Executive Biographies
Perminder Mann
CEO of Simon & Schuster UK and International
Perminder Mann became CEO of Simon & Schuster UK and International in May 2025. Previously, she was CEO of Bonnier Books UK where she led the company to significant growth and a reputation for embracing digital trends and inclusive practices. A seasoned publisher, she has helped launch or elevate the careers of many celebrated authors.
Mann served as President of the Publishers Association from 2024 to 2025 and is currently an Officer and Council Member. She is Chair of the board of trustees for mentoring charity Arts Emergency, holds an honorary visiting professorship at City, University of London, and is a board member of PublisHer, a global organisation advancing women’s leadership in publishing.
She was featured by Vogue as one of the 25 women defining Britain in 2025, included among the UK's most powerful leaders by The Guardian and Operation Black Vote, and listed by The Bookseller as one of the most influential people in publishing.
Olivia Allen
UK Sales Director
Olivia Allen is UK Sales Director at Simon & Schuster UK and International, leading the company’s UK sales strategy and overseeing relationships across retail, wholesale and digital channels.
Promoted to UK Sales Director in 2025 and appointed to the Simon & Schuster UK and International Leadership Board having previously held roles at Penguin Random House and Hachette, Olivia is responsible for driving sales growth across the business and ensuring Simon & Schuster’s books reach readers through innovative and collaborative commercial strategies. She works closely with colleagues across editorial, marketing, publicity and operations to maximise opportunities for authors and books across every format and channel.
Olivia is passionate about championing authors, developing strong customer relationships and creating opportunities for books to thrive in all formats in a rapidly evolving marketplace. She believes that collaboration, creativity and a deep understanding of readers are at the heart of successful publishing.
Nicholas Hayne
Director of International Sales and Client Publisher Client Services
Nicholas Hayne is Director of International Sales and Client Publisher Services at Simon & Schuster UK and International. He leads the teams responsible for international sales across Simon & Schuster UK and US publishing programmes, as well as the Client Publisher Services division and Simon Global, the company’s intercompany distribution programme.
Nicholas joined Simon & Schuster in 2017 after seven years at DK and has spent his career working across international publishing. He works closely with booksellers, distributors and publishing partners around the world, helping to connect authors and readers across a wide range of markets and territories.
Passionate about travel, international markets and the power of books, Nicholas believes that great publishing should have a truly global reach. and is committed to ensuring Simon & Schuster’s books reach readers in every corner of the world. Most of all, he is proud to lead a talented team whose expertise, enthusiasm and strong customer relationships help make that possible every day.
Catherine Smillie
Senior Legal Counsel
Catherine joined Simon & Schuster in May 2026 as Senior Legal Counsel, UK and International, supporting teams across the UK, Australia and India, and the first in-house lawyer based in the UK.
She brings extensive experience within publishing, having spent over 15 years at Oxford University Press in various roles including General Counsel, IP and Legal Operations and, more recently, The Blair Partnership, where she was Interim Senior Legal Counsel for Pottermore Publishing. Catherine started her journey as an in-house IP and commercial lawyer in the life science sector before moving into publishing.
Catherine is passionate about publishing and relishes the opportunity to use her legal expertise to help bring books to life, support creators, and ultimately encourage reading. Her breadth of experience spans the whole publishing continuum, with a particular focus on copyright, trade marks, IP licensing, collaborations, rights management, and content and brand protection. She brings a curious, open and critical mind, as well as strategic and operational expertise, to collaborate closely with teams across the business and help Simon & Schuster UK and International navigate the increasingly complex and evolving legal landscape in which it operates.
Jessica Harris
Director Human Resources
Jessica (Jess) joined Simon & Schuster in 2012 and is now HR Director, leading the HR function across the UK, Australia and India. She plays a key role in shaping the people strategy across the business, supporting growth, organisational effectiveness, and a high-performance culture.
Jess leads a fast-paced HR function, with a strong focus on inclusivity, employee wellbeing, and creating an environment where both individuals and teams can thrive and do their best work.
She brings broad HR experience across sectors including charity, facilities and construction, and distribution. Jess holds a BSc in Psychological Sciences and an MA in Human Resources Management, and is CIPD qualified.
Luke Shaller
Chief Financial Officer, UK & International
As Chief Financial Officer, Luke leads the UK finance, commercial and operations teams, including production, inventory control, contracts and IT. He is S&S UK’s corporate strategy lead and also oversees the S&S Australia and S&S India finance teams.
Luke joined Simon & Schuster in 2019, before which he spent 10 years at HarperCollins as Commercial Manager (HarperCollins Children’s Books and Avon), Commercial Director (4th Estate and William Collins) and Financial Controller. He began his finance career as an auditor with Ernst & Young before moving into publishing. He is a member of the Institute of Chartered Accountants of Scotland (ICAS) and has a first-class degree in Mathematics from the University of Leeds.
