Starting next March, Maitra will be responsible for internal and external communications. She will report to CEO David Shelley, and will join the board and the executive committee. She succeeds Clare Harington, who is stepping down after working at the publisher for 12 years.
Maitra joins from MoneySuperMarket, where she is currently head of PR and consumer affairs, leading a team that promotes and protects MoneySuperMarket's reputation among a wide range of influencers.
Prior to MoneySuperMarket, Maitra held in-house roles at Viagogo, where she was deputy head of global communications, and Mastercard, where she was head of communications in the UK and Ireland. She has also worked agency-side at Weber Shandwick and Citigate Dewe Rogerson.
"With her experience of working in fast-moving consumer markets for digital brands such as MoneySuperMarket and Mastercard, she brings with her a fresh perspective and vision, and she will help us keep improving the way we communicate with our authors and other partners, and with consumers," Shelley said.
"I'm also looking forward to working with Doyel to help communicate our strategies of understanding consumers deeply, celebrating the individuality of our publishing divisions, and embedding diversity in everything we do."
Maitra said: "This role allows me to indulge my lifelong passion for books, while working for a business with a strong commitment to inclusion and innovation.
"David is a great advocate for publishers adapting to an increasingly digital world, for example, by using data as an enabler of creativity. I'm looking forward to exploring themes like this around the leadership table and in our communications next year."
Hachette recently overhauled its management structure by adding divisional managing directors to its UK management board.
