LBF Builds on Academic Expertise with Double Appointment
LONDON, 15 October 2015: The London Book Fair (LBF) has announced it is welcoming Richard Fisher, former MD, Academic Publishing at Cambridge University Press (CUP), and Michael Healy, Executive Director (International Relations) at Copyright Clearance Centre, to the LBF Advisory Board.
Fisher and Healy will join an esteemed panel of experts from across the publishing industry, led by LBF Advisory Board’s Non-Executive Chairman, David Roche. The LBF Advisory Board will continue its role in offering counsel and advice to the LBF executive team, led by Jacks Thomas, Director of The London Book Fair.
Richard Fisher was at CUP for 30 years, having joined as a graduate trainee in 1983 before working his way up to MD of academic publishing, via commissioning roles in history and politics. He has served on numerous boards and councils, including the HEFCE Expert Advisory Committee on Monographs and Open Access, and is a Fellow and former Vice-President of the Royal Historical Society (2008 – 2010). Fisher is a seasoned public speaker and has lectured on academic and scholarly publishing around the world. In January 2015 he became the Academic Correspondent of the Independent Publishers Guild, for which he writes a monthly column. He continues to serve as a Non-Executive at Edinburgh University Press and Yale University Press, and is Assistant Editor of the Oxford Dictionary of National Biography.
Based in New York, Michael Healy has 30 years’ experience in publishing, including 20 years in the UK. He has previously held senior roles at The Books Rights Registry and the Book Industry Study Group (BISG) in the USA, and has also held numerous senior editorial, sales and distribution roles in digital publishing in the UK. He has been closely involved in the development standards for the international book trade, and currently chairs the International Standard Name Identifier (ISNI) Agency.
David Roche, Non-Executive Chairman, LBF Advisory Board, said: “Jacks Thomas and I are delighted Richard and Michael will be joining the LBF Advisory Board. Their combined experience and knowledge of the publishing industry in the UK and on a global level, as well as their clear passion for the Fair, will make them an asset to the board. I’m very much looking forward to working with both of them.”
Richard Fisher added: “I am delighted to be joining the Advisory Board of The London Book Fair. Book Fairs have, if anything, grown in international importance in recent years, as global publishing comes to terms with a multiplicity of technological and cultural changes, and it is vital that academic publishing is properly represented, and its particular international resonance recognised. I look
forward greatly to working with David Roche, Jacks Thomas, and many others to advance new LBF initiatives for the academic sector.”
Michael Healy commented: “I’m very pleased to be joining the Advisory Board of The London Book Fair. My association with the book fair goes back many years, as a speaker at its seminars, as an exhibitor, and as an organiser of events in its educational program. It’s an integral and vibrant part of the global publishing industry and I look forward to working with the Advisory Board and the LBF management team to continue its success.”
The Advisory Board provides LBF with invaluable council to help inform strategy for all aspects of the Fair. The Board meets quarterly and includes members from across the globe.