 |
||
|
|
||
| |||||||||||
Magazines and more Publishing conglomerate Time Inc. keeps readers up-to-date on news, fashion, and gossip with close to 40 magazines; intellectually stimulated with book publishers Little, Brown and Warner Books; and handy around the house with its various Time-Life series. The company's groundbreaking Web site, www.pathfinder.com, boasts digital versions of its most popular magazines. Among Time Inc.'s magazine titles are the influential current events weekly TIME and the now defunct photo-journal, Life. The company also publishes such popular consumer titles as People, Sports Illustrated, and In Style. Time Inc. founded the nation's first and most successful premium cable television service and operates the world's largest book club (Book-of-the Month club). A brief history of Time In 1922, Henry Luce established Time's flagship magazine, Time, partly to publish news analyses from the proper point of view - his own. In the 1930s, Luce launched Life and Fortune, two magazines that have since become American publishing icons. In 1961, the company answered the prayers of do-it-yourselfers across America when it established Time Life books. Time for change After decades of often controversial control, Luce stepped down as editor-in-chief of the Time magazines in 1964. Throughout the 1960s and 1970s, Time continued to be one of the innovative news weeklies in America. In 1989 Time fought off a hostile bid by Paramount and merged with film, music, and television studio Warner Communications. The deal left the new company in deep debt but with resources matched by few other entertainment businesses. In 1996, Time Warner bought Turner Communications and subsidiary CNN, further bolstering its news and publishing resources. Dividing Time Time Inc. has historically lagged behind competitors like Hearst and Conde Nast in terms of international exposure. Whereas Hearst made 25% of its revenues abroad in 1997, Time Inc. earned only 6% of magazine revenues from international titles. It failed in an effort to launch French and Italian versions of Fortune in the early 1990s. The publisher did better with Fortune Americas, a biweekly newspaper supplement published in Spanish and Portugese for Latin American markets. Oft-criticized for putting too much emphasis on American stories in its foreign titles, Time implemented an editorial restructuring in 1997. The company divided editorial power for TIME magazine into six divisions: Europe, the Middle East, and Africa are now controlled through the London office; Asia through Hong Kong; the South Pacific area through Sydney; South America through Mexico City; Canada in the Toronto office; and North America in the New York HQ. The company's most successful international experiment has been with Wallpaper, a London-based pop culture/home fashion bible for the international jet set crew. Since acquiring the magazine in 1997, the company has successfully distributed it around the world - though it is only published in English. Back at home, Time Inc. recently announced that it had chosen THINK New Ideas, Inc. to be its interactive agency of record (AOR) and to develop its online brands, including Time.com, Fortune.com, and People Online. THINK will concentrate on extending and integrating Time Inc.'s e-commerce capabilities. Time for a change Time Inc. is changing as the merger between its parent company Time-Warner and AOL becomes a reality. Time Warner announced that there will be no uber-editor who oversees all content produced by the media conglomerate. This will allow Time Inc. to retain certain level of autonomy, however it remains to be seen how the top posts at the company will shake out following the merger. In the meantime, Time Inc. is moving ahead with new ventures. It has started eCompany Now, a magazine dedicated to Internet businesses, which has seen considerable success due in part to its relationship with AOL, a significant marketing partner. Time Inc. has also indicated an interest in acquiring a minority stake in Essence magazine, and has sacrificed Life magazine, one of the most famous magazines in history that was scuttled due its "nostalgic" nature. The future of Time Inc. depends on how it interacts within the new company, as it will remain a significant, but smaller piece of the new Time Warner-AOL family.
