21/01/2026

Meet Michael White, Head of International Publishing at HarperCollins, recipient of the George Robertson Award in 2025 for his unwavering dedication and contribution to the industry.

How and when did you enter the book industry? 

Beginning as a Library Assistant at Randwick Library in the early 90s I moved across to Bookselling – thinking that people would respect books more if they had to pay for them. 

I never looked back. 

I worked at Abbey’s around 1993 and then at Shearer’s Bookshop in Gordon with the lovely Barbara Horgan. Our Allen & Unwin rep was Sandy Weir who told me about a job going as a sales rep there. I applied and got the job in 1995 and my career in publishing began. I worked at Allen & Unwin for 9 glorious years – first as an account manager, then with some key account responsibilities, and then as NSW manager. But feeling restless, I left and worked for Lesley McKay in Queen Street for a year before returning to publishing, joining HarperCollins as the National Sales Manager. I have been at HarperCollins for over 20 years now but in different roles, including Key Accounts and now Head of International Publishing. 

This is my dream job and a lovely company to work for.

What has kept you in publishing over the years?

Books, the people, and did I mention the books? 

I love what we do, it’s endlessly renewing itself as different trends come along, it’s entertaining, exciting and I enjoy the people we do it with. 

We all have a love of books. It’s a wonderful community as well as a successful and thriving business.

What have been some of your career highlights?

Winning NSW Rep of the Year a few times when I worked at A&U and selling Harry Potter was always an exciting experience. So was publishing All the Light We Cannot See at HarperCollins and getting Australia to embrace that book before it won the Pulitzer (and ABIA).

What’s next for your career? Is there a particular project or challenge you'd like to tackle next?

I am very happy in my current role, I think it’s perfect for me. 

My goal is to do the best job that I can and to do the best for my books. 

The challenges I face in that role are the same for everyone but we thrive nevertheless.

What’s the best piece of advice you’ve been given in the industry? How have you applied it?

You will never get to the bottom of your inbox or to-do list – so manage it, plan it and it becomes much less stressful. And the other piece of advice was don’t forget to enjoy it.

Learn more about other George Robertson Award recipients here.