Inventory Controller (12m FTC)

We are looking for an Inventory Controller to join the Penguin Group Publishing Operations team on a 12-month fixed-term contract basis in London.

The Inventory Management team collaborates with colleagues within Publishing Operations and across Sales, Production, Finance, and our Publishing Houses to maintain the correct stock levels for every one of our titles throughout their lifecycle. The team plays a critical role in managing relationships with our distribution colleagues and our external partners to ensure the efficient distribution of our books.

The role

Reporting to the Senior Inventory Manager, you’ll manage the day-to-day inventory requirements for a portfolio of titles, helping to maintain appropriate stock levels and availability.

This is a busy and varied role, with great opportunity to learn, develop, and support multiple colleagues across the wider Inventory team. You’ll ensure things run smoothly.

Key responsibilities:

• Managing Inventory processes for Print on Demand titles
• Ordering stock imported from Group Companies
• Working with Sales Operations and Production to set up Local Prints for Group Companies
• Managing Inventory reserves and reporting on Out-of-Stock titles
• Managing the Non-Trade inbox and setting up bespoke printings
• Releasing customer orders from our Order Management System, including stock for independent shops and Amazon
• Maintaining price grids for Group Territories
• Attending meetings and actioning reprints for the team as needed
• Running weekly and monthly reports to track information
• Carrying out other ad hoc team support when needed
• Cross-skilling with other Inventory Management colleagues to provide optimal team support
• Contributing to system improvements and testing across inventory processes.

What you will bring

Essential criteria:

• We are looking for a team player with excellent logistical skills who can multi-task whilst maintaining attention to detail.

• Experience of inventory, stock management, supply chain or a comparable operational environment.
• You will need to work well under pressure to meet deadlines and be able to prioritise your workload effectively.
• You must be able to demonstrate a high level of competency with Excel, and the ability to quickly learn new systems and processes.
• You’ll have a proven ability to influence process changes so having some experience of working in a data heavy role will help you to adapt quickly into this role.
• The ability to make decisions independently and communicate your reasoning clearly and confidently.
• Experience of working with data and using it to make accurate, time-sensitive decisions.
• An understanding of the publishing process and how Inventory works alongside Sales, Production and Finance.
• Confidence in working with multiple systems and interpreting information from different sources.
• Experience with inventory or reporting systems such as SAP, Biblio or Business Objects.

Application instructions

Please apply with your CV and Cover Letter outlining why you are the right candidate for the role by 23:59 on Sunday 15th November 2026.

AI

Here at Penguin, we believe in the power of authenticity and human creativity. When you apply for a position, we want to encourage you to showcase your unique voice. Throughout our recruitment process, please share your own thoughts, experiences, and skills. This helps us get a true sense of who you are and what you might bring to our team.

We celebrate creativity and diverse perspectives, so please be yourself! While we recognise AI tools can be helpful, we recommend using them thoughtfully to ensure your responses reflect you.

Disability Confident

As a Disability Confident Committed organisation, we offer interviews to candidates with a disability who meet the essential criteria for the role, and opt-in on their application form. The essential criteria for this role are listed as part of the ‘What you’ll bring’ section. There may be times when the volume of applications means we cannot take all eligible candidates to interview.

We encourage you to tell us about any reasonable adjustments you may need by emailing PRHCareersUK@penguinrandomhouse.co.uk. Remember, you only need to share what you are comfortable with, for us to support your request.

Salary

The salary for this opportunity will be c.£32,000 depending how your experience and skills align to the role, plus bonus and benefits.

Hybrid working

While our offices across the UK are places to connect, collaborate and celebrate with colleagues, we recognise that flexibility around where you work is just as important.

For this role we expect that you’ll work from our Embassy Gardens office a minimum of 3 days per week during the probationary period, moving to 2 days a week after probation.

Disclosure requirements pertaining to the collection of your personal data:

Responsible for processing the information provided in your application is the company specified in the job advertisement, with its registered office as indicated. The company processes your data for the purpose of establishing an employment relationship on the basis of Art. 6 (1) b GDPR / Section 26 (1) sentence 1 BDSG.

The retention period for your data is determined by the statutory time limits applicable in the respective country, beginning upon completion of the recruitment process. You can find these here.

You can contact the company’s Data Protection Officer at the above-mentioned postal address.

Further information on data protection and your rights can be found here.

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