Digital Director, Car and Driver

This is a Full Time Job

Hearst Autos is looking for a top-level editor to oversee the digital arms of Car and Driver, one of the most storied brands in automotive journalism and a leading source of consumer-first car shopping advice.

We're looking for someone whose passion and knowledge of cars is equaled by their expertise at building and leading a digital team. Ideal candidates should be equal parts taskmaster, entrepreneur, and crafty storyteller - able to call on established writers as well as up-and-coming voices to produce an always informative and engaging mix of smart news and service, long-form features, shopping-oriented reviews, digital video series, conversation-driving social experiences, and more.

This role provides future-proofing leadership and daily direction for the brands' presence across all digital and social platforms, with a keen focus on implementing content and video strategies that will drive aggressive audience and revenue growth. This role is currently based in Ann Arbor, MI but will eventually work from our new office near Detroit, MI in early 2020.

Hearst Autos brings together engaging content, unrivaled data and insights, innovative consumer products and comprehensive marketing solutions to serve automotive manufacturers, dealers, enthusiasts and buyers. By combining the entire portfolio of Hearst brands, including Car and Driver and Road & Track, with the extended reach of In-Market partners, Hearst Autos reaches 163 million people every month as the nation's most influential automotive media company.

As a subsidiary of Hearst Magazines, we offer the best of both worlds: a nimble, fast-paced entrepreneurial environment coupled with the career development opportunities and perks of an established company. It's the stability of a big company with the forward-looking feel of a startup.

Responsibilities

• Lead a team of 20 editors, designers, photographers, videographers, etc., who are focused on producing a daily mix of consumer-oriented car reviews and service features, automotive news, enthusiast-oriented features and columns, video series and more across all of Car and Driver's digital platforms
• Partner closely with key Hearst Magazines Digital Media departments, including product, sales/marketing, and SEO/audience development, to refine and evolve the current content strategy, with the ability to adapt and change course quickly
• Lead the site and its team through an upcoming redesign, charting testing and content priorities, targeting new editorial ambitions, and establishing ongoing best practices for the CMS and site production
• Develop a short- and long-term edit calendar, including social, SEO, and newsletter strategy, that grows the site's footprint across the automotive content space and speaks to in-market car shoppers as well as engages lifelong enthusiasts
• Oversee and allocate the site's content, testing, and production budget
• Obsessively monitor and respond to user data with the goal of creating more engaging, high-quality content that attracts new audiences and converts current casual readers into loyalists
• Collaborate with print editorial and sales teams, particularly on integrated franchises (10 Best Cars & Trucks, Lightning Lap, etc.), to bring them to life in unique, engaging ways online and in social
• Support all brand and corporate sales team initiatives, conceiving and executing high-value editorial packages that engage readers and attract an expanding base of advertisers

Requirements
• At least 10 years of experience in digital media, two at senior management level, overseeing a team of editors and other content creators in a fast-moving publishing environment - preferably in the automotive space
• Uncanny instincts for what makes content irresistible, along with a demonstrated ability to consistently deliver against that editorial vision
• A data-driven content philosophy, relying on traffic, engagement, and revenue metrics to inform daily decisions
• Su