Current job openings and contact information are listed on the 'corporate side' of Time Warner's Pathfinder Web site. Applicants should select the "job listings" link. To apply for a position at Time Inc., send a resume and cover letter to the HR department of the office you hope to work for. The company does not always list job openings, so you should describe the kind of position you would like. Time Inc. hires "everything from writers, editors, and photographers to researchers (fact-checkers), designers, layout experts, and adminstrative staff." The company will send a letter confirming receipt of your application, and will call if it wants you for an interview. "It's not easy for anyone to get hired at Time," admits an insider. "Turnover is generally pretty low, so it's not a place where there are always tons of jobs available." That source also points out that getting hired at the prestigious publisher "requires significant industry experience." Most staff members on Time Inc. magazines, in addition to holding degrees from the nation's top schools, also have several years of newspaper or magazine experience. "Get a good background at a newspaper or magazine," advises one contact, "and approach Time once you have a good set of clippings." "One way to rise above the other talented people who are applying," notes a contact, "is to get a reccomendation from someone inside who knows you or your work." However, "in the end, they're likely to hire the person who they think is best for the job, regardless of who they know." If you're going for a writing or editorial position, sources say "your work will speak for you."
High pressure, long hours Time's "pressure-filled" work environment "encourages competition among employees," who typically work "up to 50 or 60 brutal hours each week." "That's the price you pay for a job that's often unpredictable, sometimes exciting, usually demanding - and doesn't require you to punch a time clock," one source asserts. "If you want to be sure you can leave work at 5pm and have every weekend free," sneers an insider, "then get a job at a bank, not in journalism." Tough Love Though writers and researchers often see their work "mercilessly trashed" instead of being published, they point out that the company does respect their "independence and autonomy." Employees throughout the company call the office morale "uniformly high," thanks, in part, to the "brilliant" corporate moves that Time and Time Warner have made. "Time Inc. has long been considered a good place to work," says a 21-year veteran, "which explains why so many of us have stayed here for so long." One big family Insiders, however, are sure to note that it is evident that Time Inc. is a large corporation. "Time Inc. is 5000 people. It felt like a very large place [and] you could kind of get lost," reports one former employee. Still, within publications, insiders report a "familyish" atmosphere. And although the overall organization is somewhat decentralized, "there's a lot of goodwill. If you worked for People and went to TIME for some reason, you'd be very well received. It's kind of like a cousin across the country." A pretty loose place "Dress Codes" Never heard of one," claims a Time correspondent. "How you dress depends on what kind of work you do and where you do it." Of course receptionists and other employees with a lot of outside contact dress appropriately. "In any job, you're representing the company, but at the same time, you dress according to what you do." "Frankly," one source adds, "it's not a subject that employees worry much about at Time. It's a pretty loose place." Good perks, diversity Not only do Time employees enjoy the "constant thrill" of working on the "most prestigious publications in the world," they say that the writers, at least, are "well-paid for the publishing and journalism industry." As for perks: "They're kind of loose with expense policies," reveals an insider. Or used to be. Up until May 1999, employees were allowed to expense entertainment purchases - books, CDs, magazines, movie tickets, cable TV, and newspapers - in order to "keep current." Though it was officially "frowned upon to be extravagant," at least one source from People magazine reports that it really depended on "how shameless you were." The joyous days of gratis entertainment ended via memo - in fact new policy was originally established in January 1998, but few paid attention. When the memo was reissued, it was accompanied by a new list of midprice hotels that employees must choose from when traveling on business. According to a company spokesman, thes moves are "just part of an ongoing effort to be rigorous in our approach to cut costs." But insiders are not amused, especially considering the fact that 1998 was one of Time's most lucrative fiscal years. The elimination of the policy reportedly amounts to a pay cut of between $2,000 and $5,000 per employee. At Time's various divisions, reactions ranged from pouty resentment to blatant disregard. At Entertainment Weekly, for example, nothing's changed. "It's our lifeblood," says a source. Meanwhile, employees at Time's New York headquarters still enjoy "free access to the museums." With regard to diversity, says one employee, it's "probably the best I've ever seen." A long-time Time insider adds that the company "has always been eager to recruit minorities and women as long as I've been here." Another source admits that "Historically, TIME magazine has had a difficult time, giving women and minorities the same opportunities as white men." However, "that has changed dramatically in recent years." Another contact notes that "the top 10 people are white men, with one white women, but the rank and file of the company is very diverse - Hispanic, black, white, gay, everything. Tons of women."
Human Resources
Magazines;Books
Advance Publications;U.S. News & World Report More Company Profiles For more career information, go to Vault.com ©2000, Vault.com Inc
|
|
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
