Penguin Random House names new team, Shrinagesh India CEO

The two publishing giants formally merged today

As publishing giants Penguin and Random House formally merged today, Gaurav Shrinagesh was announced as the head of India operations.

Shrinagesh, previously Managing Director of Random House India, will be CEO of Penguin Random House India.

The global senior executive team for Penguin Random House was announced by Chief Executive Officer Markus Dohle, following the closing of the transaction by shareholders Bertelsmann SE & Co. KGaA and Pearson this morning to formally establish the venture.

Bertelsmann owns 53% and Pearson 47% of the company. Penguin Random House will combine the adult and children's fiction and nonfiction print and digital trade book publishing businesses of Penguin and Random House in the US, the UK, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, and India; Penguin's trade publishing activity in Asia and South Africa; Dorling Kindersley worldwide; and Random House's companies in Spain, Mexico, Argentina, Uruguay, Colombia, and Chile.

Between mid-February and early June, in order of review, Penguin Random House received governmental merger control approval in the US, New Zealand, Australia, the European Commission, Canada, South Africa, and China, all without condition.

Penguin Random House will employ more than 10,000 people across five continents. It will comprise nearly 250 editorially and creatively independent imprints and publishing houses that collectively publish more than 15,000 new titles annually. Its publishing lists include more than 70 Nobel Prize laureates and hundreds of the world's most widely read authors.

Effective with today's closing, Dohle, Chairman and CEO of Random House worldwide since 2008, assumes the position of CEO, Penguin Random House, and John Makinson, head of the Penguin Group worldwide since 2002, takes on the position of Chairman of Penguin Random House.

Says Dohle, "Today, Penguin and Random House officially unite to create the first truly global trade book publishing company. As separate companies, we have long performed outstandingly by every benchmark; as colleagues, we will share and apply our passion for publishing the best books with our enormous experience, creativity, and entrepreneurial drive.

"Together, we will give our authors unprecedented resources to help them reach global audiences—and we will provide readers with unparalleled diversity and choice for future reading. Connecting authors and readers is, and will be, at the heart of all we strive to accomplish together."

On the new innings, Makinson says, "Penguin Random House starts life today as a freshly minted company, but also as a creative enterprise that will draw on the greatest legacies in the history of book publishing.

"That heritage will help to frame the culture and personality of Penguin Random House as we place our extraordinary shared resources at the service of our authors, our customers, our readers, and our colleagues. It is an exciting day for all of us."

Penguin Random House world headquarters are in New York City.