Manager, Rights Clearance

Application Deadline: 1 June 2025

Department: Collections

Employment Type: Full Time

Location: Stephen A. Schwarzman Building

Reporting To: Eric Shows

Compensation: $85,000 - $95,000 / year

Description

Overview
The New York Public Library (NYPL) is one of the world’s great public research libraries. Its research centers provide opportunities for engagement with in-depth and unique collections, inspirational reading rooms, exhibitions, programs, and a range of research services. Collections and Research Services encompasses several departments focused on managing the ongoing development of our exceptional research collections, advancing unified discovery and expanded access to our collections, both in-person and online, and ensuring stewardship of the collections at every stage of the collections lifecycle.
We’re seeking a highly motivated and experienced Rights Clearance Manager to ensure NYPL research materials are reviewed for access, exhibitions, publications, programming and document delivery. While this is not a legal position, the Rights Clearance Manager will work closely with the Library’s Legal Department to seek guidance on complex rights issues and ensure compliance with relevant policies and laws. The manager will also support and advance strategic initiatives to expand and accelerate access to scholarly ebooks, and be a key contributor in the Library’s project to update its digital asset management system. The successful candidate will thrive working across cross-functional teams and stakeholder groups in order to meet goals in a timely manner.
We seek candidates that are eager to learn and grow, have a proven track record of supporting their teams for success, and are solutions focused.
We are looking for someone we can count on to:
Own:

• The end-to-end process of rights clearance for a wide range of materials including books, manuscripts, photographs, audio and moving image, and born-digital, collaborating with the Legal team as needed
• The process to ensure all uses of copyrighted materials comply with current laws, regulations, and licensing agreements, particularly in the areas of fair use, public domain, and orphan works
• A position as the main point of contact for internal teams and external partners, ensuring that rights clearance processes align with project timelines and goals

Teach:

• Webinars and meetings to inform staff about copyright law, fair use, and public domain issues in libraries, 
• Guidance and mentorship to the rights team on rights clearance and intellectual property guidelines and best practices

Learn:

• About developments in copyright law in libraries, rights management, and best practices to ensure that NYPL's rights clearance processes remain current and compliant
• A deep understanding of the cultural and historical significance of materials in NYPL’s collections to make informed decisions about rights clearance and usage

Improve:

• Communication, dynamics, and collaboration across teams, departments, working groups, and stakeholders
• The rights clearance workflow, identifying and implementing opportunities to streamline and enhance efficiency and reduce turnaround times for project approvals
• By creating and maintaining comprehensive records of all clearance activities and agreements, improving transparency and institutional knowledge

Some expectations for this role are that within:
1 month, this person will:

• Begin to understand the scope of the NYPL's collections and intellectual property practices, their role in strategic initiatives related to digital asset management, and begin onboarding and training on internal systems and workflows related to rights clearance
• Meet and form relationships with internal teams, including key collaborators in Legal, staff across the Research Libraries, Communications and Marketing, 
• Begin handling straightforward rights clearance requests for existing and upcoming projects, with guidance from senior staff and the Legal team

3 months, this person will:

• Continue the onboarding process, completing required trainings and meeting key staff partners 
• Be a contributing member of committees, working groups and strategic planning efforts to align rights clearance strategies with larger institutional goals
• Begin taking ownership of more complex rights clearance projects, including negotiating licenses, assisting with permissions orders, and larger digitization projects
• Gain an enhanced understandin