Universal Music Group – Senior Release Manager (UK)

Music is Universal

It’s the passionate and dedicated team at Universal Music who help make us the world’s leading music company. From A&R to finance, legal to digital, sales to marketing, Universal Music is the place to grow and develop your career within a truly commercial and innovative business that leads in everything it does.

Everyone is welcome to apply for our roles, and we are determined to ensure that no applicant or employee receives less favourable treatment because of gender, race, disability, sexual orientation, religion, belief, age, marital status, background, pregnancy, or caring responsibilities.

We also recognise the importance of diversity of thought within our teams and are fully committed to embracing the talents of people with autism, dyslexia, ADHD, and other forms of neurocognitive variation.

We will always seek to make appropriate adjustments to recruitment, workplaces, and work processes to be fully inclusive to people with different needs and working styles.

If you need us to make any reasonable adjustments for you from application onwards, including alternatives to the online form or to disclose a neurocognitive condition, please email UniversalMusicCareers@umusic.com.


The A Side: A Day in The Life

This position will be responsible for managing a team of Release Managers and the availability and production of all commercial and promotional components associated with all Physical and Digital formats released via the specific labels assigned to the Release Manager.


The B Side: Skills & Experience

Be Organised:

  • Creating Bills of Material and the pricing of product outfit for physical titles
  • Track critical path milestones for new release titles across all formats
  • Determine inventory requirements for new release titles including tracking titles to ensure on-time delivery to customers
  • Scheduling, management and delivery of audio, video and artwork assets (including still images & subtitle elements for video) to digital business partners, printers and physical manufacturers, for all formats, in a timely manner
  • Apply and manage release campaigns in the global supply chain for digital products, both audio and video
  • Placement of Purchase Orders with manufacturers and liaise to ensure the timely delivery of stock into the Distribution Centres
  • Assist in resolution or escalation of incoming video or audio QC and technical issues to stakeholders as required

Be Collaborative:

  • Manage and motivate your team, setting goals for direct reports and monitoring development
  • Liaising with A&R, Marketing, manufacturers and Distribution Centres at all levels up to the most senior
  • Participate in key meetings, including weekly scheduling meetings with the Labels and manufacturers
  • Produce and distribute regular stakeholder reports

Be Creative:

Creative input with design and marketing

Be Detailed:

Ensuring all assets are to UMGI specifications


Person Specification
  • Will play an essential role towards leading and delivering change within supply chain
  • Excellent communication skills at all levels
  • Good organisational and planning skills
  • The ability to work to strict deadlines
  • The ability to work as part of a close-knit team in a high-pressure environment and support colleagues
  • Flexibility to pick up colleague’s projects at short notice
  • To be innovative and offer creative input to design and marketing
  • The ability to run numerous projects simultaneously
  • A good understanding of new technologies and general developments within the music industry and the ability to adapt and change accordingly

Bonus Tracks: Your Benefits
  • Group Personal Pension Scheme (between 3% and 9%)
  • Private Medical Insurance
  • 25 paid days of annual leave
  • Interest Free Season Ticket Loan
  • Holiday Purchase scheme
  • Dental and Travel Insurance options
  • Cycle to Work Scheme
  • Salary Sacrifice Cars
  • Subsidised Gym Membership
  • Employee Discounts (Reward Gateway)

Just So You Know

The company presents this job description as a guide to the major areas and duties for which the jobholder is accountable. However, the business operates in an environment that demands change and the jobholder’s specific responsibilities and activities will vary and develop. Therefore, the job description should be seen as indicative and not as a permanent, definitive, and exhaustive statement.

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