strengthening the company's reputation within the global music industry community.
• Develop long‑term strategic relationships that generate future catalogue acquisition and administration opportunities.

Qualifications

• Proven experience in catalogue acquisitions, business development or commercial strategy within the music industry.
• High‑energy go‑getter with relentless drive and unmatched initiative; actively pursues deals, does not wait for them to land.
• Strong relationships across the music ecosystem (managers, lawyers, songwriters, artists).
• Expertise in music trends, demographics and timeless qualities of songs.
• Demonstrable success sourcing, evaluating and negotiating complex catalogue acquisition or administration opportunities.
• Extensive knowledge of music copyright, licensing, royalty structures and rights administration.
• Strong commercial and financial acumen; experience evaluating catalogue performance and preparing commercial recommendations for senior stakeholders.
• Outstanding negotiation, communication and influencing skills, with ability to build credibility at senior levels.
• Excellent analytical, strategic thinking and decision‑making skills; balances creative and commercial priorities.
• Proven ability to lead cross‑functional initiatives and operate effectively within a global, matrix organisation.
• Experience mentoring or developing others and contributing to a collaborative, high‑performing team culture.
• Preferred additional skills
• Ability to design high‑quality decks and visual materials using Canva or Google Slides.
• Proactive integration of Generative AI tools (e. g., Gemini) into everyday work to support and streamline daily tasks and overall productivity.
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