Editor - Peer J

Informa PLC; United States; Remote; USD 80,000 - 120,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Flexible culture

25 days annual leave

Private medical insurance

Pension scheme

Life assurance

Volunteer days

Job summary

Informa PLC is seeking an Editor for PeerJ to guide manuscript assessment and strategic development. You will manage complex peer review issues, advise on editorial standards, and recruit Editorial Board Members across diverse disciplines.

The role involves collaboration with the Editorial Community team and engaging with conferences to promote PeerJ and open research. The successful candidate will drive policy improvements, support content commissioning, and help shape a robust journal program

Qualifications

• Advanced degree in a relevant field (PhD).
• Excellent written and spoken English.
• Strong analytical and problem‑solving abilities.
• Ability to work independently and foster team collaboration.
• Knowledge of the academic publishing industry.

Responsibilities

• Provide expert peer review guidance to manuscript assessment teams.
• Recruit and manage Editorial Board Members across diverse fields.
• Advise on scientific and editorial standards for PeerJ journals.
• Contribute to journal policy updates and author instructions.
• Promote manuscript submissions and journal content.
• Oversee full peer review processes when editors are unavailable.
• Represent the journal at conferences and promote open research.
• Support content commissioning and strategic journal development.
• Drive journal promotion and KPI improvements.
• Collaborate with Editorial Community and Desk Editor teams.

Skills

Complex scientific topics

Academic communication

Multitasking

Interpersonal communication

Willingness to travel

Education

PhD (required)

Job description

The Editor, PeerJ, supports the editorial and strategic development of our PeerJ / PeerJ Computer Science journals by providing guidance to the manuscript assessment team, individually managing complex peer review issues, and advising the Chief Editor, PeerJ, on scientific and editorial standards. The Editor will conduct ethical investigations as required, commission content, promote submissions, and represent the journal at conferences. Additionally, the Editor will support the PeerJ Editorial Community team in recruiting for and managing PeerJ's Editorial Board, including conducting meetings of the Editorial Board with the Chief Editor. And you will collaborate across departments to address the needs of publishing academics, driving growth and championing open research.

Responsibilities

• Provide Expert Peer Review Support: Serve as an escalation point for the manuscript assessment team (desk editors) in handling complex or novel scenarios, offering guidance and expertise.
• With support from the PeerJ Editorial Community team, recruit and manage Editorial Board Members: actively recruit, vet, train, and maintain strong communication with Editorial Board members across diverse subject areas.
• Advise on Scientific and Editorial Standards: offer insights and recommendations to internal and external stakeholders on scientific, technical, and editorial matters within your subject expertise.
• Contribute to Journal Policies: provide input on updates and improvements to the Scope, Editorial Policies, and Author Instructions for PeerJ journals.
• Promote Manuscript Submissions: actively encourage manuscript submissions through targeted journal promotion and outreach efforts.
• Oversee Peer Review Processes: manage the full peer review process for manuscripts when an academic editor is unavailable, ensuring timely and high-quality reviews.
• Represent the Journal by attending local and international conferences to enhance market knowledge, network with the academic community, gather feedback, and promote PeerJ and open research initiatives.
• Support Content Commissioning: proactively suggest topics and assist in commissioning high-quality content to align with journal goals.
• Drive Journal Promotion: ensure the journal is effectively promoted through all relevant channels and platforms.
• Strategic Development: collaborate with the Chief Editor to provide strategic input for developing a robust and competitive journal program.
• Conduct Ethical Investigations: lead and manage ethical investigations as required, ensuring adherence to publishing and industry standards.
• Collaborate Across Departments: work closely with colleagues in other departments to communicate the needs of publishing academics and develop strategies to address those needs.
• Implement Process Improvements: identify and implement process enhancements to improve key performance indicators (KPIs) for the peer review process.
• Foster Team Collaboration: partner with the Editorial Community and Desk Editor teams to ensure seamless operations and alignment with organizational goals.

Requirements

• An advanced degree (minimum PhD, but ideally postdoctoral)
• Excellent English comprehension and communication skills (written and verbal)
• Good analytical, decision making and problem-solving skills.
• Ability to work independently, contribute to building a positive team spirit and support everyone's efforts to succeed.
• Knowledge of the academic publishing industry.

Skills and Behaviours Required

• Capable of understanding complex scientific topics
• Able to confidently converse with academics, and able to communicate academic concepts to a broader audience.
• Capable of handling multiple responsibilities, working independently, and meeting strict deadlines.
• The ability to communicate both upstream and downstream within the organisation.
• Positive and flexible attitude
• Willingness to travel as required by the company.
• A high level of personal motivation and demonstration of persistence to overcome obstacles.
• Effective presentation and organizational skills
• Strong oral and written communication skills

Informa is a leading academic publishing, business intelligence, knowledge and events business, creating unique content and connectivity for customers all over the world. It is listed on the London Stock Exchange and is a member of the FTSE 100.

Taylor & Francis Group operates globally and produces high quality, peer reviewed books and journals. We produce unique, trusted content by expert authors, spreading knowledge and promoting discovery globally. We aim to broaden thinking and advance understanding, providing academics and professionals with a platform to share ideas and realize their individual potential. Our purpose is to foster human progress through knowledge. We strongly believe that this requires us to encourage and examine different ideas and voices, so that any work that meets our exacting levels of quality deserves to be included in our publications. This requires open minds, the opportunity for robust debate, and the courage to defend perspectives that stand up to scrutiny, even if they conflict with our personal beliefs or values. Because that's the only way to find the best obtainable version of the truth and, ultimately, foster human progress.

We believe that great things happen when people connect face-to-face. That's why we work in-person with each other, or with customers and partners, three days a week or more. When you're not spending time together in one of our offices or other workplaces - like at conference - you get the flexibility and support to work from home or remotely.

What we offer in return

• An excellent work/life balance with a fantastic, flexible working culture
• 25 days annual leave per year plus a day off for your birthday
• 3 additional discretionary days off during the holiday season at the end of the year
• 4 paid volunteering days each year
• Company funded single cover private medical insurance
• Employee assistance programme - offering 24/7 well-being support
• Share Match - Plan that matches every share purchased with two free shares.
• Pension scheme
• Life assurance, plus optical and medical care

The successful candidate will be able to utilise our balanced working model. We ask that candidates live within a commutable distance of our offices to ensure that as a balanced worker they can make it to our office locations to collaborate as required. There is an expectation for a minimum of 3 days per week in-person time, with those 3 days a week spent in our office in Milton Park, Oxfordshire. Please note that our Milton Park office will be relocating to Oxford city centre in late 2027 / early 2028, offering an exciting new workplace in the heart of the city.

Taylor & Francis is proud to be an Equal Opportunity Employer. We believe in and value diversity of people and thought, fostering a supportive and inclusive environment where all colleagues can learn and succeed as their true selves. Taylor & Francis recruits, develops, and retains colleagues without regard to any protected personal characteristics or other non-merit-based factor. We genuinely care about our colleagues, promoting work-life balance, wellbeing, and flexible working. We believe that the skills and experience you bring to Taylor & Francis are invaluable. We want you to have the opportunity to develop your abilities, and to innovate and develop in areas which you are passionate about.