Journals Commissioning and Development Editor

Persona Staff; Wes-Kaap; On-site; ZAR 279,000 - 446,400; Full time

Job summary

A leading staffing agency is seeking a candidate for journal development, focusing on commissioning plans and relationship building with editors and stakeholders. The ideal applicant will have a degree, ideally a master's, and experience in scholarly publishing. Strong communication, analytical abilities, and project management skills are essential. Proficiency in Microsoft Office is required, with a proactive approach to handling multiple projects in a dynamic environment.

Qualifications

• A degree-level qualification, with a master’s degree advantageous.
• Experience in scholarly publishing and journal development.
• Strong verbal and written communication skills.

Responsibilities

• Develop and implement journal commissioning and development plans.
• Build relationships with editors, boards, and stakeholders.
• Drive initiatives to increase submissions and engagement.
• Conduct competitor and market analysis for growth opportunities.

Skills

Scholarly publishing experience

Strong written and verbal communication

Analytical ability

Project management skills

Microsoft Office proficiency

Education

Degree-level qualification

Master’s degree (advantageous)

Job description

Responsibilities

• Develop and implement journal commissioning and development plans for a portfolio of open access journal.
• Build strong relationships with Editors-in-Chief, Editorial Boards, society partners, and other academic stakeholder.
• Identify target research groups, and emerging subject areas to support journal growth.
• Drive initiatives to increase submissions, visibility, and community engagement.
• Conduct competitor and market analysis to identify risks, opportunities, and growth areas.
• Support the acquisition or initiation of new journals.
• Represent the company at conferences and other relevant academic events where required.
• Plan and support Editorial Board and Journal Oversight Committee meetings, including preparation of papers, meeting coordination, and minute-taking.
• Manage Editorial Board and committee terms, editorial profiles, and editor contract administration.
• Work with internal teams, including indexing, analytics, marketing, and publishing operations, to ensure coordinated execution.
• Support journal contract renewals and broader publishing strategy projects.
• Coach or guide junior colleagues where required by business needs.

Requirements

• A degree-level qualification, with a master’s degree advantageous.
• Experience in scholarly publishing, ideally with responsibility for journal development, commissioning, or portfolio growth.
• A sound understanding of the peer review process.
• Experience building productive relationships with editors, boards, societies, or other external stakeholders.
• Strong written and verbal communication skills.
• Good judgement, analytical ability, and commercial awareness.
• The ability to manage multiple projects, deadlines, and competing priorities.
• A structured, organised, and proactive working style.
• Confidence working across teams in a fast-paced, deadline driven environment.
• Strong Microsoft Office capability, especially Word, Excel, Outlook, and PowerPoint.