He believes passionately in realising the potential of his team to catalyse the business, bringing their breadth and depth of expert knowledge and experience to the table and partnering with colleagues in editorial, sales, marketing and publicity to achieve the best results for our authors and their books.
Polly Osborn
Associate Managing Director, Adult Publishing
Polly joined Simon & Schuster in 2019 as Marketing & Publicity Director, having worked at Penguin Random House and HarperCollins previously.
She was promoted to the role of Director of Publishing Strategy and Communications in 2023, overseeing marketing, publicity, design and rights activities for the adult publishing programme. She won Leader of the Year at the FutureBook Awards the same year.
She currently sits on the Publishers Association Council in her capacity as Chair of the Consumer Publishers Council.
Polly has been lucky enough to work with extraordinary authors on brilliant books throughout her career and Simon & Schuster is no exception. From Philippa Gregory to Dave Grohl and everyone in between, her job is to tell the world about our authors and share the wonderful experience of reading our books.
Working as a publicist and marketer is a lot of fun, especially when she gets to do so with some of the best professionals in the business. The Simon & Schuster marketing and publicity team is an award-winning team at the top of its game, with unmatched creativity, sensitivity and enthusiasm. We work hard to build and develop relationships across the industry, the media, booksellers and more to ensure our books get to the top of their piles, all whilst maintaining the highest level of author care.
Polly cares passionately about creating a working environment that is dignified and respectful for all and a publishing programme which reflects the community we live in.
Jessica Hanak
Group Digital Transformation and Innovation Director
Jessica Hanak is Group Digital Transformation and Innovation Director at Simon & Schuster UK and International,
Jessica joined Simon & Schuster in September 2025, having previously worked at Apple Books, Penguin Random House and, most recently, audio journalism start-up Curio.
She loves exploring new technologies and has been an advocate for digital reading and listening since the early days of the Kindle and iPad. Jessica oversees Simon & Schuster’s digital-first publishing and the audio division in the UK and works across the business on digital innovation and growth initiatives.
Jessica is obsessed with finding new ways to reach readers and meet them where they are. She believes that innovation should help us reach wider audiences, supporting, and not disrupting, the creativity at the heart of publishing.
Laura Hough
Deputy Managing Director, Children’s Division
Ruth Howells
Corporate Communications Director
Ruth Howells joined Simon & Schuster UK and International as Corporate Communications Director in July 2024. She leads the company’s internal and external communications strategy, as well as overseeing key corporate partnerships and strategic projects.
Before joining Simon & Schuster, Ruth led communications at the Publishers Association and Bonnier Books UK. Earlier in her career, she held senior communications roles across higher education and the public sector. Her expertise spans corporate communications, strategic messaging, corporate social responsibility, stakeholder engagement, and issues management. She holds a degree in English Literature and postgraduate qualifications in journalism, public relations, and business.
Ruth believes in the transformative power of books and reading and in publishing’s unique contribution to culture and society.
Holly Harris
Managing Director, Adult Division
Harris is Managing Director of the Adult Division and prior to this was Executive Publisher, Gallery and Non-Fiction.
She joined Simon & Schuster as Publishing Director for Non-fiction in 2020 and launched Gallery in 2021, with the imprint quickly rising to prominence and securing two shortlists for Imprint of the Year at The British Book Awards. Since she joined, the non-fiction team has tripled its revenue with numerous bestsellers and her personal list of authors includes Bob Mortimer, Kathy Burke, Alice Roberts, Britney Spears, Jess Phillips, Richard E Grant and Emma Grede.
Phoebe Morgan
Executive Publisher for Fiction
Phoebe joined Simon & Schuster in 2025 as Executive Publisher for Fiction, following roles at Hachette and HarperCollins. Through her career, Phoebe has worked with authors including Abigail Dean, Cara Hunter, Lucy Score, Milly Johnson, Sarah Vaughan, Colleen Hoover and Holly Bourne. At Simon & Schuster, Phoebe leads the Adult Fiction division, including the SFF imprint Solstice and the IP imprint Skylight, and is always on the lookout for future bestsellers. She is passionate about fiction in all its forms, and her overall goal is to get books into readers’ hands, and empower editors to do their best creative and commercial work.
She sometimes commissions, mostly in the areas of suspense, crime and book club fiction, and her list at S&S includes books by Nicci French, Heidi Swain and Rachel Hore. She loves stand-out voices, brilliant concepts, and characters who leap off the page from the very first line. Phoebe was shortlisted for Editor of the Year at the 2022 British Book Awards and is the recipient of both a Bookseller Shooting Star award and a Trailblazer award in association with the London Book Fair. She is passionate about increasing transparency in the industry and runs a Substack called The Honest Editor, with the aim of breaking down the barriers between publishers and authors.