Gabrielle Gambrell On Breaking Barriers In Book Publishing

In Bustle’s Quick Question, we ask women leaders all about career advice, from the best guidance they’ve ever gotten to what they’re still figuring out. Here, Gabrielle Gambrell, chief communications officer of Hachette Book Group, opens up about her career pivot, leadership style, and opening doors in the industry.

For Gabrielle Gambrell, Hachette Book Group’s inaugural chief communications officer, no two days look the same. When overseeing a team that handles everything from events to crisis communications to social impact, there’s always a new project to tackle. “At any given time, I could be working on 10, 20, 30 different things,” she says.

Gambrell’s appointment to the role is monumental. In 2024, Gambrell, now 39, became the first Black woman and the youngest person to hold the chief communications officer title at a Big Five publishing house.

But before she was leading teams and winning awards, Gambrell got her start as a production assistant for Live With Regis and Kelly in New York postgraduation. Ahead of the 9 a.m. showtime, she arrived on set at 5. Living in Westchester meant she was out the door everyday even earlier.

The job may have been glamorous, but she was earning minimum wage. “I was waitressing, I was babysitting, all while having this super duper ‘sexy’ job, but I had to do those other things to survive,” she says.

After turning to her Iona University mentor for advice, she pivoted to join CBS as a sales assistant in 2008 and later moved to the company’s communications department.

Gambrell always considered herself a “storyteller at heart,” which led her to the publishing world. Outside of Hachette Book Group, Gambrell teaches communications and media relations courses at Columbia University and New York University, and also runs her own brand strategy consulting business, Gift of Gab.

Less than 5% of publishing executives are Black. “I’m very proud to be that example and proud that my children, who I care most about, say, ‘Wow, Mommy works really hard and is producing good work while opening up a gateway for others to come after her.’”

Below, Gambrell opens up about her love for reading, being the “first” in her career, and the type of collaborative workplace she aims to create.

Have you always been a big reader?

Books have always been a part of my upbringing and who I am. I am a fourth-generation college graduate, which I don’t take lightly as a Black woman. My great-grandparents attended Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) because they couldn’t legally study anywhere else at the time. My grandmother, Bessie Simpson, was a poet and wrote with Maya Angelou. She always had a book in her hand and is one of my biggest inspirations.

How would you describe your leadership style?

I want people to feel safe and secure enough in the environment I create to say “I disagree” or “Why don't we try this?” People don’t always feel that they can speak up to their boss and give feedback, so I try my very best to make sure there's a space for ideation and creativity. I don't ever want to say, “This is just how we do things.” I want to say, “Is there a better way to do it? Let's figure that out together.”

What has been the proudest moment of your career?

Being in my role now and being the first Black woman to lead communications at a Big Five publishing house, as well as being the only millennial on the board. More than that though, I’m proud to be able to open the door for others. I hope that that legacy lives on for others to break barriers and to be audacious and do whatever their heart desires.

What advice would you give to someone who is navigating being the “first” in their workplace?

Identify what makes you uniquely you. What lens do you bring that someone else doesn’t have? What can you do that will elevate the team? Lean into that in a humble way.

This interview has been edited and condensed for clarity.