We are the world’s largest university press. That means we serve the academic community as no other publisher can. We work in partnership with institutions and learned societies to bring a world of knowledge to the fingertips of students and researchers worldwide.
The goal is impact. Together with our academic communities, we curate and seamlessly connect together the ideas that push their fields forward, so they can learn from them, add to them, and continue a virtuous cycle of scholarship.
And because we are a part of the academic community and guided in everything we do by our mission, we re-invest in our people, our publishing, and the world-leading research institution of which we are part.
About the Role
As our new Publisher in the Humanities, Social Sciences, and Law team, you will manage a list of journals to a degree of excellence that enhances OUP’s standing in the academic community and publishing landscape, with the overall aim of supporting the departmental contribution towards divisional goals.
You will collaborate with the academic Editors of your journals to publish high-quality content and increase article output where appropriate. Working with the Executive Publisher and Publishing Director, you will successfully negotiate consistent contractual terms with Editors, and any affiliated partners, which align with OUP’s strategic priorities and compliance processes.
A key aspect of your role will be to manage the Editor(s), editorial performance, and any affiliated partners for all titles according to best practices and adhering to contractual terms. You will be expected to provide and interpret data analysis to enable evidence-based decision making for strategic / editorial development of your journals, including: bibliometric analysis to understand drivers of impact, competitor analysis, emerging trends, content growth and financial modelling.
You will respond to queries and requests from Editors in a fast-paced and effective manner, building strong relationships with Editors and key academic contacts, and will attend editorial board meetings, one-on-one meetings with Editors, ad hoc meetings or conferences as required, presenting reports on behalf of OUP. This may include international travel and working evenings and weekends.
Other duties of the role will include:
Providing data analysis to enable evidence-based decision making for strategic / editorial development of journals
Working collaboratively and productively with other functional groups (especially production, marketing, digital, and sales) to deliver an excellent service for journals
Working with finance and operations colleagues to assist in management of costs for the portfolio
Facilitating the roll out of OUP journal policies across the portfolio
Assisting with implementation of projects that scale across the journals programme
We operate a hybrid working policy that requires a minimum of 2 days per week in the Oxford office.
About You
This exciting Publisher position will give you the opportunity to either develop or deepen your journal portfolio management experience. You must demonstrate an understanding of the scholarly publishing landscape and show an aptitude for building and maintaining relationships with academic editors.
You will have:
Publishing or transferable professional experience, preferably with experience in journals and preferably in the social sciences and/or humanities
Understanding of academic publishing, including editorial processes, production processes, marketing, industry trends, systems, competitors, and technology
Outstanding communication skills and the ability to influence, persuade, and negotiate with both internal and external parties.
Analytical and forecasting ability to review trends and align development appropriately
Entrepreneurial skills
Benefits
We care about work/life balance here at OUP. With this in mind we offer 25 days’ holiday that rises with service, plus bank holidays and Christmas closure (3-days) and a 35-hour working week. We are open to discussing flexibility in respect to working patterns, dependent on role. We also have a great variety of active employee networks and societies.
We help make your money go further by contributing to your pension up to 12%, offering loans and savings schemes through our partnership with Salary Finance, in addition to travel to work schemes and access to a wide range of local discounts.
This role comes with the added benefit of a discretionary annual payment.
Please see our Rewards and Recognition page for more information.
We are committed to supporting diversity in our workforce, and ensuring an inclusive environment where all individuals can thrive. We seek to employ a workforce representative of the markets that we serve and encourage applications from all.
